DESCRIPTION
An outline of the filesystem hierarchy.
Naming is very important. The UNIX System relies on filename conventions for much of its power as a system. The following file system layout describes generally where things are and what they are, with references to other man pages for more detailed documentation.
Not all files will be in every system.
-
/
-
root directory of the system
-
/COPYRIGHT
-
system copyright notice, most often put on CD-ROM distributions.
-
/[a-z]/
-
user filesystems
-
/altroot/
-
alternate root filesystem, in case of disaster
-
/bin/
-
utilities used in both single and multi-user environments
-
/boot*
-
second-stage boot loader(s) for some platforms; see installboot(8)
-
/cdrom/
-
empty directory commonly used by system administrators as a temporary mount point for CD devices for ISO-9660 file systems
-
/dev/
-
block, character and other special device files
-
MAKEDEV
-
script for creating device files; see makedev(8)
-
console
-
the computer's console device
-
drum
-
system swap space; see drum(4)
-
fd/
-
file descriptor files; see fd(4)
-
klog
-
kernel logging device; see syslog(3)
-
kmem
-
kernel virtual memory device; see mem(4)
-
log
-
UNIX domain datagram log socket; see syslogd(8)
-
mem
-
kernel physical memory device; see mem(4)
-
null
-
the null device; see null(4)
-
pts/
-
mount point for the pseudo-terminal device file system; see mount_ptyfs(8)
-
stderr
-
-
stdin
-
-
stdout
-
file descriptor files; see fd(4)
-
tty
-
process' controlling terminal device; see tty(4)
-
zero
-
the zero device; see zero(4)
-
/etc/
-
system configuration files and scripts
-
amd*
-
configuration files for amd(8)
-
changelist
-
files backed up by the security script
-
crontab
-
schedule used by the cron(8) daemon
-
csh.cshrc
-
-
csh.login
-
-
csh.logout
-
system-wide scripts for csh(1)
-
daily
-
script run each day by cron(8)
-
daily.conf
-
configuration file for daily; see daily.conf(5)
-
defaults/
-
default configuration files read by various /etc/*.conf files
-
disktab
-
disk description file, see disktab(5)
-
dm.conf
-
dungeon master configuration; see dm.conf(5)
-
dumpdates
-
dump history; see dump(8)
-
exports
-
filesystem export information; see mountd(8)
-
fstab
-
filesystem information; see fstab(5) and mount(8)
-
ftpusers
-
users denied ftp(1) access; see ftpd(8)
-
ftpwelcome
-
ftp(1) initial message; see ftpd(8)
-
gettytab
-
terminal configuration database; see gettytab(5)
-
group
-
group permissions file; see group(5)
-
hosts
-
host name database backup for named(8); see hosts(5)
-
hosts.equiv
-
trusted machines with equivalent user ID's
-
hosts.lpd
-
trusted machines with printing privileges
-
inetd.conf
-
Internet server configuration file; see inetd(8)
-
kerberosV/
-
configuration files for the kerberos version V; see kerberos(8)
-
localtime
-
local timezone information; see ctime(3)
-
mail/
-
configuration files for sendmail(8)
-
aliases*
-
name alias files
-
sendmail.*
-
sendmail(8) configuration information
-
mail.rc
-
system-wide initialization script for mail(1)
-
man.conf
-
configuration file for man(1); see man.conf(5)
-
master.passwd
-
Main password file, readable only by root; see passwd(5)
-
mk.conf
-
optional file containing make(1) variables, read by pkgsrc and the system sources.
-
monthly
-
script run each month by cron(8)
-
monthly.conf
-
configuration file for monthly; see monthly.conf(5)
-
motd
-
system message of the day
-
mtree/
-
mtree configuration files; see mtree(8)
-
named.*
-
-
namedb/
-
named configuration files and databases; see named(8)
-
netgroup
-
network groups; see netgroup(5)
-
netstart
-
network startup script
-
networks
-
network name data base; see networks(5)
-
passwd
-
World readable password file generated from master.passwd; see passwd(5), pwd_mkdb(8)
-
phones
-
remote host phone number data base; see phones(5)
-
printcap
-
system printer configuration; see printcap(5)
-
protocols
-
protocol name database; see protocols(5)
-
pwd.db
-
database form of passwd file; see pwd_mkdb(8)
-
rc
-
master system startup script invoked by init(8); see rc(8)
-
rc.conf
-
configuration file for system startup and shutdown scripts; see rc.conf(5)
-
rc.d/
-
directory containing per-subsystem startup and shutdown scripts; see rc(8)
-
rc.local
-
locally editable system startup script
-
rc.shutdown
-
master system shutdown script invoked by shutdown(8); see rc(8)
-
remote
-
remote host description file; see remote(5)
-
security
-
daily (in)security script run by cron(8)
-
security.conf
-
configuration file for security; see security.conf(5)
-
services
-
service name data base; see services(5)
-
shells
-
list of permitted shells; see shells(5)
-
sliphome/
-
SLIP login/logout scripts; see sliplogin(8)
-
spwd.db
-
database form of master.passwd file; see pwd_mkdb(8)
-
syslog.conf
-
syslogd(8) configuration file; see syslog.conf(5)
-
termcap
-
terminal type database; see termcap(3)
-
ttys
-
terminal initialization information; see ttys(5)
-
weekly
-
script run each week by cron(8)
-
weekly.conf
-
configuration file for weekly; see weekly.conf(5)
-
/home/
-
mount point for the automounter; see amd(8)
-
/kern/
-
mount point for the kern file system; see mount_kernfs(8)
-
/lib/
-
dynamic linked libraries used by dynamic linked programs (such as those in /bin/ and /sbin/) that cannot rely upon /usr/lib/ being available.
-
/libexec/
-
system utilities (such as the dynamic linker) required by programs and libraries that cannot rely upon /usr/libexec/ being available.
-
/mnt/
-
empty directory commonly used by system administrators as a temporary mount point
-
/netbsd
-
pure kernel executable (the operating system loaded into memory at boot time).
-
/proc/
-
mount point for the process file system; see mount_procfs(8)
-
/rescue/
-
statically linked rescue tools, for use in system recovery
-
/root/
-
home directory for the super-user
-
.cshrc
-
super-user start-up file
-
.login
-
super-user start-up file
-
.profile
-
super-user start-up file
-
.rhosts
-
super-user id mapping between machines
-
/sbin/
-
system programs and administration utilities used in both single-user and multi-user environments
-
/stand/
-
programs used in a standalone environment
-
/tmp/
-
temporary files, usually a mfs(8) memory-based filesystem (the contents of /tmp are usually not preserved across a system reboot)
-
/usr/
-
contains the majority of the system utilities and files
-
X11R6/
-
X11 files
-
X11R7/
-
X11 files
-
bin/
-
X11 binaries
-
include/
-
X11 include files
-
lib/
-
X11 libraries
-
bin/
-
common utilities, programming tools, and applications
-
games/
-
the important stuff
-
include/
-
standard C include files
-
arpa/
-
include files for Internet service protocols
-
atf/
-
include files for the Automated Testing Framework; see atf(7)
-
g++/
-
include files for the C++ compiler
-
machine/
-
machine specific include files
-
net/
-
-
netatalk/
-
C include files for AppleTalk protocols miscellaneous network include files; see atalk(4)
-
netinet/
-
include files for Internet standard protocols; see inet(4)
-
netinet6/
-
include files for Internet protocol version 6; see inet6(4)
-
netiso/
-
include files for ISO standard protocols; see iso(4)
-
netkey/
-
include files for secret key management, used for security protocols; see ipsec(4)
-
netnatm/
-
C include files for native mode ATM
-
nfs/
-
C include files for NFS (Network File System)
-
protocols/
-
C include files for Berkeley service protocols
-
sys/
-
system C include files (kernel data structures)
-
ufs/
-
C include files for UFS (The U-word File System)
-
lib/
-
archive, profiled, position independent archive, and shared libraries
-
lua/
-
-
5.1/
-
Lua 5.1 modules
-
libdata/
-
miscellaneous utility data files
-
libexec/
-
system daemons & system utilities (executed by other programs)
-
mdec/
-
boot blocks, etc.
-
obj/
-
architecture-specific target tree produced by building the /usr/src tree; normally a symbolic link or mounted filesystem
-
pkg/
-
packages maintained by groups other than the NetBSD Project.
-
bin/
-
contributed binaries
-
include/
-
contributed include files
-
lib/
-
contributed libraries
-
libdata/
-
contributed data files
-
libexec/
-
contributed daemons
-
sbin/
-
contributed system utilities
-
pkgsrc/
-
build descriptions ("packages") for the NetBSD packages system.
-
distfiles/
-
Where unchanged source archives are fetched to/stored
-
packages/
-
Where compiled binary packages are stored
There are also several other subdirectories which contain packages of a certain category, e.g., archivers, graphics, ...
-
sbin/
-
system daemons and system utilities (normally executed by the super-user)
-
share/
-
architecture-independent text files
-
calendar/
-
a variety of calendar files; see calendar(1)
-
dict/
-
word lists; see look(1) and spell(1)
-
words
-
common words
-
web2
-
words of Webster's 2nd International
-
papers/
-
reference databases; see refer(1)
-
special/
-
custom word lists; see spell(1)
-
doc/
-
miscellaneous documentation; source for most of the printed 4.3BSD manuals (available from the USENIX association)
-
games/
-
text files used by various games
-
i18n/
-
internationalization databases; see iconv(3)
-
locale/
-
locale databases and gettext message catalogs; see setlocale(3) and gettext(3)
-
man/
-
formatted manual pages
-
me/
-
macros for use with the me(7) macro package
-
misc/
-
miscellaneous system-wide text files
<<<<<<< hier.7
-
termcap
-
=======
-
terminfo
-
>>>>>>> 1.101 terminal characteristics database; see <<<<<<< hier.7 termcap(5) ======= terminfo(5)
-
terminfo.cdb
-
database form of terminfo file; see tic(1) >>>>>>> 1.101
-
mk/
-
include files for make(1)
-
ms/
-
macros for use with the ms(7) macro package
-
nls/
-
message catalogs; see catgets(3)
-
skel/
-
sample initialization files for new user accounts
-
tabset/
-
tab description files for a variety of terminals, used in the termcap file; see termcap(5)
-
tmac/
-
text processing macros; see nroff(1) and troff(1)
-
zoneinfo/
-
timezone configuration information; see tzfile(5)
-
tests/
-
test programs; see atf-run(1) for information on how to run them
-
/usr/src/
-
NetBSD and local source files
-
bin/
-
source for utilities/files in /bin
-
common/
-
sources shared between kernel and userland
-
crypto/
-
cryptographic source, which may have import or export restrictions
-
dist/
-
third-party ‘virgin' source code, referenced by other parts of the source tree (deprecated, use external/ instead)
-
distrib/
-
tools and data-files for making distributions
-
doc/
-
documentation about the source tree (i.e., about the tree, not about how to use the built software.)
-
etc/
-
source (usually example files) for files in /etc
-
external/
-
source for programs from external third parties (where NetBSD is the not the primary maintainer), grouped by license, and then products per license
-
apache2/
-
Apache 2.0 license.
-
bsd/
-
BSD (or equivalent) licensed software, possibly with the “advertising clause”.
-
cddl/
-
Common Development and Distribution License (the Sun license which is based on the Mozilla Public License version 1.1).
-
gpl2/
-
GNU Public License, version 2 (or earlier).
-
gpl3/
-
GNU Public License, version 3.
-
historical/
-
Lucent's old license.
-
ibm-public/
-
IBM's public license.
-
intel-fw-eula/
-
Intel firmware license with redistribution restricted to OEM.
-
intel-fw-public/
-
Intel firmware license permitting redistribution with terms similar to BSD licensed software.
-
intel-public/
-
Intel license permitting redistribution with terms similar to BSD licensed software.
-
mit/
-
MIT (X11) style license.
-
zlib/
-
BSD-like zlib license.
-
games/
-
source for utilities/files in /usr/games
-
gnu/
-
source for programs covered by the GNU license (or similar) (deprecated; use external/gpl2/ or external/gpl3/ as appropriate)
-
include/
-
source for files in /usr/include
-
lib/
-
source for libraries in /usr/lib
-
libexec/
-
source for utilities/files in /usr/libexec
-
regress/
-
various regression tests
-
rescue/
-
source/makefiles for /rescue
-
sbin/
-
source for utilities/files in /sbin
-
share/
-
source for files in /usr/share
-
doc/
-
-
papers/
-
source for various Berkeley technical papers
-
psd/
-
source for Programmer's Supplementary Documents
-
smm/
-
source for System Manager's Manual
-
usd/
-
source for User's Supplementary Documents
-
sys/
-
kernel source files
-
arch/
-
architecture-specific support
-
acorn26/
-
Acorn Archimedes, A-series and R-series systems
-
acorn32/
-
Acorn RiscPC/A7000 and VLSI RC7500
-
algor/
-
Algorithmics Ltd. MIPS evaluations boards
-
alpha/
-
Digital/Compaq Alpha
-
amd64/
-
Computers with x86_64 capable CPUs
-
amiga/
-
Commodore Amiga and MacroSystem DraCo
-
amigappc/
-
PowerPC based Amiga boards
-
arc/
-
MIPS-based machines following the Advanced RISC Computing spec
-
arm/
-
ARM processor general support
-
atari/
-
Atari TT030, Falcon and Hades
-
bebox/
-
Be Inc. BeBox
-
cats/
-
Chalice Technology's CATS and Intel's EBSA-285 evaluation boards
-
cesfic/
-
CES FIC8234 VME processor board
-
cobalt/
-
Cobalt Networks' MIPS-based Microserver
-
dreamcast/
-
Sega Dreamcast game console
-
emips/
-
Machines based on Extensible MIPS
-
evbarm/
-
ARM based evaluation boards
-
evbmips/
-
MIPS based evaluation boards
-
evbppc/
-
PowerPC based evaluation boards and appliances
-
evbsh3/
-
SH3/SH4 based evaluation boards
-
ews4800mips/
-
NEC's MIPS based EWS4800 workstations
-
hp300/
-
Hewlett-Packard 9000/300 and 400 680x0-based workstations
-
hp700/
-
Hewlett-Packard 9000/700 HPPA based workstations
-
hpcarm/
-
StrongARM based WinCE PDA machines
-
hpcmips/
-
MIPS based WinCE PDA machines
-
hpcsh/
-
Hitachi SH3/4 based WinCE PDA machines
-
hppa/
-
HPPA processor general support
-
i386/
-
80x86-based IBM PCs and clones
-
ibmnws/
-
IBM Network Station 1000
-
iyonix/
-
Castle Technology's Iyonix ARM based PCs
-
luna68k/
-
Omron Tateishi Electric's 680x0-based LUNA workstations
-
m68k/
-
680x0 processor general support
-
mac68k/
-
Apple Macintosh with 68k CPU
-
macppc/
-
Apple Power Macintosh and clones
-
mips/
-
MIPS processor general support
-
mipsco/
-
MIPS Computer Systems Inc. family of workstations and servers
-
mmeye/
-
Brains Inc. SH3 based mmEye multimedia server
-
mvme68k/
-
Motorola MVME 680x0-based SBCs
-
mvmeppc/
-
Motorola PowerPC VME SBCs
-
netwinder/
-
StrongARM based NetWinder machines
-
news68k/
-
Sony's 680x0-based NEWS workstations
-
newsmips/
-
Sony's MIPS-based NEWS workstations
-
next68k/
-
NeXT 68k "black" hardware
-
ofppc/
-
Open Firmware PowerPC workstations
-
pmax/
-
Digital MIPS-based DECstations and DECsystems
-
powerpc/
-
PowerPC processor support
-
prep/
-
PReP (PowerPC Reference Platform) and CHRP machines
-
sandpoint/
-
Motorola Sandpoint reference platform
-
sbmips/
-
Broadcom/SiByte evaluation boards
-
sgimips/
-
Silicon Graphics' MIPS-based workstations
-
sh3/
-
SH3/SH4 processor general support
-
shark/
-
Digital DNARD ("Shark")
-
sparc/
-
Sun Microsystems SPARC (32-bit) and UltraSPARC (in 32-bit mode)
-
sparc64/
-
Sun Microsystems UltraSPARC (in native 64-bit mode)
-
sun2/
-
Sun Microsystems 68010-based Sun 2 architecture
-
sun3/
-
Sun Microsystems 68020/68030-based Sun 3/3x architecture
-
sun68k/
-
680x0-based Sun architecture general support
-
vax/
-
Digital VAX
-
x68k/
-
Sharp X680x0 680x0-based workstations
-
x86/
-
General support for PC/AT compatibles with ia32 or x86_64 CPUs
-
xen/
-
The Xen virtual machine monitor
-
zaurus/
-
Sharp C3x00 Arm based PDA
-
compat/
-
kernel compatibility modules directory
-
common/
-
common compatibility routines, old 4BSD and NetBSD routines.
-
freebsd/
-
support for FreeBSD binaries; see compat_freebsd(8)
-
hpux/
-
support for 68000 HP-UX binaries
-
ibcs2/
-
support for Intel Binary binaries
-
linux/
-
support for Linux binaries; see compat_linux(8)
-
m68k4k/
-
support for 4KB page 68000 binaries
-
netbsd32/
-
support for NetBSD 32-bit binaries on 64 bit platforms with compatible CPU families
-
osf1/
-
support for Digital UNIX (formerly OSF/1) binaries
-
ossaudio/
-
support for OSS audio
-
sunos/
-
support for SunOS 4.x binaries; see compat_sunos(8)
-
svr4/
-
support for System V Release 4 binaries; see compat_svr4(8)
-
ultrix/
-
support for ULTRIX binaries
-
vax1k/
-
support for older VAX binaries that started on a 1 KB boundary
-
conf/
-
architecture independent configuration directory
-
crypto/
-
cryptographic kernel source, which may have import or export restrictions
-
ddb/
-
in kernel debugger
-
dev/
-
architecture independent device support
-
fs/
-
miscellaneous file systems
-
adosfs/
-
AmigaDOS file-system support; see mount_ados(8)
-
cd9660/
-
support for the ISO-9660 filesystem; see mount_cd9660(8)
-
filecorefs/
-
support for the Acorn RISC OS filecore filesystem; see mount_filecore(8)
-
msdosfs/
-
MS-DOS file system; see mount_msdos(8)
-
ntfs/
-
NTFS filesystem support; see mount_ntfs(8)
-
ptyfs/
-
pseudo-terminal device filesystem; see mount_ptyfs(8)
-
smbfs/
-
SMB/CIFS filesystem support; see mount_smbfs(8)
-
union/
-
union file system; see mount_union(8)
-
gdbscripts/
-
support for accessing kernel structures from within the debugger gdb(1).
-
ipkdb/
-
support for kernel debugging over the network
-
kern/
-
support for the high kernel (system calls)
-
lib/
-
kernel libraries
-
libkern/
-
C library routines used in the kernel
-
libsa/
-
machine independent stand alone kernel library
-
libz/
-
compression library
-
miscfs/
-
miscellaneous file systems
-
deadfs/
-
kernel only dead file system
-
fdesc/
-
file descriptor file system; see mount_fdesc(8)
-
fifofs/
-
POSIX FIFO support
-
genfs/
-
kernel only generic file system
-
kernfs/
-
kernel namespace file system; see mount_kernfs(8)
-
nullfs/
-
loop back file system; see mount_null(8)
-
overlay/
-
overlay file system; see mount_overlay(8)
-
procfs/
-
process file system; see mount_procfs(8)
-
specfs/
-
kernel only special file system
-
syncfs/
-
kernel trickle sync algorithm
-
umapfs/
-
user and group re-mapping file system; see mount_umap(8)
-
net/
-
miscellaneous networking support
-
netatalk/
-
AppleTalk networking support
-
netinet/
-
IP networking support
-
netinet6/
-
IPv6 networking support
-
netiso/
-
ISO networking support
-
netkey/
-
Key database for IPsec networking support
-
netnatm/
-
ATM networking support
-
nfs/
-
NFS support
-
stand/
-
kernel standalone support
-
sys/
-
kernel (and system) include files
-
ufs/
-
local filesystem support
-
ffs/
-
the Berkeley Fast File System
-
lfs/
-
the log-structured file system
-
mfs/
-
the in-memory file system
-
ufs/
-
shared UNIX file system support
-
uvm/
-
UVM virtual memory system
-
tests/
-
source for test programs in /usr/tests
-
usr.bin/
-
source for utilities/files in /usr/bin
-
usr.sbin/
-
source for utilities/files in /usr/sbin
-
/var/
-
multi-purpose log, temporary, transient, and spool files
-
account/
-
system accounting files
-
acct
-
execution accounting file; see acct(5)
-
at/
-
timed command scheduling files; see at(1)
-
backups/
-
miscellaneous backup files, largely of files found in /etc
-
chroot/
-
home directories of applications which are run in a chroot(8) “cage”.
-
crash/
-
system crash dumps; see savecore(8)
-
cron/
-
scheduled commands configuration files; see cron(8)
-
db/
-
miscellaneous automatically generated system-specific database files, and persistent files used in the maintenance of third party software.
-
pkg
-
default location for metadata related to third party software packages. See pkg_add(1) for more details of the NetBSD Packages Collection, or pkgsrc.
-
games/
-
miscellaneous game status and log files
-
heimdal/
-
Kerberos 5 KDC database; see kdc(8)
-
log/
-
miscellaneous system log files
-
amd.*
-
amd(8) logs
-
daily.out
-
output of the last run of the /etc/daily script
-
ftp.*
-
ftp(1) logs
-
kerberos.*
-
kerberos(8) logs
-
lastlog
-
system last time logged in log; see utmp(5)
-
lpd-errs.*
-
printer daemon error logs; see lpd(8)
-
maillog.*
-
sendmail(8) log files
-
messages.*
-
general system information log
-
monthly.out
-
output of the last run of the /etc/monthly script
-
secure
-
sensitive security information log
-
sendmail.st
-
sendmail(8) statistics
-
timed.*
-
timed(8) logs
-
weekly.out
-
output of the last run of the /etc/weekly script
-
wtmp
-
login/logout log; see utmp(5)
-
mail/
-
user system mailboxes
-
msgs/
-
system messages; see msgs(1)
-
preserve/
-
temporary home of files preserved after an accidental death of ex(1) or vi(1)
-
quotas/
-
filesystem quota information
-
run/
-
system information files, rebuilt after each reboot
-
utmp
-
database of current users; see utmp(5)
-
rwho/
-
rwho data files; see rwhod(8), rwho(1), and ruptime(1)
-
spool/
-
miscellaneous printer and mail system spooling directories
-
ftp/
-
commonly “~ftp”, the anonymous ftp root directory; see ftpd(8)
-
mqueue/
-
sendmail mail queue; see sendmail(8)
-
news/
-
Network news archival and spooling directories
-
output/
-
printer spooling directories
-
postfix/
-
postfix mail queue; see postfix(1)
-
uucp/
-
uucp spool directory
-
uucppublic/
-
commonly “~uucp”, the uucp public temporary directory; see uucp(1)
-
tmp/
-
temporary files that are not discarded between system reboots
-
vi.recover/
-
recovery directory for new vi(1)
-
yp/
-
Databases and configuration for the NIS (YP) system; see nis(8).