Linux logname Guide

Complete beginner-friendly guide to logname on Linux, covering Arch Linux, CachyOS, and other distributions including login name display, user identification, and username retrieval.

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Table of Contents

1. logname Basics
2. Login Name
3. User Identification
4. Script Usage
5. Troubleshooting

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logname Basics

Show Login Name

Basic usage:

# Show login name
logname

# Output: username

Current User

Login user:

# Login username
logname

# Shows original login username

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Login Name

Original Login

Login username:

# Original login
logname

# Shows username of original login

After su

After switching:

# After su
su otheruser
logname

# Still shows original login name

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User Identification

Compare with whoami

Difference:

# logname vs whoami
logname    # Original login
whoami     # Current user

# After su:
# logname = original user
# whoami = current user

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Script Usage

In Scripts

Use in scripts:

#!/bin/bash
ORIGINAL_USER=$(logname)
CURRENT_USER=$(whoami)

echo "Original login: $ORIGINAL_USER"
echo "Current user: $CURRENT_USER"

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Troubleshooting

logname Not Found

Check installation:

# logname is part of coreutils
# Usually pre-installed

# Check logname
which logname

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Summary

This guide covered logname usage, login name display, and user identification for Arch Linux, CachyOS, and other distributions.

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Next Steps

• whoami Guide - Current user
• id Guide - User and group IDs
• who Guide - Logged in users
• logname Documentation: man logname

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This guide covers Arch Linux, CachyOS, and other Linux distributions. For distribution-specific details, refer to your distribution's documentation.