mkdir command in Linux: creating directories, examples

Q: mkdir: cannot create directory 'x': File exists

The directory already exists. In scripts, use mkdir -p — it skips silently.

Q: mkdir: cannot create directory 'a/b/c': No such file or directory

The intermediate directories (a, a/b) don't exist. Add -p.

Q: Permission denied

No w+x permission on the parent directory. Check ls -ld . and the permissions — see chmod-chown.

Q: The permissions aren't what -m specified

-m sets the resulting directory's permissions directly (umask doesn't apply to it), but the intermediate directories created by -p still get the regular umask.

Overview

mkdir (make directory) creates directories. An empty directory is removed with rmdir, a non-empty one with rm -r (careful, see files-basics).

The key option for beginners is -p: it creates the whole chain of parent directories and doesn't complain if the directory already exists.

Options

3

/

bash

mkdir reports                     # one directory in the current one
mkdir a b c                       # several at once
mkdir -p proj/src/api             # -p: create the WHOLE chain (proj and proj/src too)
mkdir -p logs                     # -p also doesn't fail if logs already exists (handy in scripts)
mkdir -m 700 ~/.secrets           # -m: set permissions right away (here — owner only)
mkdir -v new                      # -v: print what was created (verbose)
mkdir -p site/{css,js,img}        # bash brace expansion → site/css site/js site/img
mkdir -p data/{2024,2025}/{01,02} # combinations: data/2024/01 … data/2025/02

Main options:

Option	What it does
`-p`, `--parents`	create parent directories along the path; not an error if it already exists
`-m`, `--mode=MODE`	set permissions right at creation time (instead of umask)
`-v`, `--verbose`	print the name of every directory created

Option	What it does	Example
`-p` `--parents`	Create the full chain of parent directories; not an error if it already exists.	`mkdir -p proj/src/api`
`-m` `--mode` ПРАВА	Set the mode of the created directory immediately, bypassing umask.	`mkdir -m 700 ~/.secrets`
`-v` `--verbose`	Print the name of each created directory.	`mkdir -v new`

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Recipes

1

rmdir

bash

rmdir empty                       # remove an EMPTY directory
rmdir -p a/b/c                    # remove c, b, a — if each one becomes empty
rmdir dir 2>/dev/null || rm -r dir  # if not empty — remove it recursively

rmdir deliberately only removes empty directories — that's a safety net. For a non-empty one you need rm -r (irreversible, double-check the path).

Troubleshooting

4

`mkdir: cannot create directory 'x': File exists`

The directory already exists. In scripts, use mkdir -p — it skips silently.

`mkdir: cannot create directory 'a/b/c': No such file or directory`

The intermediate directories (a, a/b) don't exist. Add -p.

`Permission denied`

No w+x permission on the parent directory. Check ls -ld . and the permissions — see chmod-chown.

The permissions aren't what `-m` specified

-m sets the resulting directory's permissions directly (umask doesn't apply to it), but the intermediate directories created by -p still get the regular umask.

mkdir — creating directories

Cheat sheet