First Linux commands in Linux CLI - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

💻 Command Output

intermediate

What is the output of the ls command?

You run the ls command in a directory containing three files: file1.txt, file2.txt, and script.sh. What will the command output?

Linux CLI

ls

A

file1.txt
file2.txt
script.sh

B No output

C file1.txt,file2.txt,script.sh

D file1.txt file2.txt script.sh

💡 Hint

The ls command lists files separated by spaces in multi-column format by default.

The ls command outputs the file names separated by spaces on a single line by default (for short names that fit), so the output will be file1.txt file2.txt script.sh.

💻 Command Output

intermediate

What does the pwd command output?

You are currently inside the directory /home/user/documents. What will the pwd command output?

Linux CLI

pwd

A /home/user/documents

B documents

C user/documents

D /home/user

💡 Hint

The pwd command shows the full path of the current directory.

The pwd command prints the full absolute path of the current working directory, which is /home/user/documents.

💻 Command Output

advanced

What is the output of the echo $HOME command?

Assuming your home directory is /home/alex, what will the command echo $HOME output?

Linux CLI

echo $HOME

A $HOME

B home/alex

C /home/alex

D Error: variable not found

💡 Hint

The $HOME variable stores the path to your home directory.

The shell replaces $HOME with the path of the home directory, so the output is /home/alex.

💻 Command Output

advanced

What error does this command produce?

You run the command cd /nonexistentfolder. What error message will you see?

Linux CLI

cd /nonexistentfolder

A bash: cd: /nonexistentfolder: No such file or directory

B cd: command not found

C Permission denied

D No output, command succeeds

💡 Hint

The folder does not exist, so cd cannot change to it.

The shell reports that the directory does not exist with the message: bash: cd: /nonexistentfolder: No such file or directory.

💻 Command Output

expert

How many files are listed by this command?

You run ls -l | grep '^-' | wc -l in a directory. What does this command count?

Linux CLI

ls -l | grep '^-' | wc -l

A The number of directories in the directory

B The number of regular files in the directory

C The total number of files and directories

D The number of symbolic links

💡 Hint

The ls -l output starts lines with - for files and d for directories.

The command lists files in long format, filters lines starting with - (regular files), then counts those lines. So it counts regular files only.