Command Line Setup

Published: February 14, 2026 · Last edited: February 24, 2026

A balanced approach to terminal configuration that reduces cognitive load while maintaining security.

Core Philosophy

Visual clarity over minimalism
Helpful defaults that prevent mistakes
Clear confirmation for destructive actions
Contextual information always visible
Reduced decision fatigue

1. Shell Configuration (Bash/Zsh)

Bash file: ~/.bash
Zsh configuration file: ~/.zshrc

This documentation will default to ~/.zshrc

Essential Aliases - Add to `~/.zshrc`

bash

# Safe defaults - prevent accidents
alias rm='rm -i'                    # Always confirm before deleting
alias mv='mv -i'                    # Always confirm before overwriting
alias cp='cp -i'                    # Always confirm before overwriting
alias mkdir='mkdir -pv'             # Create parent dirs, show what's created

# Clear visual feedback
export CLICOLOR=1
export LSCOLORS=GxFxCxDxBxegedabagaced
alias ls='ls -Gh'
alias ll='ls -lAh'
alias la='ls -A'

# Git shortcuts with visibility or check [[git-setup.md]]
alias gs='git status'
alias gd='git diff'
alias gl='git log --oneline --graph --decorate --all -10'
alias gll='git log --oneline --graph --decorate --all'
alias gb='git branch -v'

# Directory navigation
alias ..='cd ..'
alias ...='cd ../..'
alias ....='cd ../../..'
alias ~='cd ~'
alias -- -='cd -'                   # Go back to previous directory
alias workspace='cd ~/workspace'    # Go to git workspace directory

# Quick clarity
alias path='echo -e ${PATH//:/\\n}'
alias now='date +"%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S"'
alias ports='lsof -iTCP -sTCP:LISTEN -n -P' # Check [[../guides/listening-ports.md]] for more details

# Process management
alias psgrep='ps aux | grep -v grep | grep -i -e VSZ -e'
alias meminfo='free -m -l -t'
alias psmem='ps auxf | sort -nr -k 4 | head -10'
alias pscpu='ps auxf | sort -nr -k 3 | head -10'

Helper Functions - Add to `~/.bashrc` or `~/.zshrc`

bash

# Confirm before dangerous operations
confirm() {
    read -r -p "${1:-Are you sure? [y/N]} " response
    case "$response" in
        [yY][eE][sS]|[yY]) 
            true
            ;;
        *)
            false
            ;;
    esac
}

# Safe force remove - still asks first
rmf() {
    if confirm "Delete $* permanently? [y/N]"; then
        rm -rf "$@"
    else
        echo "Cancelled."
    fi
}

# Make and cd into directory
mkcd() {
    mkdir -p "$1" && cd "$1"
}

# Extract any archive type
extract() {
    if [ -f "$1" ]; then
        case "$1" in
            *.tar.bz2)   tar xjf "$1"     ;;
            *.tar.gz)    tar xzf "$1"     ;;
            *.bz2)       bunzip2 "$1"     ;;
            *.rar)       unrar x "$1"     ;;
            *.gz)        gunzip "$1"      ;;
            *.tar)       tar xf "$1"      ;;
            *.tbz2)      tar xjf "$1"     ;;
            *.tgz)       tar xzf "$1"     ;;
            *.zip)       unzip "$1"       ;;
            *.Z)         uncompress "$1"  ;;
            *.7z)        7z x "$1"        ;;
            *)           echo "'$1' cannot be extracted" ;;
        esac
    else
        echo "'$1' is not a valid file"
    fi
}

# Show directory size in human readable format
dsize() {
    du -sh "${1:-.}"
}

# Quick backup of file
backup() {
    cp "$1" "$1.backup-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%)"
    ## [bug] the echoed filename may be wrong if one minute has passed since the backup was created, but it's a minor issue
    echo "💾 Backup file created: $1.backup-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%)"
}
alias bckp='backup'
alias bckup='backup'

# Find file by name
ff() {
    find . -type f -iname "*$1*"
}

# Find directory by name
fd() {
    find . -type d -iname "*$1*"
}

2. Visual Prompt Configuration

Starship Prompt (Recommended)

Install Starship: curl -sS https://starship.rs/install.sh | sh

Create ~/.config/starship.toml:

toml

# Timeout for commands (prevents hanging)
command_timeout = 1000

# Format - keep it clean but informative
format = """
[┌─](bold green) $directory$git_branch$git_status$python$nodejs$rust$golang
[└─](bold green) $character"""

[character]
success_symbol = "[➜](bold green)"
error_symbol = "[✗](bold red)"

[directory]
truncation_length = 3
truncate_to_repo = true
style = "bold cyan"

[git_branch]
symbol = " "
style = "bold purple"

[git_status]
conflicted = "⚔️ "
ahead = "⬆️ "
behind = "⬇️ "
diverged = "🔱 "
untracked = "📝 "
stashed = "📦 "
modified = "📝 "
staged = "✅ "
renamed = "➡️ "
deleted = "🗑️ "

[python]
symbol = " "
style = "yellow"

[nodejs]
symbol = " "
style = "green"

[rust]
symbol = " "
style = "red"

[golang]
symbol = " "
style = "cyan"

3. Command History Configuration

Add to ~/.bashrc:

bash

# Limited history
export HISTSIZE=50000
export HISTFILESIZE=100000

# Avoid duplicates and commands starting with space
export HISTCONTROL=ignoreboth:erasedups

# Timestamp in history
export HISTTIMEFORMAT="%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S  "

# Append to history, don't overwrite
shopt -s histappend

# Save multi-line commands as one
shopt -s cmdhist

# Update LINES and COLUMNS after each command
shopt -s checkwinsize

4. Useful Environment Variables

bash

# Better less behavior
export LESS='-R -M -i -j10 -#4'

# Colored man pages
export LESS_TERMCAP_mb=$'\e[1;32m'
export LESS_TERMCAP_md=$'\e[1;32m'
export LESS_TERMCAP_me=$'\e[0m'
export LESS_TERMCAP_se=$'\e[0m'
export LESS_TERMCAP_so=$'\e[01;33m'
export LESS_TERMCAP_ue=$'\e[0m'
export LESS_TERMCAP_us=$'\e[1;4;31m'

# Set default editor
export EDITOR=nano  # or vim if you prefer
export VISUAL=$EDITOR

# Enable colored output for common tools
export CLICOLOR=1
export GREP_OPTIONS='--color=auto'

5. Security-Focused Settings

bash

# File creation mask - files created with secure permissions
umask 027  # Owner: rwx, Group: r-x, Others: none

# Don't save sensitive commands to history
export HISTIGNORE="*sudo -S*:*password*:*passwd*:*aws_secret*:*api_key*"

# Auto-logout after inactivity (30 minutes)
export TMOUT=1800

# Secure PATH - prevent executing from current directory
export PATH="/usr/local/bin:/usr/bin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/sbin:$HOME/bin"

6. Essential Tools to Install

For Better UX:

bash

# Improved versions of core utilities
sudo apt install bat      # Better 'cat' with syntax highlighting
sudo apt install exa      # Better 'ls' with more info
sudo apt install ripgrep  # Faster 'grep'
sudo apt install fd-find  # Faster 'find'
sudo apt install fzf      # Fuzzy finder for history/files
sudo apt install tldr     # Simplified man pages
sudo apt install ncdu     # Visual disk usage

Aliases for new tools:

bash

alias cat='bat --style=plain --paging=never'
alias ls='exa --icons --group-directories-first'
alias ll='exa -l --icons --group-directories-first -h'
alias tree='exa --tree --icons'
alias grep='rg'
alias find='fd'

7. FZF Configuration (Fuzzy Finding)

Add to ~/.bashrc:

bash

# FZF for command history search
[ -f ~/.fzf.bash ] && source ~/.fzf.bash

# Ctrl+R: Search command history
# Ctrl+T: Search files
# Alt+C: Search directories

# Better FZF defaults
export FZF_DEFAULT_OPTS='
  --height 40% 
  --layout=reverse 
  --border 
  --preview "bat --style=numbers --color=always {}"
  --color=fg:#f8f8f2,bg:#282a36,hl:#bd93f9
  --color=fg+:#f8f8f2,bg+:#44475a,hl+:#bd93f9
  --color=info:#ffb86c,prompt:#50fa7b,pointer:#ff79c6
  --color=marker:#ff79c6,spinner:#ffb86c,header:#6272a4'

8. Git Configuration for Clarity

bash

# Global git settings
git config --global color.ui auto
git config --global color.status auto
git config --global color.branch auto

# Better diff
git config --global core.pager 'less -R'

# Aliases
git config --global alias.st 'status -sb'
git config --global alias.co checkout
git config --global alias.br 'branch -v'
git config --global alias.unstage 'reset HEAD --'
git config --global alias.last 'log -1 HEAD'
git config --global alias.visual 'log --oneline --graph --decorate --all'

9. Daily Workflow Helpers

Create ~/bin/check-status.sh:

bash

#!/bin/bash
# Quick morning status check

echo "=== System Status ==="
echo "Date: $(date)"
echo "Uptime: $(uptime -p)"
echo ""

echo "=== Disk Usage ==="
df -h / /home 2>/dev/null | grep -v tmpfs
echo ""

echo "=== Git Repos Needing Attention ==="
for dir in ~/projects/*/; do
    if [ -d "$dir/.git" ]; then
        cd "$dir"
        if [[ -n $(git status -s) ]]; then
            echo "📝 $(basename "$dir"): Uncommitted changes"
        fi
        if [[ $(git rev-list --count @{u}..HEAD 2>/dev/null) -gt 0 ]]; then
            echo "⬆️  $(basename "$dir"): Unpushed commits"
        fi
    fi
done
echo ""

echo "=== TODO Reminder ==="
[ -f ~/TODO.txt ] && head -5 ~/TODO.txt || echo "No TODO file found"

Make it executable: chmod +x ~/bin/check-status.sh

10. Command Line Cheatsheet

Create ~/bin/help.sh:

bash

#!/bin/bash
# Quick reference for common tasks

cat << 'EOF'
🚀 COMMAND LINE CHEATSHEET

📁 NAVIGATION
  ..          Go up one directory
  -           Go to previous directory
  mkcd NAME   Make directory and enter it
  ll          List all files with details

🔍 FINDING STUFF
  ff NAME     Find file by name
  fd NAME     Find directory by name
  Ctrl+R      Search command history (fuzzy)

📝 FILE OPERATIONS
  backup FILE Create timestamped backup
  extract FILE Extract any archive
  dsize [DIR] Show directory sizes

🔐 SAFE OPERATIONS (will ask for confirmation)
  rm          Remove (asks first)
  rmf         Remove recursively (asks first)
  mv          Move (asks before overwrite)
  cp          Copy (asks before overwrite)

🌳 GIT SHORTCUTS
  gs          git status
  gd          git diff
  gl          git log (last 10, visual)
  gb          git branch list

🛠️ SYSTEM
  ports       Show open ports
  psmem       Top 10 memory hogs
  pscpu       Top 10 CPU hogs

❓ HELP
  tldr CMD    Simple examples for command
  help        This cheatsheet
EOF

Make it executable: chmod +x ~/bin/help.sh Add alias: alias help='~/bin/help.sh'

Usage Tips

Start small: Don't enable everything at once. Add aliases as you need them.
Use the cheatsheet: Type help when you forget commands
Visual cues matter: Colors and icons reduce mental load
Confirmation dialogs: Better to confirm than regret
Keep history searchable: Ctrl+R is your friend
Morning ritual: Run check-status.sh to orient yourself

Customization

This setup is a starting point. Modify based on:

Your most common mistakes (add confirmations)
Your most common tasks (add shortcuts)
Your visual preferences (adjust colors)
Your security requirements (adjust permissions)

Remember: The goal is reduced cognitive load, not perfection.

Vim Setup — The editor that pairs with your shell
Git Setup — Version control configuration that builds on your shell aliases

Command Line Setup ​

Core Philosophy ​

1. Shell Configuration (Bash/Zsh) ​

Essential Aliases - Add to ~/.zshrc ​

Helper Functions - Add to ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc ​

2. Visual Prompt Configuration ​

Starship Prompt (Recommended) ​

3. Command History Configuration ​

4. Useful Environment Variables ​

5. Security-Focused Settings ​

6. Essential Tools to Install ​

For Better UX: ​

Aliases for new tools: ​

7. FZF Configuration (Fuzzy Finding) ​

8. Git Configuration for Clarity ​

9. Daily Workflow Helpers ​

10. Command Line Cheatsheet ​

Usage Tips ​

Customization ​

Related ​

Command Line Setup

Core Philosophy

1. Shell Configuration (Bash/Zsh)

Essential Aliases - Add to `~/.zshrc`

Helper Functions - Add to `~/.bashrc` or `~/.zshrc`

2. Visual Prompt Configuration

Starship Prompt (Recommended)

3. Command History Configuration

4. Useful Environment Variables

5. Security-Focused Settings

6. Essential Tools to Install

For Better UX:

Aliases for new tools:

7. FZF Configuration (Fuzzy Finding)

8. Git Configuration for Clarity

9. Daily Workflow Helpers

10. Command Line Cheatsheet

Usage Tips

Customization

Related