Mastering Linux Command-Line Productivity: Find Top Most Used Commands

Unlocking Your Linux Command Mastery: Discovering Your Most Frequent Commands

This guide helps you identify your most frequently used Linux commands, a key step in enhancing your command-line proficiency. We'll explore several methods, from simple command-line tools to a custom Python script, to analyze your command history and uncover your top commands.

Understanding the Power of Command Analysis

The Linux terminal is a powerful tool. Knowing which commands you use most frequently allows you to refine your workflow, learn new commands, and more effectively troubleshoot issues.

Several methods exist to uncover your most-used commands. One approach leverages the built-in history command, combined with other powerful tools like awk, sort, and uniq.

Method 1: Analyzing Command History with Built-in Tools

Your shell's history file (typically ~/.bash_history) logs your command history. This command reveals your top 5 most-used commands:

history | awk '{print $2}' | sort | uniq -c | sort -nr | head -5

This command breaks down as follows:

1. history: Lists your command history.
2. awk '{print $2}': Extracts the command from each history entry.
3. sort: Sorts the commands alphabetically.
4. uniq -c: Counts occurrences of each unique command.
5. sort -nr: Sorts the counts in reverse numerical order (most frequent first).
6. head -5: Displays the top 5 results.

To see all frequently used commands, omit head -5. A more detailed version, including percentages, is:

history | awk '{CMD[$2]  ;count  ;}END { for (a in CMD)print CMD[a] " " CMD[a]/count*100 "% " a;}' | grep -v "./" | column -c3 -s " " -t | sort -nr | nl | head -n5

Method 2: Fish Shell Users

If you use the Fish shell, use this slightly modified command:

history | cut -d ' ' -f 1 | sort | uniq -c | sort -nr | head -5

Method 3: Visualizing with muc

muc (Most Used Commands) offers a visual representation of your command usage. Install it using your distribution's package manager (e.g., sudo apt install muc on Debian/Ubuntu, or via cargo install muc after installing Rust and Cargo). Then run:

muc

or specify your history file:

muc --file ~/.bash_history

muc provides options for customizing the output (number of commands, bar appearance, etc.). Refer to its documentation for details.

Method 4: Least Frequently Used Commands

To find your least used commands, modify the initial command:

history | awk '{print $2}' | sort | uniq -c | sort -n | tail -n5

This sorts in ascending order and displays the bottom 5.

Method 5: Command Frequency Analyzer (CFA) Python Script

For a more sophisticated analysis, use our custom Python script, the Command Frequency Analyzer (CFA).

1. Clone the repository: git clone https://gist.github.com/7f93a7acb8607929c28974c9c2db6e69.git cfa
2. Navigate to the directory: cd cfa
3. Run the script: python3 cfa.py

The script will prompt you to choose between "most" and "least" frequently used commands and specify the number of commands to display.

CFA supports Bash, Zsh, and Fish.

Conclusion

By employing these methods, you gain valuable insights into your command-line habits, paving the way for improved efficiency and a deeper understanding of the Linux terminal. Choose the method that best suits your needs and embark on your journey to command-line mastery!

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