How to write Linux bash scripts on your Android – and why you’d want to

How to write Linux bash scripts on your Android – and why you’d want to

How to write Linux bash scripts on your Android – and why you’d want to

https://www.zdnet.com/article/linux-bash-scripts-how-to-learn-on-android-device/

Publish Date: 2026-02-11 22:00:00

Source Domain: www.zdnet.com

Jack Wallen / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET

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ZDNET’s key takeaways

  • Enabling Linux support on Android has several benefits.
  • With this feature, you can create and run bash scripts.
  • This is very handy for learning the ins and outs of scripts.

Bash scripts are a great way to automate all sorts of repetitive tasks — you can run backups, clear temporary files/logs, rename or batch-rename files, install or update software, and much more.   

Although writing such scripts isn’t nearly as hard as you might think, it does take some time to learn the ins and outs of bash scripting.

Also: 6 hidden Android features that are seriously useful (and how they made my life easier)

Good news: If you have an Android device, you can enable the Linux terminal, which means you can create or practice your bash scripting on the go. 

If that sounds like something you’d like to try out, keep reading to learn more about writing Linux bash scripts on Android.

How to write Linux bash scripts on your Android

What you’ll need: The only thing you’ll need for this is an Android device with the Linux environment enabled. You can find out how to do this in my article, “How to use the new Linux terminal on your Android device – it’s easy.”

With the Linux terminal ready, let’s start our bash script journey.

Installing nano

Here are the steps for installing the nano editor, which you’ll use to create/modify your bash scripts.

Open your App Drawer and search for the launcher labeled “Terminal.” 

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Before you can install nano, you have to first update Linux. To do this, type the following command in the terminal:

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sudo apt update

After that command completes, upgrade with:

sudo apt upgrade

You can now install the nano editor with the command:

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sudo apt install nano

After that, you’re ready to go.

Creating your first script

Creating a basic Linux bash script is actually quite…

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