- Published on
What is Linux? - Part 5: Permissions
- Authors
- Name
- Gary Huynh
- @huynhthienthach
Ahoy there, techie mates! Welcome aboard the S.S. Linux
as we navigate the sometimes stormy, always exciting seas of the What is Linux?
series. We've already charted the Kernel
islands, the Shell
coves, the Users & Groups
atoll, and explored the vast ocean of Directories & Files
. Today, we're setting course for the treacherous straits of Permissions
!
You see, in the land of Linux
, not all pirates—ahem—I mean, users, are created equal. Some can read the treasure maps (files
), some can modify them, and some can only ogle from a distance, yearning for the forbidden knowledge. This, me hearties, is the essence of Permissions
!
Permission
in Linux
is like a pirate's code—more of a guideline, really. It governs three actions: read (r)
, write (w)
, and execute (x)
. Each file
and directory
comes with a set of these permissions
for three types of users: the owner
, the group
, and others
.
Let's break out our trusty spyglass—the ls -l
command—to view the permissions
on our treasure maps:
ls -l
You'll see something that looks like a secret pirate code:
-rw-r--r-- 1 captain pirates 56 Feb 29 12:34 treasure_map.txt
This tells us that the file treasure_map.txt
can be read
and written
by the 'captain' (owner
), read by the 'pirates' (group
), and read by 'others
'. The -
indicates the permission
that is not granted. Poor others, just ogling from afar.
Feel like sharing the wealth? You can change the permissions
using the chmod
command, like so:
chmod o+w treasure_map.txt
Now, the others
can also write on treasure_map.txt
. Aye, you're a generous pirate!
So there you have it, me hearties, a brief exploration of the Permissions
sea. Remember, with great power (or permissions
) comes great responsibility. Keep your treasures secure, and ye'll have smooth sailing!
Join us for our next adventure as we dive into the dark depths of the Process
sea! Arr, until then, may your winds be fair and your permissions
be few!