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In this article, let us learn how to create our own commands in Linux. Yes – we will talk about creating alias commands.

What is Alias ​​Command in Linux?

aliasCommand provides a string value that replaces the command name when it is encountered.

aliasThe command allows us to create shortcuts for long commands, making them easier to remember and use. It will have the same functionality as running the entire command.

How to create your own Linux commands

Using aliasthe command we will be able to create our own commands. Creating your own commands is very simple.

Following is aliasthe syntax of the command:

$ alias [alias-name[=string]...]

Let's look at an example of creating your own command.

Let's say we want to create a cdvcommand called and entering that command in the terminal should take us to the Videos directory.

Normally, to go into a directory, we use cdthe command. To go into the Videos directory, we need to use cd Videos, as shown in the following screenshot:

Let's create cdva command called to go into the Videos directory. To do this, we have to type the following command in the terminal:

$ alias cdv="cd Videos"

We have created our command. From the screenshot above, you can see that it does not return anything.

But how do we verify that the command was created and is running?

There is only one way to verify that a command worked: that is to execute the command you created.

Run the command in your terminal cdvand see what happens:

How to view the created alias commands

After creating a few commands, we may have the following questions:

Suppose I have created multiple alias commands. How can I view all of them together? How can I view the equivalent command of the alias?

We can -pview all aliased commands by appending the -a flag to the aliased command, like this:

$ alias -p

From the screenshot above, you can see that I have created only one alias command.

How to Delete Alias ​​Commands in Linux

Pass our alias as an argument to unaliasthe command to remove the alias.

$ unalias alias_name

How to Delete All Aliases in Linux

Let's assume that we have added about 20 alias commands. After a while, we realize that using alias commands makes us forget other commands for a long time. Because of this concern, we want to delete all alias commands.

We have a command to do this:

$ unalias -a

You may want to know one thing.

"After a while, you realize that using aliased commands makes you forget other commands in the long run"

Is this something you should be worried about? Is this going to happen?

The answer to your first question is, yes. You will definitely feel that way when you learn and try out alias commands. Because I feel the same way.

The answer to your second question is, absolutely not. It will increase productivity. You will most likely forget the commands you created, but you will never forget the original command. So I always recommend revisiting our aliases frequently and making sure that all the aliases we created are being used.

I have a shocking surprise for you. Open a terminal window and create an alias command (we will use cdvthe command created above). Open another terminal window and type the cdv command in it.

Yes. If we create an alias command, it will be valid only for that specific instance of the terminal. It will not be created permanently, so we will not be able to access it in two different terminal windows unless we run aliasthe command in both terminals.

How to create a permanent alias command

To create a permanent alias command, we have to add the alias command to the shell configuration file. There are many shell configurations available. Some of the famous shells are:

• Bash - ~/.bashrc
• Zsh - ~/.zshrc
• Fish - ~/.config/fish/config.fish

Most Linux distributions use bash, so let's look at creating a permanent alias in the bash shell. Other shells work pretty much the same.

Let's open the .bashrc file using Vim.

$ sudo vim ~/.bashrc

Go to the bottom of the file and press i to enter insert mode. Add the alias command you want to make permanent.

alias cdv="cd Videos"

Press the Esc key and enter :wq to save and exit Vim.

Each time you change a shell configuration file, you must reload the file for the changes to take effect immediately.

By default, all terminal windows we open from now on will contain our aliased command.

We can open multiple windows and alias -pcheck by entering the command.

How to run multiple commands in a single alias command

We can achieve this in two ways. Let me explain them here.

Let us learn this through an example.

Assume that we have to create an gohomealias command called . Running this command should take you to your home directory and display the "Navigated to home directory" message.

Method #1:

This is the common way to add alias commands. We have to add ;two commands separated by a semicolon.

$ alias gohome="cd ~/;echo Navigated to home directory"

Method #2

This is a different way. To do this, we have to change the .bashrc file. A function must be defined in the .bashrc file and all the commands must be nested inside it.

Open the .bashrc file using Vim .

Press the i key to enter insert mode.

Use the above 2 commands to create a function called gohome.

function gohome() {
        cd ~/
        echo Navigated to home directory
}

:wqSave and exit Vim by pressing the Esc key and typing in command mode .

source ~/.bashrcWe can now verify the gohome command by reloading the terminal by running .

注意: Creating a function does not alias -plist it as an alias command when running the command.

Summarize

In this article, you learned how to create your own commands in Linux.

Using aliases will definitely increase our productivity. After seeing many people using aliases, I have witnessed their exponential growth. I recommend everyone to set up their own aliases.