From the course: Linux CentOS 7: Files and Permissions

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What is a file?

What is a file? - Linux Tutorial

From the course: Linux CentOS 7: Files and Permissions

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What is a file?

- [Instructor] In most operating systems a file is an object, such as a document or photo that's saved on the hard disk. These files are organized using named folders in a hierarchy. The first type of file that we'll talk about is a directory. A directory is a list of other files. It helps us organize our system so it's easier to find our files. We can identify directories by looking at the first character on the left of a long list using ls space, dash L. That first character should be the letter D. If the first character is a hyphen, then it's a regular file. This includes most traditional files, like documents and photos. If the first character's an L, then it's a symbolic link. You can think of a symbolic link as a shortcut to another file. Viewing these files with ls space, dash L will show you where the link is pointing to. If the first character is a C, it's a character device file and these files output or input characters. For instance, the slash dev slash random device file…

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