Command-line interface reference

Developer documentation sometimes require you to use a command-line interface to run commands. This section provides an overview of how to use the command-line interface and the commands used in this documentation.

Commands running on Linux and macOS share the same syntax, and command listings in this documentation are primarily written using this syntax. However, as a Windows user you can use Windows Subsystem for Linux go get a Windows-integrated version of Ubuntu and Bash, and successfully run the commands as well.

In some command listings, the commands are described as is, ready to be copied to your command-line interface and executed:

Command to execute

this-is-a-command

In other command listings, commands are preceded by a prompt symbol ($) when the output of the command also is of importance:

Executed command and its output

$ this-is-a-command
> This is output

Command listings where your input is required are marked using angle brackets (< and >):

Command with required user input

this-is-a-command <your input>

For long commands, we use an escape character (\) to split a command over multiple lines:

Command spanning multiple lines

this-is-a-command \
  --option1 value1 \
  --option2 value2