Unix prompt
From OCF Help
Your unix prompt is what you see when you first log into a Unix server. OCF runs two different types of unix: Solaris and Linux, and depending on which OS you are logging into, certain details might look a bit different.
Contents |
How your Unix prompt looks like
Your shell prompt looks slightly different depending on the shell.
tcsh
If your shell is tcsh, which is the default shell for all new users, This is how your Unix prompt should look like:
conquest [1]
The first word is the name of the server you just logged into, and it may vary from time to time. Currently, ocf.berkeley.edu should go to either conquest or apocalypse. To reach other login servers, you need to specify them by name, such as blizzard.ocf.berkeley.edu, if you are SSHing in, or if you are in the lab, log in at console.
bash
If you are using bash, which is the most popular shell nowadays, your prompt should look like:
[staff@conquest]~$
where "staff" would be replaced with your actual OCF username, and the same note on "conquest" as above. The "~" tells you your current working directory, and "~" is really just a short hand for your home directory, which, in case of example above, would be: /home/s/st/staff. To see your working directory and compare with your bash prompt, run:
pwd
The last part of the prompt, "$" just tells you that you are running as a normal user. If you were running as root (also known as "super user" or "Administrator" in certain other operating systems), that would be "#" instead and that would be the warning to you saying, "Your actions have potential to break the system seriously so think twice before doing anything." As a normal user, the best you can do is wipe out your own directories. ;)
zsh
If you are using zsh your shell prompt, or most features of the shell, will be more or less similar to bash, except that certain details look different. For example, your prompt will be something like:
staff@conquest> ~
This displays the same informations as bash's prompt, just in a slightly different format. Most notably, the working directory path is displayed on the right side of the screen.
How your Unix prompt doesn't look like
Following are the examples of what your shell is not, but has been mistaken as shell prompt by some people:
TERM = (xterm)
Above is not your shell prompt. It's actually a program called tset that is set to run whenever you log in via SSH. You can just type xterm there. Even if the term you are using is not xterm or you simply don't know, it will usually work. Depending on the OS you are logging into, it might look rather like:
Terminal type? [xterm]
But again, the same answer will suffice here.
This is also not your shell prompt:
--More--[Hit space to continue, Del to abort]
When you log in, usually we do more than just show you to the shell prompt. We display what machine you are logging into, and then display the MOTD (Message of the Day), which often contains important news. Above happens when the MOTD is too long and cannot fit the screen. Just hit space bar to continue, and everything will be fine.
