Platform-independent toolkit – Swiss File Knife
SwissArmy Knives
© Lead Image © Victorinox, PHOTOPRESS
Swiss File Knife replaces more than 100 individual command-line tools at once, but it still fits on a USB stick and runs on all major operating systems.
If you work on the command line, you inevitably use many utilities and tools, all of which work differently, especially if you have to switch between operating systems. To simplify your life, take a look at Swiss File Knife (SFK) [1]: This tool replaces many conventional command-line programs with functions that operate consistently and follow the same syntax across operating systems. Additionally, SFK offers a way to combine individual commands in scripts. A short overview of the tool's many options is given in the "Swiss File Knife Capabilities" box.
SFK is available as a precompiled program with no dependencies, so you can take it anywhere you like on a USB stick and use it for on-site maintenance or rescue work. In addition to 32- and 64-bit binaries for Linux, you will find versions for the Raspberry Pi and other ARM machines, as well as Windows and Mac OS X, allowing you to work on all the major systems with the same tool.
Choosing your Weapons
All versions of SFK can be found on the tool's SourceForge page [2] below Files | 1-swissfileknife | <version> (v1.7.2 when this issue went to press). In the list, then click on the EXE file for your system, which you can identify by looking at the file name.
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