Linux is a complex system which requires a more complex and efficient way to start, stop, maintain and reboot a system unlike Windows. This directory contains log, lock, spool, mail and temp files.Įxploring Important file, their location and their Usability The contents of this file is expected to grow.
/root : This is the home directory of root user and should never be confused with ‘/‘./proc : A virtual and pseudo file-system which contains information about running process with a particular Process-id aka pid.Contains third party application software. /opt : Optional is abbreviated as opt./mnt : Temporary mount directory for mounting file system./media : Temporary mount directory is created for removable devices viz., media/cdrom./lost+found : This Directory is installed during installation of Linux, useful for recovering files which may be broken due to unexpected shut-down./lib : The Lib directory contains kernel modules and shared library images required to boot the system and run commands in root file system.Every time a new user is created, a directory in the name of user is created within home directory which contains other directories like Desktop, Downloads, Documents, etc. /etc : Contains Application’s configuration files, startup, shutdown, start, stop script for every individual program./dev : Contains device files for all the hardware devices on the machine e.g., cdrom, cpu, etc./boot : Holds important files during boot-up process, including Linux Kernel.
/bin : All the executable binary programs (file) required during booting, repairing, files required to run into single-user-mode, and other important, basic commands viz., cat, du, df, tar, rpm, wc, history, etc.Describing briefly the purpose of each directory, we are starting hierarchically. Linux Directory StructureĮach of the above directory (which is a file, at the first place) contains important information, required for booting to device drivers, configuration files, etc.
Linux Directory Structure DiagramĪ standard Linux distribution follows the directory structure as provided below with Diagram and explanation. This article is aimed to provide the information about Linux File System, some of the important files, their usability and location. For any person, who does not have a sound knowledge of Linux Operating System and Linux File System, dealing with the files and their location, their use may be horrible, and a newbie may really mess up.