ls(1) USER COMMANDS ls(1)
NAME
ls - list the contents of a directory
SYNOPSIS
/usr/ucb/ls [ -aAcCdfFgilLqrRstu1 ] filename ...
DESCRIPTION
For each filename which is a directory, ls lists the con-
tents of the directory; for each filename which is a file,
ls repeats its name and any other information requested. By
default, the output is sorted alphabetically. When no argu-
ment is given, the current directory is listed. When
several arguments are given, the arguments are first sorted
appropriately, but file arguments are processed before
directories and their contents.
Permissions Field
The mode printed under the -l option contains 10 characters
interpreted as follows. If the first character is:
d entry is a directory;
b entry is a block-type special file;
c entry is a character-type special file;
l entry is a symbolic link;
p entry is a FIFO (also known as named pipe) special
file;
s entry is an AFUNIX address family socket, or
- entry is a plain file.
The next 9 characters are interpreted as three sets of three
bits each. The first set refers to owner permissions; the
next refers to permissions to others in the same user-group;
and the last refers to all others. Within each set the
three characters indicate permission respectively to read,
to write, or to execute the file as a program. For a direc-
tory, execute permission is interpreted to mean permission
to search the directory. The permissions are indicated as
follows:
r the file is readable;
w the file is writable;
x the file is executable;
- the indicated permission is not granted.
The group-execute permission character is given as s if the
file has the set-group-id bit set; likewise the owner-
execute permission character is given as s if the file has
the set-user-id bit set. The last character of the mode
(normally x or `-') is true if the 1000 bit of the mode is
on. See chmod(1) for the meaning of this mode. The indica-
tions of set-ID and 1000 bits of the mode are capitalized (S
and T respectively) if the corresponding execute permission
is not set. When the sizes of the files in a directory are
listed, a total count of blocks, including indirect blocks
is printed. The following options are available:
Last change: BSD Compatibility Package 1
ls(1) USER COMMANDS ls(1)
-a List all entries; in the absence of this option,
entries whose names begin with a `.' are not listed
(except for the privileged user, for whom ls normally
prints even files that begin with a `.').
-A Same as -a, except that `.' and `..' are not listed.
-c Use time of last edit (or last mode change) for sorting
or printing.
-C Force multi-column output, with entries sorted down the
columns; for ls, this is the default when output is to
a terminal.
-d If argument is a directory, list only its name (not its
contents); often used with -l to get the status of a
directory.
-f Force each argument to be interpreted as a directory
and list the name found in each slot. This option
turns off -l, -t, -s, and -r, and turns on -a; the
order is the order in which entries appear in the
directory.
-F Mark directories with a trailing slash (`/'), execut-
able files with a trailing asterisk (`*'), symbolic
links with a trailing at-sign (`@'), and AFUNIX
address family sockets with a trailing equals sign
(`=').
-g For ls, show the group ownership of the file in a long
output.
-i For each file, print the i-node number in the first
column of the report.
-l List in long format, giving mode, number of links,
owner, size in bytes, and time of last modification for
each file. If the file is a special file the size
field will instead contain the major and minor device
numbers. If the time of last modification is greater
than six months ago, it is shown in the format `month
date year'; files modified within six months show
`month date time'. If the file is a symbolic link the
pathname of the linked-to file is printed preceded by
`->'.
-L If argument is a symbolic link, list the file or direc-
tory the link references rather than the link itself.
-q Display non-graphic characters in filenames as the
character ?; for ls, this is the default when output is
Last change: BSD Compatibility Package 2
ls(1) USER COMMANDS ls(1)
to a terminal.
-r Reverse the order of sort to get reverse alphabetic or
oldest first as appropriate.
-R Recursively list subdirectories encountered.
-s Give size of each file, including any indirect blocks
used to map the file, in kilobytes.
-t Sort by time modified (latest first) instead of by
name.
-u Use time of last access instead of last modification
for sorting (with the -t option) and/or printing (with
the -l option).
-1 Force one entry per line output format; this is the
default when output is not to a terminal.
FILES
/etc/passwd to get user ID's for `ls -l' and `ls
-o'.
/etc/group to get group ID for `ls -g'
NOTES
NEWLINE and TAB are considered printing characters in
filenames. The output device is assumed to be 80 columns
wide. The option setting based on whether the output is a
teletype is undesirable as `ls -s' is much different than
`ls -s | lpr'. On the other hand, not doing this setting
would make old shell scripts which used ls almost certain
losers. Unprintable characters in file names may confuse
the columnar output options.
Last change: BSD Compatibility Package 3