How to Create Files and Directories in Linux using "touch" and "mkdir" Commands
You can create new files and directories within the directory hierarchy using the touch and mkdir commands. The touch command creates a new, empty file, and the mkdir command creates a new directory.
Creating Empty Files
You can use the touch command to create an empty file. You can create multiple files on the same command line. If the file name or directory name already exists, the touch command updates the modification time and access time to the current date and time. The syntax for the touch command is:
$ touch filename
You can use absolute or relative path names on the command line when creating new files. To create an empty file named space in the dir3 directory, perform the touch command.
$ pwd
/export/home/user1
$ cd dir3
$ ls
planets
$ touch space
$ ls
planets space
To create three empty files named moon, sun, and cosmos in the dir3 directory, perform the touch command.
$ touch moon sun cosmos
$ ls
cosmos moon planets space sun
$
Creating Directories
You can use the mkdir command with a directory_name to create directories. If the directory_name includes a path name, use the mkdir command with the -p option. The command used with the -p option creates all of the non-existing parent directories that do not yet exist in the path to the new directory. The syntax for the mkdir command includes:
$ mkdir directory_name
$ mkdir -p directory_names
You can use absolute or relative path names on the command line when creating new directories. To createa new directory, named Reports, within the user1 directory, use the mkdir command.
$ cd
$ pwd
/export/home/user1
$ mkdir Reports
$ ls -ld Reports
drwxr-xr-x 2 user1 staff 512 Mar 14 16:24 Reports
To create a new directory named empty located inside a directory named newdir, perform the mkdir command with the -p option. The newdir directory does not yet exist.
$ cd
$ pwd
/export/home/user1
$ ls
brands dir10 dir5 file1 file3 letters
dante dir2 feathers file.2 file4 Reports
dante_1 dir3 feathers_6 file2 fruit tutor.vi
dir1 dir4 file.1 file.3 fruit2
$ mkdir -p newdir/empty
$ ls newdir
empty
To create a Weekly directory in the Reports directory, perform the mkdir command.
$ mkdir Reports/Weekly
$ ls Reports
Weekly
To create the dir1, dir2, and dir3 directories in the Weekly directory, perform the mkdir command.
$ cd Reports/Weekly
$ mkdir dir1 dir2 dir3
$ ls -F
dir1/ dir2/ dir3/