DIRCOLORS(1)

📦
version 9.12 · 23 versions
, in arch rolling

💅 DIRCOLORS(1) — bestie edition ✨

okay so this is dircolors, from the User Commands girlies (section 1 of the manual, iykyk). she's the one who tells ls what colors to wear. yes, that's literally her whole job and she ATE. 🎀

🌈 NAME 🌈

dircolors — color setup for ls 💖

like. she sets up the colors. for ls. that's the vibe. slay.

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

dircolors [OPTION]... [FILE]

that's it. options, then maybe a file if you're feeling main character energy. 🫶

✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

so basically dircolors spits out commands — like, actual shell commands — that set the LS_COLORS environment variable. that's the whole point. she doesn't set the colors herself, she gives you the receipts so you can set them. no cap. 💅

🎀 Determine format of output: 🎀

okay so you gotta tell her what shell you're in, bestie. she can't read your mind (rude, ik).

  • -b, --sh, --bourne-shell — outputs Bourne shell code to set LS_COLORS. if you're a bash/sh/zsh girlie, this is your moment. 👑
  • -c, --csh, --c-shell — outputs C shell code to set LS_COLORS. for the csh/tcsh girlies, we see you, we love you. 🍓
  • -p, --print-database — outputs the defaults. like, what colors she'd pick if you gave her zero input. the factory setting. the og. 🌸
  • --print-ls-colors — outputs fully escaped colors for display. escaped. fully. so your terminal doesn't get confused and start tweaking. 😭
  • --help — displays this help and exits. the "wait what does this do again" button. 🙈
  • --version — outputs version information and exits. for when you need to know exactly which girl you're talking to. ⭐
ngl this next part matters: if a FILE is specified, she reads it to figure out which colors go with which file types and extensions. otherwise, a precompiled database is used instead. so like, no file? no problem, she's got one on deck. 🦋

and if you're curious about the format of these files — like, the actual syntax, the lore — you run:

dircolors --print-database

fr fr, that's how you learn the format. she literally tells you. iconic behavior. 💖

🌟 AUTHOR 🌟

Written by H. Peter Anvin. king shit. 👑✨

💀 REPORTING BUGS 💀

found a bug? not the vibe, but okay, let's handle it:

Copyright © 2026 Free Software Foundation, Inc. License GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later <https://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html>.

This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.

There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law. like, zero. none. don't come for her. 😭

👀 SEE ALSO 👀

and that's the whole page bestie 🫶 this was GNU coreutils 9.12, dated September 2026 — go forth and make your terminal pretty. periodt. 💅✨🎀

📦 where this page comes from