How to use less command in Linux

Usage of less command in Linux requires specific code examples

Linux is a widely used operating system that uses a command line interface to interact with the computer. In Linux, there are many commands to help users view and operate files. One of the very useful commands is less.

less command is a file viewer that allows users to view the contents of a file page by page without loading the entire file. Compared with the traditional cat command, the less command can browse large files more conveniently.

Using the less command is very simple. After entering "less" on the command line, enter the path of the file you want to view. The following are some commonly used less command usage and examples:

1. Open a file:
   less filename
   This command will open the file named "filename".
2. Exit less:
   q
   This command will exit less and return to the command line interface.
3. Scroll down one line:
   j
   This command will scroll down one line.
4. Scroll up one line:
   k
   This command will scroll up one line.
5. Scroll down one screen:
   Spacebar
   This command will scroll down one screen.
6. Scroll up one screen:
   b
   This command will scroll up one screen.
7. Jump to the beginning of the file:
   g
   This command will jump to the beginning of the file.
8. Jump to the end of the file:
   G
   This command will jump to the end of the file.
9. Search for string:
   /string
   This command will search for the string "string" in the file.
10. Search upward:
    ?
    This command will search upward.

The above are just some basic usages of the less command. In fact, the less command has more options and functions that can be customized as needed. By learning these basic usages, users can use the less command to view and operate files more efficiently.

The following is a sample code for viewing files using the less command:

less file.txt

This command will open the file named "file.txt" in the current directory and use the less command to view it. The user can scroll down one line by pressing j or the down arrow, and scroll up by one line by pressing k or the up arrow. Press the space bar to scroll down one screen, and b to scroll up one screen.

In addition to basic scrolling operations, users can also use other keys to perform operations such as jump and search. For example, press g to jump to the beginning of the file, and press G to jump to the end of the file. Press the / key to search, and the user can enter the string to be searched for.

By mastering the usage of these basic less commands, users can view and browse files more conveniently and play a greater role in daily Linux use.

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