Quick Answer: What does diff command do in Linux?

Use the diff command to compare text files. It can compare single files or the contents of directories. When the diff command is run on regular files, and when it compares text files in different directories, the diff command tells which lines must be changed in the files so that they match.

What does diff do in Linux?

diff stands for difference. This command is used to display the differences in the files by comparing the files line by line. Unlike its fellow members, cmp and comm, it tells us which lines in one file have is to be changed to make the two files identical.

What is the use of diff command in Linux?

diff is a command-line utility that allows you to compare two files line by line. It can also compare the contents of directories. The diff command is most commonly used to create a patch containing the differences between one or more files that can be applied using the patch command.

What does diff command do?

diff is a command-line utility that allows you to compare two files line by line. It can also compare the contents of directories. The diff command is most commonly used to create a patch containing the differences between one or more files that can be applied using the patch command.

What does mean in diff output?

In your first diff output (so called “normal diff”) the meaning is as follows: < – denotes lines in file1.txt. > – denotes lines in file2.txt. 3d2 and 5a5 denote line numbers affected and which actions were performed. d stands for deletion, a stands for adding (and c stands for changing).

How do you do the diff command?

Use the diff command to compare text files. It can compare single files or the contents of directories. When the diff command is run on regular files, and when it compares text files in different directories, the diff command tells which lines must be changed in the files so that they match.

What is difference between comm and CMP command?

Different ways of comparing two files in Unix



#1) cmp: This command is used to compare two files character by character. Example: Add write permission for user, group and others for file1. #2) comm: This command is used to compare two sorted files.

How do I compare two text files in Linux?

Use the diff command to compare text files. It can compare single files or the contents of directories. When the diff command is run on regular files, and when it compares text files in different directories, the diff command tells which lines must be changed in the files so that they match.

What does 2 mean in Linux?

38. File descriptor 2 represents standard error. (other special file descriptors include 0 for standard input and 1 for standard output). 2> /dev/null means to redirect standard error to /dev/null . /dev/null is a special device that discards everything that is written to it.

How do you use CMP?

When cmp is used for comparison between two files, it reports the location of the first mismatch to the screen if difference is found and if no difference is found i.e the files compared are identical. cmp displays no message and simply returns the prompt if the the files compared are identical.

What does touch command do in Linux?

The touch command is a standard command used in UNIX/Linux operating system which is used to create, change and modify timestamps of a file. Basically, there are two different commands to create a file in the Linux system which is as follows: cat command: It is used to create the file with content.

What is PS EF command in Linux?

This command is used to find the PID (Process ID, Unique number of the process) of the process. Each process will have the unique number which is called as PID of the process.

What do the numbers mean in diff?

The first pair of numbers, -11,7 , means that the current hunk in the source file starts at line 11 and has a total of 7 lines. … The second pair of numbers, +11,10 means that the current hunk in the target file starts at line 11 and has a total of 10 lines.

What does C mean in diff?

Overview. Clostridium difficile (klos-TRID-e-um dif-uh-SEEL), also known as Clostridioides difficile and often referred to as C. difficile or C. diff, is a bacterium that can cause symptoms ranging from diarrhea to life-threatening inflammation of the colon.

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