Types of Files

Linux for Programmers and Users, Section 3.26

• Simple/ ordinary file
• Directory
• Symbolic (soft) link
• Special (device) files – block special files and character special files
• Named pipe (FIFO)
• Socket

file

file

Determine the type of data contained in FILE(S).

SYNOPSIS

file FILE ...

$ file /*
all.backup: POSIX tar archive
bin: directory
dev: directory
etc: directory
install: symbolic link to var/lib/LST
lost+found: directory
tmp: directory
usr: directory
unix: ELF 32-bit LSB executable
$