UNIX Basic commands: grep

The grep command allows you to search one file or multiple files for lines that contain a pattern. Exit status is 0 if matches were found, 1 if no matches were found, and 2 if errors occurred.

The syntax for the grep command is:

grep [options] pattern [files]

options:

-b	Display the block number at the beginning of each line.
-c	Display the number of matched lines.
-h	Display the matched lines, but do not display the filenames.
-i	Ignore case sensitivity.
-l	Display the filenames, but do not display the matched lines.
-n	Display the matched lines and their line numbers.
-s	Silent mode.
-v	Display all lines that do NOT match.
-w	Match whole word.

Examples:

grep -c tech file1

* Please note that there are many flavors of UNIX, so if in doubt, consult your man pages.