Linux Commands - File Content Operations

Redirect command output to a new file

Use the > operator to send the output of a command to a new file.

command > output_file.txt

Append command output to an existing file

Use >> to append the output to a file without overwriting it.

command >> output_file.txt

Redirect command input

Use < to take input from a file instead of standard input.

command < input_file.txt

Redirect standard output and error output to a file

Use &> to capture both types of output in a single file.

command &> output_file.txt

Pipe: direct output of one command as input to another

Use | to connect two commands, where the output of the first becomes the input of the second.

command1 | command2

Show content of a file

Use cat to view the entire content of a file.

cat file

Show content of a file starting from the end

Use tac to display the content in reverse order.

tac file

Scroll line by line through the file

Use more to read the file in segments.

more file

Scroll forward or backward in the file

Use less for more flexible navigation through the file’s content.

less file

Show the first two lines of a file

Use head with the number of lines you want to display.

head -2 file

Show the last two lines of a file

Use tail to see the last lines of a file.

tail -2 file

Show the last lines of a file in real-time (follow)

Use tail -f to monitor changes in real-time.

tail -f file