File Management commands

7z a→7z a archive.7z folder/ Archives & Compression Create a 7-Zip archive Creates 7z, ZIP and other supported archive formats with the 7-Zip command-line tool. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu 7z a archive.7z folder/ Fedora 7z a archive.7z folder/ Arch 7z a archive.7z folder/ Open full guide → 7z x→7z x archive.7z Archives & Compression Extract a 7-Zip archive Extracts 7z, ZIP, RAR and many other archive formats while preserving directory paths. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu 7z x archive.7z Fedora 7z x archive.7z Arch 7z x archive.7z Open full guide → Compress-Archive→zip -r archive.zip folder/ Archives & Compression Create a ZIP archive Compresses files or folders into a standard ZIP archive. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu zip -r archive.zip folder/ Fedora zip -r archive.zip folder/ Arch zip -r archive.zip folder/ Open full guide → Expand-Archive→unzip archive.zip Archives & Compression Extract a ZIP archive Extracts files from a ZIP archive into the current directory or a chosen destination. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu unzip archive.zip Fedora unzip archive.zip Arch unzip archive.zip Open full guide → compact /c→gzip file.log Archives & Compression Compress individual files Compresses individual files using gzip or xz to reduce their stored size. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu gzip file.log Fedora gzip file.log Arch gzip file.log Open full guide → compact /u→gunzip file.log.gz Archives & Compression Decompress individual files Restores files previously compressed with gzip or xz. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu gunzip file.log.gz Fedora gunzip file.log.gz Arch gunzip file.log.gz Open full guide → expand cabinet file→cabextract file.cab Archives & Compression Extract CAB archive Extracts Microsoft cabinet archives on Linux. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cabextract file.cab Fedora cabextract file.cab Arch cabextract file.cab Open full guide → gzip file→gzip -k file Archives & Compression Compress with gzip Creates a .gz file while optionally keeping the original. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu gzip -k file Fedora gzip -k file Arch gzip -k file Open full guide → tar.exe -cf→tar -cf archive.tar folder/ Archives & Compression Create a TAR archive Combines files and directories into a TAR archive without necessarily compressing them. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu tar -cf archive.tar folder/ Fedora tar -cf archive.tar folder/ Arch tar -cf archive.tar folder/ Open full guide → tar.exe -tf→tar -tf archive.tar Archives & Compression List tar archive contents Lists files inside a tar archive without extracting it. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu tar -tf archive.tar Fedora tar -tf archive.tar Arch tar -tf archive.tar Open full guide → tar.exe -xf→tar -xf archive.tar Archives & Compression Extract a TAR archive Extracts TAR, tar.gz, tar.xz and other tar-based archives. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu tar -xf archive.tar Fedora tar -xf archive.tar Arch tar -xf archive.tar Open full guide → unzip -l on Windows→unzip -l archive.zip Archives & Compression List zip archive contents Lists files in a zip without extracting them. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu unzip -l archive.zip Fedora unzip -l archive.zip Arch unzip -l archive.zip Open full guide → xz file→xz -T0 file Archives & Compression Compress with xz Creates a high-compression .xz file using available CPU threads. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu xz -T0 file Fedora xz -T0 file Arch xz -T0 file Open full guide → zip recursive folder→zip -r archive.zip folder Archives & Compression Create recursive zip Compresses a folder tree into a zip file. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu zip -r archive.zip folder Fedora zip -r archive.zip folder Arch zip -r archive.zip folder Open full guide → attrib +h→mv file .file Attributes Hide a file Linux hides files by naming them with a leading dot. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mv file .file Fedora mv file .file Arch mv file .file Open full guide → comp→cmp file1 file2 Compare Compare binary files Compares files byte-for-byte and reports the first difference. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cmp file1 file2 Fedora cmp file1 file2 Arch cmp file1 file2 Open full guide → fc /b→cmp file1 file2 Compare Binary file compare Compares two files as binary data. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cmp file1 file2 Fedora cmp file1 file2 Arch cmp file1 file2 Open full guide → copy /y→cp -f source destination Copy/Move Copy and overwrite Copies while forcing overwrite of the target. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cp -f source destination Fedora cp -f source destination Arch cp -f source destination Open full guide → move /y→mv -f source destination Copy/Move Move and overwrite Moves while forcing overwrite of the target. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mv -f source destination Fedora mv -f source destination Arch mv -f source destination Open full guide → robocopy /e→rsync -a source/ destination/ Copy/Move Robust recursive copy Mirrors a directory tree without deleting extra target files. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -a source/ destination/ Fedora rsync -a source/ destination/ Arch rsync -a source/ destination/ Open full guide → robocopy /mir→rsync -a --delete source/ destination/ Copy/Move Mirror directories Synchronizes a destination so it matches the source. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -a --delete source/ destination/ Fedora rsync -a --delete source/ destination/ Arch rsync -a --delete source/ destination/ Open full guide → robocopy /xo→rsync -au source/ destination/ Copy/Move Skip older source files Copies only files that are newer than existing destination files. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -au source/ destination/ Fedora rsync -au source/ destination/ Arch rsync -au source/ destination/ Open full guide → robocopy /z→rsync -a --partial --progress source/ destination/ Copy/Move Resume interrupted copy Keeps partial transfers and shows transfer progress. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -a --partial --progress source/ destination/ Fedora rsync -a --partial --progress source/ destination/ Arch rsync -a --partial --progress source/ destination/ Open full guide → xcopy /d→rsync -au source/ destination/ Copy/Move Copy only newer files Copies files only when the source is newer than the target. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -au source/ destination/ Fedora rsync -au source/ destination/ Arch rsync -au source/ destination/ Open full guide → xcopy /e→cp -a source_dir destination_dir Copy/Move Copy directory tree Copies folders recursively while preserving common metadata. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cp -a source_dir destination_dir Fedora cp -a source_dir destination_dir Arch cp -a source_dir destination_dir Open full guide → del /q→rm -f file Deletion Delete without prompting Removes a file without interactive confirmation. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rm -f file Fedora rm -f file Arch rm -f file Open full guide → del /s→find . -name "PATTERN" -type f -delete Deletion Delete recursively by pattern Finds matching files under a tree and deletes them. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu find . -name "PATTERN" -type f -delete Fedora find . -name "PATTERN" -type f -delete Arch find . -name "PATTERN" -type f -delete Open full guide → sdelete file→shred -u file Deletion Secure-delete a file Overwrites and removes a file when secure deletion is appropriate. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu shred -u file Fedora shred -u file Arch shred -u file Open full guide → dir /a→ls -la Directory Listing Show all files Lists hidden and non-hidden files. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls -la Fedora ls -la Arch ls -la Open full guide → dir /o:n→ls | sort Directory Listing Sort directory listing by name Sorts file names alphabetically. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls | sort Fedora ls | sort Arch ls | sort Open full guide → dir /o:s→ls -lS Directory Listing Sort directory listing by size Shows large files first. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls -lS Fedora ls -lS Arch ls -lS Open full guide → dir /q→ls -l Directory Listing Show file owner Displays owner and group in a long listing. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls -l Fedora ls -l Arch ls -l Open full guide → assoc / ftype (file extension to program)→xdg-mime File System Manage file type associations Views or changes which application opens files of a particular type. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu xdg-mime Fedora xdg-mime Arch xdg-mime Open full guide → cd→cd File System Change directory Navigates between directories. Same command name, but with important differences in path notation. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cd Fedora cd Arch cd Open full guide → copy→cp File System Copy files and folders Copies files or entire directory trees to another location. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cp Fedora cp Arch cp Open full guide → copy con→cat > filename File System Create a file from keyboard input Lets you type content directly into a new file from the terminal, without opening an editor. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cat > filename Fedora cat > filename Arch cat > filename Open full guide → del / erase→rm File System Delete files and folders Removes files or directories. Be very careful — Linux has no Recycle Bin by default. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rm Fedora rm Arch rm Open full guide → dir→ls -la File System List directory contents Lists files and folders in the current (or specified) directory. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls -la Fedora ls -la Arch ls -la Open full guide → dir /b→ls -1 File System List names only Prints one file or directory name per line without detailed metadata. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls -1 Fedora ls -1 Arch ls -1 Open full guide → fsutil file createnew→truncate -s 100M test.img File System Create a file of a chosen size Creates an empty or preallocated file with a specific size. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu truncate -s 100M test.img Fedora truncate -s 100M test.img Arch truncate -s 100M test.img Open full guide → mkdir→mkdir File System Create new directories Creates one or more new directories. Same name, but with a useful extra flag. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mkdir Fedora mkdir Arch mkdir Open full guide → mklink→ln -s File System Create symbolic and hard links Creates symbolic links (shortcuts) or hard links pointing to files or directories. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ln -s Fedora ln -s Arch ln -s Open full guide → more→less File System Page through large files Displays large text files one screen at a time, allowing you to scroll up and down. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu less Fedora less Arch less Open full guide → move→mv File System Move or rename files Moves files to a new location, or renames them. In Linux, renaming IS moving. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mv Fedora mv Arch mv Open full guide → pushd / popd→pushd / popd File System Save and restore directory location Saves your current directory to a stack so you can jump back to it later after navigating elsewhere. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu pushd / popd Fedora pushd / popd Arch pushd / popd Open full guide → rd / rmdir→rmdir / rm -r File System Remove directories Deletes empty directories (rmdir) or directories with all their contents (rm -r). Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rmdir / rm -r Fedora rmdir / rm -r Arch rmdir / rm -r Open full guide → ren / rename→mv / rename File System Rename files Renames a file or batch-renames multiple files matching a pattern. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mv / rename Fedora mv / rename Arch mv / rename Open full guide → robocopy→rsync -avh source/ destination/ File System Synchronize directory trees Copies and synchronizes directories efficiently, transferring only changed content when possible. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -avh source/ destination/ Fedora rsync -avh source/ destination/ Arch rsync -avh source/ destination/ Open full guide → subst→sudo mount --bind /source /mountpoint File System Map a directory to another path Makes an existing directory tree accessible at a second mount point. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu sudo mount --bind /source /mountpoint Fedora sudo mount --bind /source /mountpoint Arch sudo mount --bind /source /mountpoint Open full guide → tree→tree File System Display directory tree Shows the directory structure as a visual tree. May need to be installed on Linux. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu tree Fedora tree Arch tree Open full guide → type→cat File System Display file contents Shows the contents of a text file in the terminal. Also used to combine files. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cat Fedora cat Arch cat Open full guide → xcopy→rsync -av File System Advanced copy with sync & progress Copies directories with more control than cp — supports sync, progress display, resume, and remote copying. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rsync -av Fedora rsync -av Arch rsync -av Open full guide → fsutil hardlink create→ln existing_file hardlink_name Links Create hard link Creates another directory entry pointing to the same file inode. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ln existing_file hardlink_name Fedora ln existing_file hardlink_name Arch ln existing_file hardlink_name Open full guide → mklink /D→ln -s target link_name Links Create directory symlink Creates a symbolic link to a directory. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ln -s target link_name Fedora ln -s target link_name Arch ln -s target link_name Open full guide → mklink /H→ln target hardlink_name Links Create file hard link Creates a Linux hard link for a regular file. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ln target hardlink_name Fedora ln target hardlink_name Arch ln target hardlink_name Open full guide → mklink /J→mount --bind /real/path /mount/path Links Create junction-like bind mount Uses a bind mount for a directory-to-directory mapping. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mount --bind /real/path /mount/path Fedora mount --bind /real/path /mount/path Arch mount --bind /real/path /mount/path Open full guide → PowerShell Join-Path→printf "%s/%s\n" "$dir" "$name" Paths Join path components Combines directory and filename strings in shell scripts. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu printf "%s/%s\n" "$dir" "$name" Fedora printf "%s/%s\n" "$dir" "$name" Arch printf "%s/%s\n" "$dir" "$name" Open full guide → PowerShell Split-Path→dirname /path/to/file Paths Return parent path Prints the directory portion of a path. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu dirname /path/to/file Fedora dirname /path/to/file Arch dirname /path/to/file Open full guide → PowerShell Split-Path -Leaf→basename /path/to/file Paths Return filename from path Prints the final component of a path. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu basename /path/to/file Fedora basename /path/to/file Arch basename /path/to/file Open full guide → cd with current path→pwd Paths Print current directory Shows the current working directory, similar to checking the current folder in CMD. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu pwd Fedora pwd Arch pwd Open full guide → PowerShell Get-Acl→getfacl file Permissions Show ACL permissions Displays POSIX ACLs where ACL support is enabled. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu getfacl file Fedora getfacl file Arch getfacl file Open full guide → PowerShell Set-Acl→setfacl -m u:USER:rw file Permissions Set ACL permissions Modifies POSIX ACL entries for users or groups. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu setfacl -m u:USER:rw file Fedora setfacl -m u:USER:rw file Arch setfacl -m u:USER:rw file Open full guide → icacls /grant→setfacl -m u:USER:rwx file Permissions Grant ACL permissions Grants explicit permissions to a user. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu setfacl -m u:USER:rwx file Fedora setfacl -m u:USER:rwx file Arch setfacl -m u:USER:rwx file Open full guide → icacls /reset→setfacl -b file Permissions Reset ACL entries Removes extended ACL entries from a file. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu setfacl -b file Fedora setfacl -b file Arch setfacl -b file Open full guide → icacls file→getfacl file Permissions View file ACLs Shows detailed access-control entries. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu getfacl file Fedora getfacl file Arch getfacl file Open full guide → takeown /r→sudo chown -R USER:GROUP path Permissions Take ownership recursively Changes owner and group recursively. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu sudo chown -R USER:GROUP path Fedora sudo chown -R USER:GROUP path Arch sudo chown -R USER:GROUP path Open full guide → PowerShell Copy-Item→cp source destination PowerShell File Cmdlets Copy a file Copies files from one path to another. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cp source destination Fedora cp source destination Arch cp source destination Open full guide → PowerShell Copy-Item -Recurse→cp -r source_dir destination_dir PowerShell File Cmdlets Copy folders recursively Copies a directory and its contents. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cp -r source_dir destination_dir Fedora cp -r source_dir destination_dir Arch cp -r source_dir destination_dir Open full guide → PowerShell Get-ChildItem -Force→ls -la PowerShell File Cmdlets List files including hidden files Shows normal and hidden dotfiles with detailed metadata. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu ls -la Fedora ls -la Arch ls -la Open full guide → PowerShell Get-ChildItem -Recurse→find . PowerShell File Cmdlets Recursively list files Walks a directory tree and prints matching files and folders. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu find . Fedora find . Arch find . Open full guide → PowerShell Get-Location→pwd PowerShell File Cmdlets Show current directory Prints the absolute path of the current working directory. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu pwd Fedora pwd Arch pwd Open full guide → PowerShell Move-Item→mv source destination PowerShell File Cmdlets Move files or folders Moves or renames paths. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mv source destination Fedora mv source destination Arch mv source destination Open full guide → PowerShell Remove-Item→rm file PowerShell File Cmdlets Remove a file Deletes a file from the filesystem. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rm file Fedora rm file Arch rm file Open full guide → PowerShell Remove-Item -Recurse -Force→rm -rf directory PowerShell File Cmdlets Force-remove a folder tree Deletes a directory tree without prompting. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu rm -rf directory Fedora rm -rf directory Arch rm -rf directory Open full guide → PowerShell Rename-Item→mv old_name new_name PowerShell File Cmdlets Rename a file Renames a file or directory. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu mv old_name new_name Fedora mv old_name new_name Arch mv old_name new_name Open full guide → PowerShell Set-Location→cd /path/to/folder PowerShell File Cmdlets Change directory Moves the shell into another directory. Distro equivalents Debian/Ubuntu cd /path/to/folder Fedora cd /path/to/folder Arch cd /path/to/folder Open full guide →