An Introduction to Linux !

1. Linux file system layout

Table 1. Subdirectories of the root directory
Directory	Content
/bin	Common programs, shared by the system, the system administrator and the users.
/boot	The startup files and the kernel, vmlinuz. In some recent distributions also grub data. Grub is the GRand Unified Boot loader and is an attempt to get rid of the many different boot-loaders we know today.
/dev	Contains references to all the CPU peripheral hardware, which are represented as files with special properties.
/etc	Most important system configuration files are in /etc
/home	Home directories of the common users.
/lib	Library files, includes files for all kinds of programs needed by the system and the users.
/mnt	Standard mount point for external file systems, e.g. a CD-ROM or a digital camera.
/opt	Typically contains extra and third party software.
/proc	A virtual file system containing information about system resources.
/root	The administrative user’s home directory. Mind the difference between /, the root directory and /root, the home directory of the root user.
/sbin	Programs for use by the system and the system administrator.
/tmp	Temporary space for use by the system, cleaned upon reboot, so don’t use this for saving any work!
/usr	Programs, libraries, documentation etc. for all user-related programs.
/var	Storage for all variable files and temporary files created by users, such as log files, the mail queue, the print spooler area, space for temporary storage of files downloaded from the Internet, or to keep an image of a CD before burning it.