Here's a cheat sheet with some common terminal commands for Windows, macOS, and Linux:
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
List files and directories |
dir |
ls |
Change directory |
cd <folder> |
cd <folder> |
Go to home directory |
cd |
cd ~ |
Go up one directory level |
cd .. |
cd .. |
Print current directory |
cd or chdir |
pwd |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Copy file |
copy <source> <destination> |
cp <source> <destination> |
Move file |
move <source> <destination> |
mv <source> <destination> |
Rename file |
rename <oldname> <newname> |
mv <oldname> <newname> |
Delete file |
del <file> |
rm <file> |
Delete directory |
rmdir <folder> |
rm -r <folder> |
Create directory |
mkdir <folder> |
mkdir <folder> |
Display file contents |
type <file> |
cat <file> or less <file> |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Display IP address |
ipconfig |
ifconfig or ip a |
Display running processes |
tasklist |
ps aux |
Kill process |
taskkill /PID <pid> |
kill <pid> |
System information |
systeminfo |
uname -a |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Ping a server |
ping <address> |
ping <address> |
Trace route |
tracert <address> |
traceroute <address> |
Download file |
Use curl or wget (3rd party tools) |
curl -O <url> or wget <url> |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Check disk usage |
chkdsk |
df -h |
Display disk space usage |
dir |
du -sh |
Format a drive |
format |
mkfs |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Edit text file |
notepad <file> |
nano <file> or vi <file> |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
List users |
net user |
cat /etc/passwd |
Add user |
net user <username> <password> /add |
sudo adduser <username> |
Delete user |
net user <username> /delete |
sudo deluser <username> |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Change file permissions |
icacls <file> |
chmod <permissions> <file> |
Change file owner |
takeown /f <file> |
chown <owner> <file> |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Search for a file |
dir /s <filename> |
find / -name <filename> |
Search for text in files |
findstr <pattern> <file> |
grep <pattern> <file> |
Task |
Windows |
macOS/Linux |
Clear terminal screen |
cls |
clear |
History of commands |
doskey /history |
history |
This cheat sheet covers basic commands, but each operating system has many more commands and options for more advanced tasks.