6.2 The Linux File System
All users, including the superuser, have their own home directories where all private
data, like documents, bookmarks, or e-mail, are stored. System directories holding
central conguration les or executable les can only be modied by the superuser.
Read more about access permissions and how to modify them according to your
needs in Section 7.5, “Modifying File Permissions” (page 94).
In Linux, you can choose whether you want to manage les and folders with a le
manager or with the command line, which is the traditional way. The latter method
is often faster but requires some deeper knowledge of several commands to list,
create, delete, or edit les and their properties. For more information about commands
for manipulating les refer to Section 7.3, “Working with Files and Directories”
(page 89). A le manager provides a graphical and more intuitive way to handle
these tasks. Learn more about the le managers of GNOME and KDE in Section “Man-
aging Folders and Files with Nautilus” (Chapter 2, Working with Your Desktop,
↑GNOME User Guide) and Section “Using Dolphin File Manager” (Chapter 2, Working
with Your Desktop, ↑KDE User Guide). The following sections provide you with some
basic knowledge of the le system and provide an overview of the default directory
structure in Linux.
6.2.1 Key Features
In Linux, all les and directories are located in a tree-like structure. The topmost di-
rectory is referred to as the le system root or just / (not to be confused with the
root user). The counterpart of / in a Windows system would probably be C:\. All
other directories in Linux can be accessed from the root directory and are arranged
in a hierarchical structure.
Find the key features of the Linux le system in the following list which also highlights
some of the major dierences between the Linux and the Windows/DOS le system:
Specifying Paths
As opposed to Windows, Linux does not use backslashes to separate the compo-
nents of a pathname, it uses slashes instead. For example, the private data of
users in Windows may be stored under C:\My Documents\Letters, whereas in
Linux it would be stored under /home/
username
/Letters.
Partitions, Drives/Devices and Directories
Linux does not use drive letters as Windows does. From the mere appearance of
a pathname in Linux you can not tell whether you are addressing a partition, a
drive/device, a network device or an “ordinary” directory.
Mounting and Unmounting
Another crucial dierence between Windows/DOS and Linux is the concept of
mounting and unmounting partitions, drives or directories. Windows detects
partitions and drives during the boot process and assigns a drive letter to them.
In Linux, however, partitions or devices are usually not visible in the directory
tree unless they are mounted, that means integrated into the le system at a
specic location in the directory tree. As a normal user you cannot access data
Basic Concepts 75
