5 Deadly Linux Commands You Should Never Run

5 Deadly Linux Commands You Should Never Run - Make Tech Easier
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5 Deadly Linux Commands You Should Never Run

Vamsi Krishna
9th Oct 2014
Linux
10 Comments
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As a Linux user, you probably have searched
online for articles and tutorials that show you

how to use the terminal to run some
commands. While most of these commands
are harmless and could help you become more
productive, there are some commands that are
deadly and could wipe out your whole
machine. In this article, lets check out some of
the deadly Linux commands that you should
never run.
Note: These commands are really harmful, so please dont try to reproduce them on your Linux
machines. You have been warned.
1. Deletes Everything Recursively

rm -rf /
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This is one of the most deadly Linux commands around. The functionality of this command is
really simple. It forcefully removes or deletes ( rm ) all the files and folders recursively ( -rf ) in
the root directory (/) of your Linux machine. Once you delete all the files in the root directory,
there is no way that you can boot into your Linux system again. Also be aware that the below
command comes in many other forms such as rm -rf * or rm -rf . So always be careful
when ever you are executing a command that includes rm .
2. Fork Bomb
:(){ :|: & };:
This weird looking command doesnt even look like a command, but it functions like a virus
which creates copies of itself endlessly, thus called as Fork Bomb. This shell function quickly
hijacks all your system resources like CPU, memory, etc. and will cause a system crash which in
turn may result in data loss. So never ever try this command or any other weird-looking
commands for that matter.
3. Move Everything to Nothingness

mv ~ /dev/null
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The functionality of this command is really basic and simple. All it does is move (mv) the
contents of your home folder (~) into the /dev/null folder. This looks really innocent, but the
catch is that there is no folder called Null, and it simply means that you are moving all your
files and folders into nothingness essentially destroying all the files irrecoverably.
4. Format Hard Drive

mkfs.ext3 /dev/sda
This command is really a disaster as it formats your entire hard drive and replaces it with the
new ext3 file system. Once you execute the command, all your data is lost irrecoverably. So
never ever try this command or any other suspicious command that involves your hard drive
(sda).
5. Output Command Directly to Hard Drive

any-command > /dev/sda
This command is much more simple; any command you execute (in the place of anycommand) will write the output data to your first hard drive replacing all the files and folders.
This in turn damages your entire file system. Once you execute this command, you will be
unable to boot into your Linux machine and your data may be lost irrecoverably. Again, dont
ever try any suspicious command that includes your hard drive (sda).
Conclusion
Using the command line is pretty interesting but dont blindly execute all the commands you
find in the internet. A single command is enough to wipe out your whole system. In addition,
while some of the commands above require elevated permissions (administrator), they may be
disguised in other commands and may trick you into executing them. So always be careful
while you are executing the commands and only trust reputed and trusted sources for your
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command line requirements. The best way is to educate yourselves on how each command
works and think through before executing the command.
The above list is definitely not conclusive and there are still tons of deadly commands that we
are not able to cover. If you know of any, feel free to share them in the comments below.
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10 comments
Anonymous
This is a nice article and all, but its not entirely true.
The first command will only warn you about the dangers of deleting /. It will not delete
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/. For that, you have to further disable the preserve-root in order to delete /. The
command for that will be rm -rf no-preserve-root /. Also, if you run this command,
you are not entirely doomed (http://lambdaops.com/rm-rf-remains might help you a
little).
The third command does not even remotely does what you stated. Have you even
tried that? /dev/null is simply pseudo-device, not a directory. It works as a
bitbucket only for redirects. For a simple mv you would only replace /dev/null with
whatever you moved. That leaves you with the headache of recovering /dev/null.
Thats it! You can recover it by deleting the newly moved /dev/null (or moving it back)
and then creating a new /dev/null: mknod -m 0666 /dev/null c 1 3.
Regarding the fork bomb, I agree with you that it is dangerous, but you can easily
stop forkbombs by limiting the number of processes a user can create with ulimit.
All in all, its a nice list, but I think you should research more on what you post.
Oct 10, 2014 at 2:35 am
Reply
Kutzooi
More Windows articles please, nobody uses Linux, Ubuntu, Commodore64 etc.
Oct 10, 2014 at 4:54 am
Reply
Softsmyth
Wow you really know very little about operating systems! Bunching in
C64 with Linux REALLY?!? You use Linux everyday and dont even know
it.
Oct 10, 2014 at 6:41 am
Reply
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WindowsOutTheWindow
Speak for yourself, Softsmyth, Linux use is pervasive throughout the IT
world. I work for a fortune 50 company, and linux is used at all levels both
as servers and workstations. The number of Linux users is only growing, so
you may want to adjust your thinking.
Oct 10, 2014 at 7:10 am
Reply
softsmyth
I think you miss-read my reply. That was my point EXACTLY. I
also work for a fortune 100 company and it is heavily used. My
point was that even if you dont use it at the workstation level,
you ARE using it while going to most web sites.
Oct 10, 2014 at 7:29 am
Reply
Ike
Let the trolls starve, folks.
Oct 10, 2014 at 7:28 am
Reply
paul
@ Kutzooi,
If you dont like, dont read. Or you can learn something else, just be curious.
Just think that Android is based on Linux, Kindle tablet, etc
I think many use Linux, they just dont know !
Pgina 6 de 9
Oct 10, 2014 at 7:39 am
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Reply
Mike
I do know that rm -rf . will delete everything it can. If you are root, it *will* kill your
system.
Dont ask me how I know this. I have the scars
Oct 10, 2014 at 11:57 am
Reply
Shorty
For some reason a list like this gives me a burning desire to load up Debian in a vm or
on an old laptop and try a few of them..
Oct 10, 2014 at 5:59 pm
Reply
Googlian
Windows usage is over 80%.
Linux and its zillion variants usage (including servers around the world) is around 5%.
So Kutzooi was not exactly right, but close!
No oense to UNIX and its derivatives, I have used it in the 1980s and 1990s on
engineering workstations (when PCs werent powerful enough to handle certain
engineering applications).
I also keep a Linux live thumb drive for just in case I need to boot from it. Other than
that, Im no longer interested in any UNIX related OS. I never even liked it. Its one of
the OSs that you either love it or hate it.
Its true that some servers are Linux/UNIX-based, but these are transparent to the
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end user.
You click on a link in the browser, and it takes you to your destination, although the
process may pass a number of servers with dierent server OSs on its way.
Im done with commands. In the 1980s, while in college, I memorized the DOS
commands, and very much the DOS manual, cover to cover!
Im happy using Windows. Its simply my choice.
To each their own, and we really shouldnt get very defensive about it!
See the share of various operating systems here, if in doubt (they have been
compiling since 2003):
http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_os.asp
Oct 12, 2014 at 9:37 am
Reply
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9th Oct 2014

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online for articles and tutorials that show you

1. Deletes Everything Recursively

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

3. Move Everything to Nothingness

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

4. Format Hard Drive

5. Output Command Directly to Hard Drive

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

Do you like what you read here?

Or connect with us:Subscribe

Visita nuestro Blog

How to Disable a Laptop

How To Use mpv CLI

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Touchpad on Startup for

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

Oct 10, 2014 at 7:39 am

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

13/10/14 08:36 a.m.

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