- How to execute a program in linux after compiling it?
- 2 Answers 2
- How to Run a Program from the Command Line on Linux
- Running a Program From the Terminal
- Running a Program Outside the $PATH Variable
- Adding a Directory to your $PATH Variable
- Installing and Uninstalling a Program in the Terminal
- Expert Q&A
- Tips
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- How to Execute .RUN Files in Linux
- Expert Q&A
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How to execute a program in linux after compiling it?
If I hadn’t given a name to it, I could have simply written the command ./a.out to execute it. But now, to execute the program I just write «myprogram» to the command line, but it says «command not found». What can I do to execute it?
You really should take the habit of compiling with gcc -Wall -g myprogram.c -o myprogram then learn how to use make with your Makefile . You’ll also need to learn how to use the gdb debugger.
2 Answers 2
It’s possible that the current directory (» . «) isn’t on your PATH . (You can check this by typing echo $PATH , this is a list of directories delimited with» : «. » . » should be in the list if you want to run something in the current directory.)
If the current directory isn’t on your PATH , you’ll need to type ./myprogram (or whatever the correct path is).
(But really. have you looked at the contents of the directory after compiling the program «without name»? Or do you think ./a.out is a magic sequence Bash recognizes?)
@bigO — FYI, the answer above works assuming that you’re in the same directory as myprogram . Otherwise, /path/to/myprogram will also work.
@bigO Please have a general idea about computers and the OS you’re using before starting programming, else you’ll shoot yourself and others in the foot.
@bigO if you just type «myprogram», the shell will look in it’s standard directories for executables, like /bin and /usr/bin. You need to specify the location, e.g., «./»
How to Run a Program from the Command Line on Linux
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Most Linux distributions have a graphical user interface that allows you to open programs by just clicking on the program’s icon in the Apps menu. However, there are situations where you may want to run a program from the Terminal. The Terminal is a powerful tool that allows you to run programs and manage your Linux system using keyboard commands. This wikiHow teaches you how to run a program from the Terminal in Linux.
Running a Program From the Terminal
Press Ctrl + Alt + T to open the Terminal. You can open the Terminal using the keyboard shortcut on most Linux distributions. The keyboard shortcut is Ctrl + Alt + T. You can also click the Terminal icon in your Apps menu. It generally has an icon that resembles a black screen with a white text cursor.
- For example, if you want to run Firefox from the Terminal, you would simply type firefox and press Enter.
- Type -h or —help after the program name to display the help menu for that program. Many programs have additional command modifiers you can use to launch the program in a specific way. For example, you can launch a website in a web browser by typing the web browser name followed by the web address and press Enter to launch that website in the web browser (i.e. firefox www.wikihow.com .
- If you receive a message that says you don’t have permission to run a program or access is denied, type sudo before the program name and press Enter. The «sudo» command allows regular users to run Terminal commands with administrative privileges or root access.
- If you want to run a C or C++ program from the Terminal, you will first need to complie the program before you can launch it from the Terminal.
Running a Program Outside the $PATH Variable
Press Ctrl + Alt + T to open the Terminal. You can open the Terminal using the keyboard shortcut on most Linux distributions. The keyboard shortcut is Ctrl + Alt + T. You can also click the Terminal icon in your Apps menu. It generally has an icon that resembles a black screen with a white text cursor.
Type cd followed by a space and the location the program file is saved to. If the program launch file is saved to a location that is not in your $PATH variable, then you will need to navigate to that location inside the Terminal. You can do so using the «cd» command. For example, if you have folder for Python programs saved in your «Documents» folder, you can navigate to it in the Terminal by typing cd ~/Documents/Python or something similar, and then press Enter.
Type chmod a+x [filename] and press ↵ Enter . Replace «filename» with the actual launch file of the program. The «chmod a+x» command tells Linux the file is an executable file. [1] X Research source
Type «./» followed by the launch filename and press ↵ Enter . This launches the program. For example, if you have a Python file called «Helloworld.py», you would type ./helloworld.py to launch the file. [2] X Research source
Adding a Directory to your $PATH Variable
Press Ctrl + Alt + T to open the Terminal. If you cannot run a program by simply typing the program’s name, you may need to add the directory that the program is installed in to your $PATH variable. You can do this from the Terminal as well. Use the keyboard shortcut to open the Terminal if you haven’t already done so.
- For example, if you have a program installed in the «bin» directory of your «Home» folder, you would type export PATH=$PATH:$Home/bin and press Enter. This will temporarily add the «$Home/bin» directory to your $PATH variable.
- You can see which directories are currently added to your $PATH variable by typing the command echo $PATH and pressing Enter.
Type nano ~/.bashrc and press ↵ Enter . This opens the «.bashrc» file in a text editor that is based in the Terminal. You can use this file to permanently add the directory to your $PATH variable.
Add the «export PATH» command to the file. To do so, scroll down to the bottom of the file using the mouse wheel and type export PATH=$PATH:[path/to/program] at the bottom. Replace «[path/to/program]» with the actual directory tree the program is installed in. [3] X Research source
Press Y and press ↵ Enter . This confirms that you want to save and exit the text editor. You will be returned to the standard command prompt in the Terminal.
Type source ~/.bashrc and press ↵ Enter . This loads the updated $PATH variable into your current session. [4] X Research source
Type the name of the program and press ↵ Enter . With the program’s directory now added to your $PATH variable, you should be able to launch the program by simply typing the program name and pressing Enter.
Installing and Uninstalling a Program in the Terminal
Press Ctrl + Alt + T to open the Terminal. In addition to launching programs from within the Terminal, you can also install and uninstall programs from within the Terminal. Use the keyboard shortcut to open the Terminal if you haven’t already done so.
Type sudo apt install [app_name] and press ↵ Enter (Debian). Replace «[app_name]» with the actual name of the program you want to install. This command works in Debian-based Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu, and Mint.
Type sudo apt remove [app_name] and press ↵ Enter (Debian). Replace «[app_name]» with the name of the app you want to uninstall. This command works in Debian-based Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu, and Mint.
Type sudo dnf install [app_name] and press ↵ Enter (Red Hat). Replace «[app_name]» with the actual name of the program you want to install. This command works for Red Hat Linux distributions such as RHEL, Fedora, and CentOS.
Type sudo dnf remove [app_name] and press ↵ Enter (Red Hat). Replace «[app_name]» with the name of the app you want to uninstall. This command works for Red Hat Linux distributions such as RHEL, Fedora, and CentOS. [5] X Research source
Type the name of the program and press ↵ Enter . Once the program is installed, you can launch the program by simply typing the program’s name and pressing Enter in the Terminal.
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How to Execute .RUN Files in Linux
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.RUN files usually contain program data and installation instructions for Linux programs. This wikiHow teaches you how to execute .RUN files in Linux using the Ubuntu terminal. Since RUN files install software, make sure it’s legitimate and won’t harm your computer before executing it. RUN files from suspicious links can contain malware and damage your computer.
Press Ctrl + Alt + T to open a Terminal window and navigate to the folder where your .RUN file is. You can also search for Terminal in the «dash» bar on the left side of your screen by clicking the «All Applications» icon.
- If you get a «Permission denied» error during this process, add » sudo » to the beginning of the code so it will run with the appropriate permissions. [1] X Research source
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