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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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Custom shell prompt tips and tricks? (self.linux)

submitted 1 year ago by wolf to c/[email protected]

19 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Recently I stumbled over an article, about how to customize your shell prompt. What really surprised me, is that it lacked one of the most basic tips I learned nearly 20 years back: Always display a timestamp in the prompt, to be able to check how long a process is running or when it ended. (Don't need it daily, but every so often it saves my butt. ;-)) The other trick is to always have a colorful prompt, to easily discern where output from programs start/stop. In total my PS1 looks like this (with GIT status at the end): [\e[32m]\u[\e[m]@[\e[35m]\h[\e[m] [\e[36m]\A[\e[m] [\e[37m][[\e[m][\e[31m]\w[\e[m][\e[37m]][\e[m]$(__git_ps1 "(%s)")$

My question is, what customization, tips and tricks do you have for the shell prompt?

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I make it green for an ssh session, and red when I'm root. That's it, nothing fancy.

[–] wolf 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Damn it! That is such an obvious great idea, I feel like an idiot! Thank you very much! :-)

Any advice/guide how to change the color for ssh sessions?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Check for the ssh env vars. For example, I use PS1="${SSH_CONNECTION:+\u@\h:}\W\$" to hide the hostname when not on SSH, you could do something similar with the control codes for color.