Title: Competency 2 Introduction
Course: UNIX Operating System I (13673) > Section: Competency Modules

Most computer system users work mostly with the file system structure. Users are constantly performing file-related operations such as: creating, reading, writing/modifying, or executing files. Therefore, the user needs to understand what a file is in LInux, how files can be organized and managed, how they are represented inside the operating system, and how they are stored on the disk.

One of the many remarkable features of the Linux operating system is the concept of files used in it. This concept is simple, yet powerful—and results in a uniform view of all system resources. In LInux, a file is a sequence of bytes. Thus everything, including a network interface card, a disk drive, a keyboard, a printer, a simple/ordinary (text, executable, etc.) file, or a directory, is treated as a file. As a result, all input and output devices are treated as files in Linux, as described under file types and file system structure.

Linux supports seven types of files:

1) simple/ordinary file;

2) directory;

3) symbolic (soft) link;

4) special (device) files—block files;

5) character special files;

6) named pipe (FIFO); and,

7) socket.

Linux provides command shell to allow the user to interact with the operating system kernel..  Linux command shells include BASH and TC.  Many LInux files and the command shell are text based.  Thus the need to learn to use the commonly available editor vim is required.