Don't do this [Linux]

[hXc]

sudo rm -rf /.

I just had a friend tell me that he had to help a dude completely reinstall his whole computer due to the idiot typing this code. Just thought I'd share haha.

[mowgli]

sudo rm -rf /.

There are some people you just can't help

[hXc]

Indeed. Silly people.

For those users not understanding of Linux...it's just as class as inserting "My Computer" into "Recycle Bin."

[brendonjw]

Deltree c: used to be a good one to use on ya mates (i know there was some attribute you added to the end to bypass all the warnings but cant think of it off the top of my head

[Disco Dan]

*types it in on work computer*

[brendonjw]

I liked doing it on the show computers at harvey norman etc, then dissapearing like a ninja

Have found it doesnt work on vista, which reminds me, time to go look up the command that replaced it

[Gubb]

What exactly does it do?

[turtleman]

What exactly does it do?

1. sudo rm -rf /.

sudo gives root privileges (superuser) to the user (if its been set up)
rm = remove
/ = root directory eg the whole system disk partition

2. Deltree c:

Does a similar thing in dos/windows - deletes the contents of the c: drive

[scracha]

Yawn. If they don't know even the basics of Linux then they shouldn't be using it (or at least they shouldn't have access to root)

[Gubb]

(or at least they shouldn't have access to root)

Everyone deserves access to root.

[Bren]

any command starting with sudo should be treated with caution....linux is so much easier nowdays but reinstalling is a pain in the ass, especially codecs etc....

[xwhatsit]

That's the point, innit, of having user accounts and not running as root all the time (like Windows/DOS/early Mac OS Classic used to do).

Try and do something -- then if it says you don't have rights, do the sudo bit. But not before understanding the command first.

The only time I've done something this stupid was with sudo's 5-minute period of not asking you for your password after entering it once. Combine that with bash's Ctrl-R history search (searching for `&&' -- trying to do a mpop && mail), and being very tired at 3am in the morning, meant I searched back one too many times and did a `sudo make install' in a directory that I shouldn't have. Stuff I was trying to keep local and clobbered a different version. Thankfully I usually keep the sources around.

[Dave-]

DEL *.*

best ever.

[Bren]

the percentage of linux users has almost doubled in the last five years...is now nipping at the heels of mac users...i wonder why...it has improved so much compared to the way it was years ago, and become so much more user friendly

[phaedrus]

files can be undeleted.

sudo dd if=/dev/urandom of=/dev/sda &
(on the next line)
clear (or ^L)

this makes people wish they made backups