printf (1) - format and print data
printf (1p) - write formatted output
printf (3) - formatted output conversion
printf (3p) - print formatted output
printf [builtins] (1) - bash built-in commands, see bash(1)
How do I access overlapping man pages and what is the meaning of (1), (1p), (3), and so on?
- Section #1 : User Commands
- Section #2 : System Calls
- Section #3 : C Library Functions
- Section #4 : Devices and Special Files
- Section #5 : File Formats and Conventions
- Section #6 : Games et. Al.
- Section #7 : Miscellanea
- Section #8 : System Administration tools and Deamons
Many Linux distributions and other Unix variants customize the manual section to their specifics, which often include additional sections. For example, section #9 may include kernel internals and more.
What is the meaning of number in parentheses after the command?
It's the section of the manual the man page is in. For example, useradd(8) means:
- useradd - Name of the command.
- 8 - The section ("System Administration tools and Deamons") where the command is documented.
For example, ls(1) means:
- ls - Name of the command.
- 1 - The section ("user commands") where the command is documented.
Syntax: Viewing man pages
There are manual pages by the same name in different sections, referring to different things. The syntax is:
man page-to-view man section page-to-view
To read printf(1) command manual that format and print data, enter:
$ man 1 printf
To read printf(3) programmers printf() manual, enter:
$ man 3 printf
Finding what function a command or API performs
Type the following to looks up a given command, system call, library function, or special file name, as specified by the command parameter:
whatis command whatis ls
ls (1) - list directory contents ls (1p) - list directory contents
The 1p and 3p refer to sections letters as follows (taken from my IBM AIX Unix server):
C Specifies commands (including system management commands). F Specifies file-type manual pages. L Specifies library functions. n Specifies new. l Specifies local. o Specifies old. p Specifies public.Tweet itFacebook itG+ itDownload PDF versionFound an error/typo on this page?
- 30 Cool Open Source Software I Discovered in 2013
- 30 Handy Bash Shell Aliases For Linux / Unix / Mac OS X
- Top 30 Nmap Command Examples For Sys/Network Admins
- 25 PHP Security Best Practices For Sys Admins
- 20 Linux System Monitoring Tools Every SysAdmin Should Know
- 20 Linux Server Hardening Security Tips
- Linux: 20 Iptables Examples For New SysAdmins
- Top 20 OpenSSH Server Best Security Practices
- Top 20 Nginx WebServer Best Security Practices
- 20 Examples: Make Sure Unix / Linux Configuration Files Are Free From Syntax Errors
- 15 Greatest Open Source Terminal Applications Of 2012
- My 10 UNIX Command Line Mistakes
- Top 10 Open Source Web-Based Project Management Software
- Top 5 Email Client For Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows Users
- The Novice Guide To Buying A Linux Laptop