CHOWN Cheat Sheet

Here’s a usage cheat sheet for the chown command in Linux, covering basic to advanced usage:

Basic Usage:

• Syntax: chown user:group filename

Examples:

1. Change Owner and Group of a File:

   chown user:group filename

2. Change Owner of a File:

   chown user filename

3. Change Group of a File:

   chown :group filename

Advanced Usage:

1. Recursively Change Ownership for Directories and Files:

   chown -R user:group directory

2. Change Only the Owner and Preserve Group:

   chown user filename

3. Change Only the Group and Preserve Owner:

   chown :group filename

4. Change Owner to Current User (Self):

   chown $(whoami) filename

5. Change Owner Based on UID and GID:

   chown 1000:1000 filename

6. Change Owner of Symbolic Links (Follow Symbolic Links):

   chown -h user:group symlink

7. Change Ownership Recursively, But Don’t Follow Symbolic Links:

   chown -hR user:group directory

8. Copy Ownership from One File to Another:

   chown --reference=reference_file target_file

9. Change Ownership of Device Files:

   chown user:group /dev/device

10. Set Default Ownership for Newly Created Files:
    sudo chown -R user:group /path/to/directory sudo chmod -R g+s /path/to/directory

Remember to exercise caution when using chown as changing ownership can have significant implications for file access and security permissions. Always ensure that you have the necessary permissions before changing ownership of files or directories.