Problem Statement
What information does the wc command provide by default?
Explanation
Wc (word count) displays the number of lines, words, and bytes in a file by default. The output format is 'lines words bytes filename'. Use wc -l for line count only, wc -w for word count only, wc -c for byte count, or wc -m for character count (different from bytes for multi-byte characters).
Wc is commonly used to count lines in files or command output. Example: wc -l /var/log/syslog counts log entries, or ps aux | wc -l counts running processes. Combining with grep: grep 'error' logfile | wc -l counts error occurrences. This is fundamental for data analysis and monitoring.
In scripts, wc helps validate data processing: checking if output has expected number of lines, verifying file isn't empty (wc -l < file returns 0 for empty), or monitoring file growth. Example: if [ $(wc -l < errors.log) -gt 100 ]; then alert; fi. Understanding wc is essential for data validation and analysis in shell scripts.