Linux has an extensive set of online documentation for your reference. The -a switch-or option, as it's called-shows you all files, even hidden ones. You now see several files beginning with a period. Hidden files in Linux begin with a period (. In your home directory, where you are now, you probably have hidden files. You've successfully listed the contents of the /etc directory, but you can actually list files in several different ways. The /etc ( et-see) directory is where a Linux system's configuration files live.Ī large number of files (over 200) appear on your screen. The ls command won't show you much in your home directory on a new system, so let's explore a directory that contains a lot of files and directories: /etc. If you simply type ls at a prompt ( $), you'll see all non-hidden files in your current directory, which is your home directory when you first log into a Linux system.

The list ( ls) command is equivalent to the DOS DIR command, in that it lists files and directories.

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