$ Linux Command

Files

slocate

Securely locate files on the filesystem.

locatesearchfilesdatabasesecurity

Additional Notes

slocate (secure locate) is a security-enhanced version of the locate command. It indexes the filesystem into a database (typically /var/lib/slocate/slocate.db or /var/lib/mlocate/mlocate.db) and searches it quickly for filenames matching a pattern. The "secure" aspect means it respects file permissions: users only see files they have read access to.

On most modern distributions, slocate has been replaced by mlocate (merging locate) or plocate, which provide similar functionality with better performance. The locate command is often a symlink to one of these implementations. The database is typically updated daily by a cron job or systemd timer.

Syntax

slocate [options] pattern

Parameters

  • pattern: The filename pattern to search for. May include glob characters (*, ?).

Common Options

  • -i, --ignore-case: Perform case-insensitive matching.
  • -r, --regex: Interpret the pattern as a regular expression.
  • -c, --count: Show only the count of matching files, not the filenames.
  • -l, --limit N: Limit output to N matches.
  • -q, --quiet: Suppress error messages about unreadable databases.
  • -u, --update: Update the slocate database (run as root).
  • -U directory: Update the database for a specific directory.
  • -e, --existing: Only print entries that correspond to existing files.
  • -d database: Use a specific database file instead of the default.
  • -A, --all: Match pattern against the entire pathname, not just the filename.

Examples

slocate myfile.txt

Find all files named myfile.txt in the database.

slocate -i readme

Find all files matching readme (case-insensitive).

slocate -c *.conf

Count the number of .conf files in the database.

slocate -l 10 log

Show only the first 10 matches for log.

Practical Notes

  • The database must be current for accurate results. Run updatedb as root to refresh it.
  • On most systems, slocate is replaced by mlocate or plocate, and the command is locate.
  • Files created after the last database update will not appear in results.
  • The database is typically updated daily via updatedb (cron or systemd timer).
  • Permission filtering means two users may see different results for the same search.
  • Use find for real-time searching when the database is out of date.