Unix file types
File types in Unix operating systems / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The seven standard Unix file types are regular, directory, symbolic link, FIFO special, block special, character special, and socket as defined by POSIX.[1] Different OS-specific implementations allow more types than what POSIX requires (e.g. Solaris doors). A file's type can be identified by the ls -l
command, which displays the type in the first character of the file-system permissions field.
For regular files, Unix does not impose or provide any internal file structure; therefore, their structure and interpretation is entirely dependent on the software using them.[2] However, the file
command can usually be used to determine what type of data they contain.[3]