CachyOS-Arch-Command-Cheat-Sheet

Simple cheat sheet that I made over the last year to get myself familiar with common (and some uncommon) commands you will probably use on a regular basis.

🖥 Basic Arch Linux / CachyOS Commands Cheat Sheet

A quick reference for common Arch Linux commands, filesystem navigation, and permissions.

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📦 Package Management (Pacman)

Task	Command
Install Package / Program	sudo pacman -S <package_name>
Remove Package / Program	sudo pacman -R <package_name>
Update Package Database	sudo pacman -Sy
Upgrade All Packages	sudo pacman -Syu
List All Packages	pacman -Sl
List Installed Packages	pacman -Q

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📂 Filesystem Navigation

Task	Command
Print Working Directory	pwd
List Files / Directories	ls
Change Directory	cd <directory>
Display File Contents	cat <file>
Display Beginning of File (10 lines by default)	head <file>
Edit / Make Changes to Files	nano <file>

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🔍 Searching & Filtering

Task	Command
Search for a string in files	grep "example" <file>
Search output of a command	`ls /home/analyst/reports

Tip: Piping (|) sends the output of one command into another. In the example above, ls lists files, and grep filters for those containing “users”.

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📁 File & Directory Operations

Task	Command
Create Directory	mkdir <directory>
Remove Empty Directory	rmdir <directory>
Create New File	touch <file>
Remove File	rm <file>
Move / Rename File or Directory	mv <source> <destination>
Copy File or Directory	cp <source> <destination>

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🔐 File Permissions

Task	Command / Example
Change Permissions	chmod <permissions> <file>
Specify Owners	user=u (user), group=g, other=o
Specify Permissions	read=r, write=w, execute=x
Add Permissions	+
Remove Permissions	-
Example	chmod g+w,o-r access.txt (Allow group write and remove read from others)

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👤 User Management

Task	Command
Add User	useradd <username>
Delete User	userdel <username>

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📖 Command Reference

Task	Command
Display manual / full command info	man <command>
Display short one-line description	whatis <command>
Search manual descriptions for a string	apropos <search_term> (use -a to search multiple words at once)

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💡 Notes / Tips

• Always double-check commands with man or whatis before running, especially as sudo.
• Use | grep to filter outputs quickly.
• Learn file permissions gradually — it’s key to safe system administration.

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