Kali Linux Basic Commands Guide
1. Navigation & Directory Management
pwd - Print Working Directory
Shows your current path
ls - List
Lists files and folders in the current directory
ls -la - List All
Lists all files including hidden ones
cd - Change Directory
Move into another folder
cd .. - Parent Directory
Move one folder up
cd ~ - Home Directory
Go to your home directory
mkdir - Make Directory
Create a new folder
rmdir - Remove Directory
Delete an empty folder
rm -r - Remove Recursively
Delete folder and its contents
clear - Clear Terminal
Clear the screen
2. File Management
touch - Create File
Create an empty file
cp - Copy
Copy files or folders
mv - Move or Rename
Move or rename a file/folder
rm - Remove File
Delete a file
Page 1
Kali Linux Basic Commands Guide
cat - Concatenate
Show contents of a file
nano - Text Editor
Edit a file in terminal
head - First Lines
Show top 10 lines of a file
tail - Last Lines
Show bottom 10 lines of a file
3. Users & Permissions
whoami - Current User
Show the current user
id - User Info
Display user ID and group info
chmod - Change Permissions
Change file permissions
chown - Change Owner
Change file owner
sudo - Superuser Do
Run command with root privileges
4. Networking
ifconfig - Interface Config
Show network interfaces
ip a - IP Address
Show IP configurations
ping - Test Connection
Check if a host is reachable
netstat - Network Status
List active ports and connections
nmap - Network Mapper
Scan IP for open ports
Page 2
Kali Linux Basic Commands Guide
wget - Web Get
Download file from the web
5. Package Management
apt update - Update Cache
Refresh list of available packages
apt upgrade - Upgrade Packages
Upgrade installed software
apt install - Install Software
Install a tool or package
apt remove - Uninstall Software
Remove a tool or package
dpkg -i - Install .deb
Install a local .deb package
6. System Monitoring
ps aux - Show Processes
List all running processes
top - Task Monitor
Real-time CPU and memory usage
htop - Advanced Monitor
User-friendly process viewer
kill - Kill Process
Stop a process using its PID
reboot - Restart
Reboot the system
shutdown - Power Off
Turn off the system
7. Disk & File System Info
df -h - Disk Free
Show disk usage in GB/MB
Page 3
Kali Linux Basic Commands Guide
du -sh - Directory Size
Show size of a folder
mount - Mount Devices
Mount a USB or drive
umount - Unmount
Safely unmount a device
8. Info & Help
uname -a - System Info
Show system and kernel info
man - Manual
Display help page for a command
--help - Command Help
Show help options for a command
history - Show History
List previous commands
alias - Create Shortcut
Make your own command shortcut
9. Terminal Shortcuts
Tab - Autocomplete
Auto-completes command or file name
Ctrl + C - Cancel
Stop a running command
Ctrl + L - Clear
Clear terminal screen
!! - Repeat Last
Run the last command again
Up / Down Arrows - History
Navigate previous commands
Page 4
