Unix System Basics

Explore Unix system basics without installing anything! This course is designed for learners with no technical experience, providing a solid foundation of Unix basics. Learners will gain hands-on practice on an Ubuntu system that can be easily transferred to other Unix-based operating systems. The modules in this course cover what characterizes Unix-based operating systems, navigating, searching, and editing files and directories using the command line. To allow for a truly hands-on, self-paced learning experience, this course is video-free. Assignments contain short explanations with images and runnable examples with suggested edits to explore examples further, building a deeper understanding by doing. You'll benefit from instant feedback from a variety of assessment items along the way, gently progressing from quick understanding checks (multiple choice, fill in the blank, and un-scrambling code blocks) to small, approachable exercises that take minutes instead of hours.

• Introduction to Unix and Linux
• Learn what an operating system does, what makes a Unix-based OS unique, basic Unix commands, and how to edit files on the command line.
• File System Basics
• Learn about Unix filesystems, including links, types of storage, and what metadata is stored about files.
• Processes, Services, and Privileges
• Learn to schedule, kill, and manage processes, view a list of jobs, and perform account management tasks such as creating and deleting user accounts.