HIER(7)

NAME
hier - layout of filesystems

DESCRIPTION
An outline of the filesystem hierarchy.

/   root directory of the system

/COPYRIGHT
    system copyright notice

/[a-z]
    user filesystems

/altroot/
    alternate root filesystem, in case of disaster

/amd/
    home directories mount point; see amd(8)

/bin/
    utilities used in both single and multi-user environments

/dev/
    block, character and other special device files

    MAKEDEV
        script for creating device files; see makedev(8)
    console
        the computer's console device
    fd/ file descriptor files; see fd(4)
    drum
        system swap space; see drum(4)
    klog
        kernel logging device; see syslog(3)
    kmem
        kernel virtual memory device; see mem(4)
    log UNIX domain datagram log socket; see syslogd(8)
    mem kernel physical memory device; see mem(4)
    stderr
    stdin
    stdout
        file descriptor files; see fd(4)
    null
        the null device; see null(4)
    tty process' controlling terminal device; see tty(4)

/dump/
    online dump(8) repository

/etc/
    system configuration files and scripts

    aliases*
        name alias files for sendmail(8)
    amd*
        configuration files for amd(8)
    changelist
        files backed up by the security script
    crontab
        schedule used by the cron(8) daemon
    csh.cshrc
    csh.login
    csh.logout
        system-wide scripts for csh(1)
    daily
        script run each day by cron(8)
    disklabels/
        backup disklabels; see disklabel(8)
    disktab
        disk description file, see disktab(5)
    dm.conf
        dungeon master configuration; see dm.conf(5)
    dumpdates
        dump history; see dump(8)
    exports
        filesystem export information; see mountd(8)
    fstab
        filesystem information; see fstab(5) and mount(8)
    ftpusers
        users denied ftp(1) access; see ftpd(8)
    ftpwelcome
        ftp(1) initial message; see ftpd(8)
    gettytab
        terminal configuration database; see gettytab(5)
    group
        group permissions file; see group(5)
    hosts
        host name database backup for named(8); see hosts(5)
    hosts.equiv
        trusted machines with equivalent user ID's
    hosts.lpd
        trusted machines with printing privileges
    inetd.conf
        Internet server configuration file; see inetd(8)
    kerberosIV/
        configuration files for the kerberos version IV; see kerberos(1)
    localtime
        local timezone information; see ctime(3)
    mail.rc
        system-wide initialization script for mail(1)
    man.conf
        configuration file for man(1); see man.conf(5)
    master.passwd
    passwd
    pwd.db
    spwd.db
        password files and their databases; see pwd_mkdb(8)
    mk.conf
        optional file containing make(1) variables, read by pkgsrc and the system sources.
    monthly
        script run each month by cron(8)
    motd
        system message of the day
    mtree/
        mtree configuration files; see mtree(8)
    named.*
    namedb/
        named configuration files and databases; see named(8)
    netgroup
        network groups; see netgroup(5)
    netstart
        network startup script
    networks
        network name data base; see networks(5)
    phones
        remote host phone number data base; see phones(5)
    printcap
        system printer configuration; see printcap(5)
    protocols
        protocol name database; see protocols(5)
    rc
    rc.local
        system startup files; see rc(8)
    remote
        remote host description file; see remote(5)
    security
        daily (in)security script run by cron(8)
    sendmail.*
        sendmail(8) configuration information
    services
        service name data base; see services(5)
    shells
        list of permitted shells; see shells(5)
    sliphome
        slip login/logout scripts; see slattach(8)
    syslog.conf
        syslogd(8) configuration file; see syslog.conf(5)
    termcap
        terminal type database; see termcap(3)
    ttys
        terminal initialization information; see ttys(5)
    uucp/
        UUCP configuration files; see uucp(1) and uucico(8).
    weekly
        script run each week by cron(8)

/home/
    mount point for the automounter; see amd(8)

/mnt/
    empty directory commonly used by system administrators as a temporary mount point

/netbsd
    pure kernel executable (the operating system loaded into memory at boot time).

/root/
    home directory for the super-user

    .rhosts
        super-user id mapping between machines
    .cshrc
        super-user start-up file
    .login
        super-user start-up file
    .profile
        super-user start-up file

/sbin/
    system programs and administration utilities used in both single-user and multi-user environments

/stand/
    programs used in a standalone environment

/sys
    symbolic link to the operating system source

/tmp/
    temporary files, usually a mfs(8) memory-based filesystem (the contents of /tmp are usually NOT preserved across a system reboot)

/usr/
    contains the majority of the system utilities and files

    X11R6/
        X11 files

        bin/
            X11 binaries
        include/
            X11 include files
        lib/
            X11 libraries

    bin/
        common utilities, programming tools, and applications
    games/
        the important stuff
    include/
        standard C include files

        arpa/
            include files for Internet service protocols
        g++/
            include files for the C++ compiler
        kerberosIV/
            include files for kerberos authentication package; see kerberos(1)
        machine/
            machine specific include files
        net/
        netatalk/
            C include files for AppleTalk protocols miscellaneous network include files; see atalk(4)
        netccitt/
            CCITT networking include files
        netinet/
            include files for Internet standard protocols; see inet(4)
        netiso/
            include files for ISO standard protocols; see iso(4)
        natm/
            C include files for native mode ATM
        netns/
            C include files for XNS standard protocols; see ns(4)
        nfs/
            C include files for NFS (Network File System)
        protocols/
            C include files for Berkeley service protocols
        sys/
            system C include files (kernel data structures)
        ufs/
            C include files for UFS (The U-word File System)

    lib/
        archive, profiled, position independant archive, and shared libraries
    libdata/
        miscellaneous utility data files
    libexec/
        system daemons & system utilities (executed by other programs)

        uucp/
            UUCP binaries and scripts (historically placed; to be moved)

    local/
        local executables, libraries, etc.

        bin/
            local binaries
        include/
            local include files
        libexec/
            local daemons
        libdata/
            local data files

    mdec/
        boot blocks, etc.
    pkg/
        packages maintained by groups other than the NetBSD Project.

        bin/
            contributed binaries
        sbin/
            contributed system utilities
        include/
            contributed include files
        libexec/
            contributed daemons
        libdata/
            contributed data files

    pkgsrc/
        build descriptions ("packages") for the NetBSD packages system.

        distfiles
            Where unchanged source archives are fetched to/stored
        packages
            Where compiled binary packages are stored

        There are also several other subdirectories which contain packages of a certain category, e.g. archivers, graphics, ...

    bin/
        contributed binaries
    obj/
        architecture-specific target tree produced by building the /usr/src tree; normally a symbolic link or mounted filesystem
    sbin/
        system daemons and system utilities (normally executed by the super-user)
    share/
        architecture-independent text files

        calendar/
            a variety of calendar files; see calendar(1)
        dict/
            word lists; see look(1) and spell(1)

            words
                common words
            web2
                words of Webster's 2nd International
            papers/
                reference databases; see refer(1)
            special/
                custom word lists; see spell(1)

        doc/
            miscellaneous documentation; source for most of the printed 4.3BSD manuals (available from the USENIX association)
        games/
            text files used by various games
        lkm/
            documentation on the loadable kernel modules interface
        man/
            formatted manual pages
        me/ macros for use with the me(7) macro package
        misc/
            miscellaneous system-wide text files

            termcap
                terminal characteristics database; see termcap(5)

        mk/ include files for make(1)
        ms/ macros for use with the ms(7) macro package
        skel/
            sample initialization files for new user accounts
        tabset/
            tab description files for a variety of terminals, used in the termcap file; see termcap(5)
        tmac/
            text processing macros; see nroff(1) and troff(1)
        zoneinfo/
            timezone configuration information; see tzfile(5)

/usr/src/
    4BSD and local source files

    bin/
        source for utilities/files in /bin
    distrib/
        tools and data-files for making distributions
    domestic/
        source covered by US ITAR export restrictions
    etc/
        source (usually example files) for files in /etc
    games/
        source for utilities/files in /usr/games
    include/
        source for files in /usr/include
    lib/
        source for libraries in /usr/lib
    libexec/
        source for utilities/files in /usr/libexec
    sbin/
        source for utilities/files in /sbin
    share/
        source for files in /usr/share

        doc/

            papers/
                source for various Berkeley technical papers
            psd/
                source for Programmer's Supplementary Documents
            smm/
                source for System Manager's Manual
            usd/
                source for User's Supplementary Documents

    sys/
        kernel source files

        adosfs/
            AmigaDOS file-system support; see mount_ados(8)
        arch/

            alpha/
                support for the Digital Equipment Corp. Alpha architecture
            amiga/
                support for the Amiga architecture
            arm32/
                support for the ARM32 architecture
            atari/
                support for the Atari architecture
            bebox/
                support for the Be Inc. BeBox architecture
            hp300/
                support for the Hewlett-Packard 9000/300 68000-based workstations
            i386/
                support for the Intel 386/486/Pentium/etc. workstations
            m68k/
                general support for the 68000 processor
            mac68k/
                support for the Apple Computer 68000-based workstations
            mips/
                general support for MIPS architectures
            mvme68k/
                support for the VME 68000-based cards
            pc532/
                support for the pc532 architecture
            pica/
                support for the Acer PICA architecture
            pmax/
                support for the MIPS-based DECstation architecture
            powerpc/
                support for the PowerPC architecture
            sparc/
                support for the Sun Microsystems SPARC architecture
            sun3/
                support for the Sun Microsystems 68000-based architecture
            sun3x/
                more support for the Sun Microsystems 68000-based architecture
            vax/
                Digital Equipment Corp. VAX architecture
            x68k/
                support for the x68k architecture

        compat/
            kernel compatibility modules directory

            common/
                common compatibility routines, old 4BSD and NetBSD routines.
            freebsd/
                support for FreeBSD binaries; see compat_freebsd(8)
            hpux/
                support for 68000 HP-UX binaries
            ibcs2/
                support for Intel Binary binaries
            linux/
                support for Linux binaries; see compat_linux(8)
            m68k4k/
                support for 4Kb page 68000 binaries
            osf1/
                support for Digital UNIX ( formerly OSF/1) binaries
            ossaudio/
                support for OSS audio
            sunos/
                support for SunOS 4.x binaries; see compat_sunos(8)
            svr4/
                support for System V Release 4 binaries; see compat_svr4(8)
            ultrix/
                support for Ultrix binaries

        conf/
            architecture independent configuration directory
        ddb/
            in kernel debugger
        dev/
            architecture independent device support
        gdbscripts/
            support for accessing kernel structures from within the debugger gdb(1).
        ipkdb/
            support for kernel debugging over the network
        isofs/
            support for ISO filesystems

            cd9660/
                support for the ISO-9660 filesystem; see mount_cd9660(8)

        kern/
            support for the high kernel (system calls)
        lib/
            kernel libraries

            libkern/
                C library routines used in the kernel
            libsa/
                machine independant stand alone kernel library
            libz/
                compression library

        lkm/
            loadable kernel modules

            compat/
                LKM support compatibility modules; currently unsupported.
            netinet/
                LKM support networking modules

                if_ipl/
                    LKM for IP-Filter

            vfs/
                LKM support for file systems.

        miscfs/
            miscellaneous file systems

            deadfs/
                kernel only dead file system
            fdesc/
                file descriptor file system; see mount_fdesc(8)
            fifofs/
                POSIX FIFO support
            genfs/
                kernel only generic file system
            kernfs/
                kernel namespace file system; see mount_kernfs(8)
            nullfs/
                loop back file system; see mount_null(8)
            portal/
                portal file system; see mount_portal(8)
            procfs/
                process file system; see mount_procfs(8)
            specfs/
                kernel only special file system
            umapfs/
                user and group re-mapping file system; see mount_umap(8)
            union/
                union file system; see mount_union(8)

        msdosfs/
            MS-DOS file system; see mount_msdos(8)
        net/
            miscellaneous networking support
        netccitt/
            CCITT networking support
        netinet/
            TCP/IP networking support
        netiso/
            ISO networking support
        netnatm/
            ATM networking support
        netns/
            XNS networking support
        nfs/
            NFS support
        stand/
            kernel standalone support
        sys/
            kernel (and system) include files
        ufs/
            local filesystem support

            ffs/
                the Berkeley Fast File System
            lfs/
                the log-structured file system
            mfs/
                the in-memory file system
            ufs/
                shared UNIX file system support
        vm/ virtual memory support
    usr.bin/
        source for utilities/files in /usr/bin
    usr.sbin/
        source for utilities/files in /usr/sbin

/var/
    multi-purpose log, temporary, transient, and spool files

    account/
        system accounting files

        acct
            execution accounting file; see acct(5)

    at/ timed command scheduling files; see at(1)
    backups/
        miscellaneous backup files, largely of files found in /etc
    crash/
        system crash dumps; see savecore(8)
    db/ miscellaneous automatically generated system-specific database files
    games/
        miscellaneous game status and log files
    log/
        miscellaneous system log files

        amd.*
            amd(8) logs
        daily.out
            output of the last run of the /etc/daily script
        ftp.*
            ftp(1) logs
        kerberos.*
            kerberos(1) logs
        lastlog
            system last time logged in log; see utmp(5)
        lpd-errs.*
            printer daemon error logs; see lpd(8)
        maillog.*
            sendmail(8) log files
        messages.*
            general system information log
        monthly.out
            output of the last run of the /etc/monthly script
        secure
            sensitive security information log
        sendmail.st
            sendmail(8) statistics
        timed.*
            timed(8) logs
        weekly.out
            output of the last run of the /etc/weekly script
        wtmp
            login/logout log; see utmp(5)

    mail/
        user system mailboxes
    msgs/
        system messages; see msgs(1)
    preserve/
        temporary home of files preserved after an accidental death of ex(1) or vi(1)
    quotas/
        filesystem quota information
    run/
        system information files, rebuilt after each reboot

        utmp
            database of current users; see utmp(5)

    rwho/
        rwho data files; see rwhod(8), rwho(1), and ruptime(1)
    spool/
        miscellaneous printer and mail system spooling directories

        ftp/
            commonly “~ftp”, the anonymous ftp root directory; see ftpd(8)
        mqueue/
            undelivered mail queue; see sendmail(8)
        news/
            Network news archival and spooling directories
        output/
            printer spooling directories
        uucp/
            uucp spool directory
        uucppublic/
            commonly “~uucp”, the uucp public temporary directory; see uucp(1)

    tmp/
        temporary files that are not discarded between system reboots

        vi.recover/
            recovery directory for new vi(1)

SEE ALSO
apropos(1), ls(1), whatis(1), whereis(1), which(1),

HISTORY
A hier manual page appeared in AT&T UNIX.