Home > Categories > Computers & Internet > Most Deadly Linux Commands List

Most Deadly Linux Commands

Here are some reasons why you should never log in as root unless you have a specific task.

List topic started by biddit's List biddit

  • :(){ :|:& };:

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    This is a forkbomb. It forks processes until your system grinds to a halt.
    Reply biddit's List

  • chmod -R 777 /

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    Grants read, write, and execute rights to every file for every user.
    Reply biddit's List

  • dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sda

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    Copies nothing over the entire contents of your disk.
    Reply biddit's List

  • ls > /dev/sda

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    The > redirects raw output, and in this case, to your hard disk, effectively corrupting and destroying the filesystem. 'ls' is used here, but any command can be used.
    Reply biddit's List

  • mkfs /dev/sda

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    Creates a new filesystem on the target. That is to say that it reformats your hard drive.
    Reply biddit's List

  • mv /home/* /dev/null

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    Moves all the user directories to the great black hole known as /dev/null. (effectively deleting them)
    Reply biddit's List

  • rm -fr /

    biddit
    on 22/11/08

    Rating : 0
    Rate this comment up Rate this comment down
    Probably the simplest way to hose your system. It recursively deletes all files from the root of your filesystem.
    Reply biddit's List
Main Menu