List Only Files In a Directory beginning with "k" using the ls command

mg92865 · 05-12-2008, 06:36 PM

I can use the ls command to list the files in the directory that I am looking in.

Is is possible using ls, to restrict the results to only a specific group of files, say those starting with the letter k?

Thank you for any assistance you can provide.

mg92865

jschiwal · 05-12-2008, 06:44 PM

First "man ls".

Then "ls k*".

colucix · 05-12-2008, 06:44 PM

Use the wildcard "*"

Code:

ls k*

this will list all the files whose name begins with k followed by any other string of characters. In some cases you can also use the wildcard for a single character "?", e.g. suppose you have files testfile_1.txt, testfile_2.txt testfile_10.txt testfile_11.txt, the command

Code:

ls testfile_?.txt

lists only testfile_1.txt and testfile_2.txt, whereas

Code:

ls testfile_*.txt

will list them all.

mg92865 · 05-12-2008, 06:58 PM

I looked thru the man page, but there is no referene to *. And I actually now realized I knew about the wildcard *. It just seems that I didn't put them together.

Anyway, I appreciate the assistance, and this has solved my problem.

Thanks,

mg92865