C Unix/Linux Tutorial

Unix/Linux Tutorial

This tutorial provides an introduction to using basic Unix/Linux commands. The examples for this tutorial are illustrated using Southern Methodist University's Lyle Genuse Unix/Linux accounts.

  1. Login to your Genuse account using the terminal window program (e.g., PuTTY) installed on your PC:





  2. Create new directory using the mkdir (make directory) command: Create your new project directory "CS2340" using the command mkdir CS2340
  3. Change current directory using the cd (change directory) command: Change to your new CS2340 directory using the command cd CS2340
  4. Find out where you are using the pwd print working directory) command: Use the command pwd to show your current directory name.





  5. Now create a new directory within the "CS2340" directory named "Project1", using the command mkdir Project1
  6. List your files and directories in the current directory using the ls (list) command: Use the command ls to list all the files in your CS2340 directory. Note that your CS2340 directory now contains your newly created "Project1" directory:





  7. Change your current directory to the "Project1" directory using the command cd Project1
  8. Use the command pwd to show your current directory name.
  9. List your files in the current directory using the ls (list) command. Note that the "Project1" directory is currently empty, as you just created this directory:





  10. Download the text file readme.txt to your PC.
  11. Using either WinSCP or Cyberduck, copy this text file from your PC to your Project1 directory in your Genuse account.
  12. Now use the command ls again to list all the files in your Project1 directory. You should now see the transferred "readme.txt" file in your directory list
  13. Here is an image of the complete set of commands that we used in this tutorial exercise:






These commands are the basic Unix/Linux commands that you will often use. For additional commands, please see the site UNIX Tutorial for Beginners.

T. Manikas Last update 2026 Sep 01