Lesson 12: Removing files

You've seen how to remove a directory with the rmdir command, but rmdir won't remove directories if they contain any files. So how can we remove the files we have created inside learning_linux/planets? To do this, we will have to use the rm (remove) command.

Warning

Please read the next section VERY carefully. Misuse of the rm command can lead to destruction and system failure if running as the superuser (root) - the system administration account.

Potentially, rm is a very dangerous command; if you delete something with rm, it is unrecoverable! It is therefore possible to delete everything in your home directory (all directories and sub-directories) with rm.

As an additional security measure, rm can be used with the -i command-line option which will ask for confirmation before deleting anything (remember to use tab-completion). Run the following commands, and type "y" (for yes) to indicate you truly intend to delete the files.

[learner learning_linux]$ cd planets/
[learner planets]$ rm -i heaven.txt
rm: remove regular empty file heaven.txt? y
[learner planets]$ ls
earth.txt  jupiter.txt  mars.txt  neptune.txt