What are alternatives to chown command?

In Linux, the chown command is used to change the ownership of files and directories. However, there are several alternatives that can be used for similar tasks or in specific scenarios. Below are some alternatives:

  • usermod: This command can be used to modify a user account, including changing the group associated with a user.
  • setfacl: This allows the setting of Access Control Lists (ACLs) which can provide more granular permission controls than traditional ownership.
  • setgid and setuid: Changing the permissions of files so that they are executed with the privileges of the owner or group of the file.
  • chgrp: Similar to chown, but used specifically to change the group ownership of a file or directory.

Example

usermod -aG group_name user_name

Linux chown alternative chgrp command usermod command setfacl Linux permissions file ownership