namei

follows a pathname until a terminal point is found, displaying each component

TLDR

Resolve pathnames following symbolic links

$ namei [path/to/a] [path/to/b]

Display in long-listing format

$ namei -l [path/to/file]

Show mode bits of each file type

$ namei -m [path/to/file]

Show owner and group of each file

$ namei -o [path/to/file]

Don't follow symbolic links

$ namei -n [path/to/file]

Show all information (long, modes, owners)

$ namei -lmo [path/to/file]

SYNOPSIS

namei [-l] [-m] [-o] [-n] [-x] [-v] pathname...

namei follows a pathname until a terminal point is found (file, directory, device, etc.), displaying each component of the path. It is particularly useful for diagnosing "too many levels of symbolic links" errors.The output shows each path component with its type indicator: d (directory), l (symbolic link), - (regular file), c (character device), b (block device), s (socket), p (FIFO/pipe).

PARAMETERS

-l, --long

Use long-listing format (same as -m -o -v)

-m, --modes

Show mode bits of each file type in ls style

-o, --owners

Show owner and group name of each file

-n, --nosymlinks

Don't follow symbolic links

-x, --mountpoints

Show mountpoint directories with D

-v, --vertical

Vertical alignment of modes and owners

-Z, --context

Show security context of each file

-h, --help

Display help

-V, --version

Display version

OUTPUT SYMBOLS

f: - Pathname currently being resolvedd - Directoryl - Symbolic links - Socketb - Block devicec - Character devicep - FIFO/named pipe- - Regular file? - Error of some kindD - Mountpoint (with -x)

CAVEATS

Symbolic link loops will cause errors. The command stops at the first unresolvable component. Permission denied errors occur if any path component is inaccessible.

HISTORY

namei is part of util-linux, the standard Linux utility collection. It provides a diagnostic tool for understanding complex path structures and resolving symlink issues.