LINUX COMMAND ATLAS · COMMAND GUIDE

Linux sudo command

Run an approved command with elevated privileges. Check the command before confirming.

sudo manual

Syntax

Command form

sudo [OPTION]... COMMAND [ARGUMENT...]

7 options

Option	What it does
`-u USER, --user=USER`	Run the command as USER.
`-g GROUP, --group=GROUP`	Run the command with GROUP as the primary group.
`-i, --login`	Start a login shell as the target user.
`-s, --shell`	Run the configured shell as the target user.
`-l, --list`	List allowed commands or privileges.
`-k`	Invalidate cached credentials.
`-v`	Refresh the credential timestamp without running a command.

2 examples

Run an approved command with elevated privileges. Check the command before confirming.

sudo systemctl status ssh

Run id as the www-data account.

sudo -u www-data id

Review the full command before confirming. Use the least privilege needed; sudo policy and available flags are administrator-configured.