The ls command is one of the more basic commands in Linux. It is designed to list names and features of files and directories. It can be used for a single file or as many as all files and folders in a selected set of directories.
Command: ls
Synopsis: ls [option]… [file]…
Options:
Below is a list of the options that can be used with the ls command. You can use more than one at a time, making the command more efficient to your needs.
| Option | Long Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| -a | –all | Lists all files including those that begin with . |
| -A | –almost-all | Lists all files except . and .. |
| -b | –escape | print octal escapes for nongraphic characters |
| -B | –ignore-backups | does not list implied entries ending with ~ |
| -c | with -lt: sort by, and show, ctime (time of last modification of file status information) with -l: show ctime and sort by name otherwise: sort by ctime | |
| -C | list entries by columns | |
| -d | –directory | list directory entries instead of contents, and do not dereference symbolic links |
| -D | –dired | generate output designed for Emacsâ dired mode |
| -f | do not sort | |
| -F | –classify | append indicator (one of */=>@|) to entries |
| -g | Works like -l (long list) but does not display owner. | |
| -G | –no-group | Works like -l (long list) but does not group names. |
| -h | –human-readable | when used with -l (long list), prints sizes in human readable format (e.g., 1K 234M 2G) |
| -H | –dereference-command-line | follow symbolic links listed on the command line |
| -i | –inode | print the index number of each file |
| -I | –ignore=PATTERN | do not list implied entries matching shell PATTERN |
| -k | –block-size=1K | Displays entry size in kilobytes (rounded up). Long name allows to set block size. |
| -l | Displays entries in a long list format. | |
| -L | –dereference | when showing file information for a symbolic link, show information for the file the link references rather than for the link itself |
| -m | fills the width of the terminal with a comma separated list of entries | |
| -n | –numeric-uid-gid | like -l (long list), but lists numeric user and group IDs instead of name |
| -N | –literal | prints raw entry names (does not treat e.g. control characters special) |
| -o | like -l, but do not list group information | |
| -p | –indicator-style=slash | appends a / indicator to directories |
| -q | –hide-control-chars | print ? instead of non graphic characters |
| -Q | –quote-name | display entries enclosed in double quotes |
| -r | –reverse | reverse order while sorting |
| -R | –recursive | lists all subdirectories recursively |
| -s | –size | print the allocated size of each file, in blocks |
| -S | displays entries sorted by filesize | |
| -t | sort by modification time | |
| -T | –tabsize=COLS | assume tab stops at each column instead of 8 |
| -u | with -lt: sort by, and show, access time. with -l: show access time and sort by name. otherwise: sort by access time | |
| -U | do not sort; list entries in directory order | |
| -v | natural sort of (version) numbers within text | |
| -w | assume screen width instead of current value | |
| -x | list entries by lines instead of by columns | |
| -X | sort alphabetically by entry extension | |
| -1 | list one file per line | |
| -Z | Display security context so it fits on most displays. Displays only mode, user, group, security context and file name. |
Examples
The ls base command
This example displays the base command with no switches or parameters. Note the files and folders are displayed in a row. Directories display in blue and have a trailing slash.
ls ./ ../ error_log images/ index.php testfile.txt
Using the long list option
One of the more common switches, the long listing (-l) displays much more data than the base command. It displays the permissions, the owner, group, size, date last modified, and the name of the file.
$# ls -l total 32 drwxr-xr-x 3 root root 4096 Jun 3 10:19 ./ drwxr-x--- 25 root root 4096 Jun 3 10:16 ../ -rw-r--r-- 1 root root 12523 May 5 13:29 error_log drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 4096 Jun 3 10:19 images/ -rw-r--r-- 1 root root 52 May 5 13:29 index.php -rw-r--r-- 1 root root 0 Jun 3 10:15 testfile.txt