Moving from Ubuntu 26.04 to Windows: Linux Commands vs PowerShell for Developer
Introduction Recently, I migrated from Ubuntu 26.04 to Windows as my primary development environment. Since I had been using Ubuntu for development, I was already comfortable working with the Linux terminal. On Ubuntu, I frequently used commands such as ls , cd , mkdir , touch , rm , and cat when navigating directories and managing project files. However, after moving to Windows, I discovered…
When I relocated my development environment from Ubuntu 26.04 to Windows, I needed to adjust to working with the Windows PowerShell command line. While many Linux commands remained compatible, some did not translate directly. In this piece, I will outline the main differences between Linux terminal commands and their Windows PowerShell counterparts, and provide guidance for developers transitioning between the two systems.
1. Windows PowerShell Environment
Windows offers two primary command-line interfaces: Command Prompt (CMD) and PowerShell. I primarily used PowerShell during my transition, which employs cmdlets such as New-Item, Get-ChildItem, and Remove-Item to carry out various tasks, as opposed to the Linux-style tools I was accustomed to on Ubuntu.
2. Common Linux Commands and Their Windows PowerShell Equivalents
Here are some Linux commands I frequently used, along with their Windows PowerShell equivalents:
- Listing files and directories: In Ubuntu, I used the ls command. In PowerShell, I can achieve similar results with the ls or Get-ChildItem commands. Both commands allow me to view files and directories within the current location.
- Checking the current directory: On Ubuntu, the pwd command displays the current working directory. In PowerShell, I use Get-Location for the same purpose.
- Creating a directory: To create a new directory named "my-project" on Ubuntu, I employed the mkdir command. In PowerShell, I use the New-Item command with the -ItemType Directory flag, or the shorter version mkdir my-project.
- Creating a file: On Ubuntu, I would use the touch command to create an empty HTML file, such as index.html. In PowerShell, I can create a file by executing the New-Item command with index.html as the name and specifying -ItemType File. Alternatively, New-Item style.css -ItemType File creates an empty CSS file.
- Deleting a file: On Ubuntu, I would use the rm command to delete a file, e.g., rm index.html. In PowerShell, the Remove-Item command serves the same purpose.
- Reading file contents: On Ubuntu, I would use the cat command to display the contents of a file, like cat index.html. In PowerShell, I use the Get-Content command for the same purpose.
- Changing directories: Both Ubuntu and PowerShell use the cd command to navigate directories. To move one level up in the directory hierarchy, I can use cd ..
- Clearing the terminal: On Ubuntu, I would run the clear command to clear the terminal screen. In PowerShell, I use the Clear-Host command to achieve the same effect.
3. PowerShell vs. CMD
While PowerShell and CMD share some similarities, they are distinct environments. Here's a quick comparison:
Operation Ubuntu PowerShell Windows CMD
- List files ls ls dir
- Current directory pwd Get-Location cd
- Create directory mkdir mkdir mkdir
- Create file touch New-Item type nul file.txt
- Delete file rm Remove-Item del
- Read file cat Get-Content type
- Change directory cd folder cd folder cd folder
- Clear terminal clear Clear-Host cls
Some commands are compatible across multiple environments, while others require different syntax. Understanding these differences is crucial for developers transitioning from Ubuntu to Windows.
Written by urgent.news from Dev.to's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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