Question: How to Delete a File in Linux Terminal?

To remove (or delete) a file or directory in Linux from the command line, use the rm (remove) command.

Be extra careful when removing files or directories with the rm command, because once the file is deleted it cannot be recovered.

If the file is write protected you will be prompted for confirmation as shown below.

How do I delete a file in Terminal?

Open Terminal, type “rm” (no quotes, but there should be a space after it). Drag & drop the file you want to remove onto the Terminal window, and its path will be added at the end of the command, then hit Return. Your file will be removed beyond recovery.

How do I delete a directory in Linux terminal?

To remove a directory that contains other files or directories, use the following command. In the example above, you would replace “mydir” with the name of the directory you want to delete. For example, if the directory was named files, you would type rm -r files at the prompt.