Linux Standard Directories

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Updated on April 14, 2021

All files and directories are under root directory (/)
- Some standard directories are

/root
- Every file and directory starts from root
  - Root user can write on this directory
  - /root is home directory of root user
  - It is not same as /
/bin
- All executable binary files
- Files required for booting, repair are here
- Common binaries
- Common linux command in single user mode
- Eg cat, ls, cp, tar, history etc
/boot
- Static file of boot loader
- Holds file required during boot process
- Linux kernel
/dev
- Contains device files
- Hardware device oriented
- Usb, cdrom etc attached with system
- Eg dev
/etc
- Contains configuration files of applications
- All configuration files that run in the system
- Also have start abd shutdown shell scripts to start/stop program
/home
- User’s home directory
- Contains directory like desktop, downloads, documents
/lib
- Contains shared library image to boot system
- Also contains kernel modules
/lost /found
- Directory installed during linux installation
- For recovery purpose
- Recovery of file due to unexpected shut down
/media
- Directory for removable devices
- Temporary mount directory
- E.g /media/cdrom , /media/floppy
/mnt
- Temporary mount directory
- System admins can mount file systems
/opt
- Optional apps
- Third party apps
/proc
- Virtual file
- Information about running process with process id i.e pid
/run
/sbin
- Binary executable programs
/srv
- Server specific files
- Service related files
/sys
- Virtual file system
- Devices connected to system
/tmp
- Stores temporary files
/usr
/var