Introduction to Linux

A familiarity with Linux and the Bash Shell is vital for using the HTC cluster. Submitting, monitoring, and managing jobs on the cluster largely involves command-line operations. We do not routinely teach beginning Linux classes, though we may offer hands-on sessions as a part of multi-topic workshops. However, we do expect you (and strongly encourage you) to be comfortable with the following Linux skills before submitting jobs on the HTC cluster:

• Know how to traverse directories
• Know how to create & remove files & directories
• Know how to copy/move files & directories
• Know how to edit a file using a simple text editor like nano or vi
• Read and write files with commands like head, tail, cat, and less
• Understand and modify Linux file/directory permissions
• Understand I/O redirection 

Additional Linux skills:

• Pipe
• Simple search and replace using sed and grep etc
• Wildcard characters
• Find online help on a command
• Key strokes to kill a running command on the commandline

To test your Linux/Bash familiarity, take the NIH HPC quiz below.

Take the Quiz! (10 random multiple-choice questions)

If you score below 8/10, we highly recommend that you work your way through one or more of the following Linux tutorials (each link uses a different teaching/learning methodology):

• Software Carpentry’s ‘helping lab people compute smartly’ Unix Intro

• An Introduction to Linux workshop

The time invested in having good Linux skills will save you hours, if not days, in the future.