Short task: work out an unfamiliar command using only its manual
You find a command whose name you are not even told by keyword, save its one-line description from the manual, do two jobs with it by reading the SYNOPSIS and the options, and find a shell builtin’s option with help. Nobody tells you the command or the option; there is only the documentation.
Level 101 · 25 min
Daniel left a note on your desk: "There is a ready-made command for this job, but I can’t remember its name. No internet, just the manual on the server. Find it, learn it, use it." This is the moment you will meet most often in real life: a tool you have never seen, and only its documentation.
This is a short task: no commands are given, only goals. You used everything you need in the previous lesson: searching by keyword (man -k, apropos), the one-line description (whatis, man -f), the manual itself (man, searching inside with /word, leaving with q), a quick look (--help) and help for the shell’s own commands.
The details of the task are in ~/manual-task/mission.txt; the command, the numbers and the files differ in every lab. You write the results into ~/manual-task. If you get stuck the hint reminds you of the method; after two failed tries the solution appears.
What you will do in this lesson
- Find the command
- Save its one-line description
- Job A: learn the command from the manual and use it
- Job B: one more option
- A command without a manual: a shell builtin
- Short quiz
Skills you will earn
- Searching for an unknown command (man -k, apropos)
- Using manual sections (man 5 passwd, whatis)
- Reading and searching manual pages
- Redirecting output to a file with > and >>
- Reading a command’s help (--help)
- Using help for the shell’s commands
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