The usage of head command in Linux

This article mainly explains "the usage of head command in Linux". Interested friends may wish to have a look at it. The method introduced in this paper is simple, fast and practical. Let's let the editor take you to learn the usage of the head command in Linux.

How to use the head command

Use head to display the first ten lines of / etc/passwd:

[root@localhost ~] # head / etc/passwdroot:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bashbin:x:1:1:bin:/bin:/sbin/nologindaemon:x:2:2:daemon:/sbin:/sbin/nologinadm:x:3:4:adm:/var/adm:/sbin/nologinlp:x:4:7:lp:/var/spool/lpd:/sbin/nologinsync:x:5:0:sync:/sbin:/bin/syncshutdown:x:6:0 : shutdown:/sbin:/sbin/shutdownhalt:x:7:0:halt:/sbin:/sbin/haltmail:x:8:12:mail:/var/spool/mail:/sbin/nologinoperator:x:11:0:operator:/root:/sbin/nologin

How to display the specified number of rows

Use the-n command to display the specified number of lines, or you can omit the letter n and use only-and numbers (there is no space between the numbers and -).

For example, use the-n parameter to display the first five lines of / etc/passwd:

[root@localhost] # head-n 5 / etc/passwdroot:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bashbin:x:1:1:bin:/bin:/sbin/nologindaemon:x:2:2:daemon:/sbin:/sbin/nologinadm:x:3:4:adm:/var/adm:/sbin/nologinlp:x:4:7:lp:/var/spool/lpd:/sbin/nologin

View multiple files

If multiple files are provided as input to the head command, it displays the first ten lines of each file. The following example uses the head command to display the first two lines of the / etc/passwd and / etc/shadow files:

[root@localhost ~] # head-n 2 / etc/passwd / etc/shadow== > / etc/passwd / etc/shadow