Remove All Files in Directory in Linux Ubuntu

In Linux Ubuntu, removing all files from a directory is a common task that can be accomplished using various command-line utilities. In this tutorial will show you some methods to safely remove all files from a directory in linux ubuntu using the terminal without prompt.

Linux Command to Remove/Delete All Files in a Directory

Using the following methods, you can easily remove all files from directory or folder in linux ubuntu:

• Method 1: Using the rm Command
• Method 2: Using find Command with rm

Method 1: Using the rm Command

The rm command is a standard Unix/Linux command used to remove files and directories. To remove all files within a directory, follow these steps:

Step 1: Open a Terminal: Press Ctrl + Alt + T to open a terminal window.

Step 2: Navigate to the Directory: Use the cd command to navigate to the directory from which you want to remove the files. For example:

cd /path/to/your/directory

Step 3: Remove Files: Run the following command to remove all files within the directory:

rm *

Let’s look of rm command with multiple options to remove all files in directory without prompt in linux ubunt, as shown below:

Example 1 – To delete multiple files at once using rm command:

rm filename1 filename2 filename3

Example 2 – Wildcard (*) and regular expansions to delete files

If you want to remove all .txt files in the current directory, use the following command:

rm *.pdf

Example 3 – Delete file with confirmation

You can use the rm with the -i option to confirm each file before deleting it:

rm -i filename(s)

Example 4 – Delete files in linux without confirmation

You can use the rm with the -f option to without prompting even:

rm -f filename(s)

Method 2: Using find Command with rm

The find command is powerful for searching and processing files. This method provides more flexibility, especially when dealing with nested directories.

Step 1: Open a Terminal: Open a terminal window as explained earlier.

Step 2: Navigate to the Directory: Use the cd command to navigate to the directory you want to clean up.

Step 3: Remove Files: Execute the following command to remove all files within the directory and its subdirectories:

find . -type f -delete

This command uses find to locate all files (-type f) within the current directory (.) and its subdirectories, then the -delete flag is used to remove them.

Conclusion

That’s it; You have learned how to remove all files from a directory in Linux Ubuntu using rm command and the find command with rm are two effective options.

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