🛠️ Essential CLI Tools You Should Know - Part 1: dust & lsd Link to heading

The command line is an unstoppable force when used correctly. With the right tools, you can work faster, navigate smarter, and automate efficiently.

In this post, I’ll introduce two modern replacements for old Unix commands that massively improve disk usage analysis and file listing:

  • dust → A better du

  • lsd → A better ls

🌟 dust – A Smarter Alternative to du Link to heading

Need to check disk usage but tired of manually parsing du -sh output? dust makes this fast, readable, and intuitive.

🔹 Why dust? Link to heading

✅ Human-readable output (sizes in MB/GB, no cryptic blocks) ✅ Graphical tree view 📊 ✅ Parallel execution – it’s much faster than du ✅ Ignores .gitignore files (no clutter)

⚡ Quick Start Link to heading

📥 Install: Link to heading

  • Ubuntu/Debian: cargo install du-dust

  • MacOS: brew install dust

💡 Common Usage: Link to heading 

dust        # Show disk usage in current directory  
dust -d 2   # Show 2 levels deep  
dust -r     # Reverse order (largest first)

🔥 Why use it? Instead of running du -sh * | sort -h, dust does it all in one go.

🌟 lsd – The ls You Always Wanted Link to heading

The standard ls is functional but ugly. lsd (LS Deluxe) brings: ✅ Color-coded output 🎨 ✅ Tree view support 🌲 ✅ Icons for files & directories 📂 ✅ Git status indicators

⚡ Quick Start Link to heading

📥 Install: Link to heading

  • Ubuntu/Debian: sudo apt install lsd

  • MacOS: brew install lsd

💡 Common Usage: Link to heading 

lsd         # Beautiful, colorful `ls`  
lsd -l      # Detailed list view  
lsd --tree  # Show directory structure as a tree

🔥 Why use it? Instant visual improvements while keeping everything familiar.

✅ Final Thoughts Link to heading

Both dust and lsd are drop-in replacements for du and ls. They work out of the box, and you’ll never want to go back.

🔥 Pro Tip: Link to heading

Make them your default by adding these aliases to ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc:

alias du="dust"
alias ls="lsd"

Now every time you type ls or du, you get the superior versions. 🚀

💡 What’s Next? Link to heading

This is just the start of a CLI revolution! In the next post, I’ll introduce: 📂 zoxide – A smarter way to cd 🗃️ ouch – The easiest way to compress & extract files

What are your favorite CLI tools? Drop them in the comments! 👇

📢 Want more? Link to heading

🔗 Check out my full blog here: badran-elshenawy.netlify.app/posts

#CLI #Linux #Productivity #SysAdmin #DevOps #Automation