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Linux last And lastlog Commands: Display Logged In Users Information

The last and lastlog commands in Linux provide information about user logins on a system. They allow administrators to monitor system access and detect unauthorized access attempts. In this tutorial, we'll cover basic usage examples for both the last and lastlog commands.

  • last command:

The last command displays a list of the most recent user logins, sorted by date and time. It retrieves this information from the /var/log/wtmp file.

  • Display the login history:

    last
    
  • Show a specific number of entries:

    To limit the number of displayed entries, use the -n option followed by the number of entries you want to display:

    last -n 10
    
  • Show login history for a specific user:

    To display the login history for a specific user, simply add the username to the command:

    last username
    
  • Show login history since a specific date and time:

    To display the login history since a specific date and time, use the -t option followed by the date and time in the format YYYYMMDDhhmm:

    last -t 202301011230
    
  • lastlog command:

The lastlog command displays the most recent login information for each user on the system. It retrieves this information from the /var/log/lastlog file.

  • Display the last login for all users:

    lastlog
    
  • Show last login information for a specific user:

    To display the last login information for a specific user, use the -u option followed by the username:

    lastlog -u username
    
  • Show last login information for users with UID range:

    To display the last login information for users with a specific UID range, use the -t option followed by the range of UIDs:

    lastlog -t UID_min-UID_max
    

    For example, to display the last login information for users with UID between 1000 and 2000, run:

    lastlog -t 1000-2000
    

In summary, the last and lastlog commands in Linux provide valuable information about user logins on a system. By using various options, you can filter the displayed entries, show login history for specific users, and focus on a specific date and time or UID range.

  1. How to use last and lastlog commands in Linux:

    The last command displays information about user logins, while lastlog provides details about the last login of users.

    Example code (using last):

    last
    

    Example code (using lastlog):

    lastlog
    
  2. Viewing user login history with last and lastlog:

    Both commands provide a history of user logins, showing usernames, terminal, IP addresses, and login times.

    Example code:

    last
    lastlog
    
  3. Checking login details for specific users using last:

    To view login details for a specific user, use the last command with the username.

    Example code:

    last username
    
  4. Listing the last login times and locations in Linux:

    last shows the last login times and locations, including remote IP addresses.

    Example code:

    last -i
    
  5. Viewing failed login attempts with lastlog:

    The lastlog command can display information about failed login attempts.

    Example code:

    lastlog --failed
    
  6. Displaying recent login activities with last command:

    To view recent login activities, use the last command with the -n option to specify the number of lines.

    Example code:

    last -n 10
    
  7. Filtering lastlog output for specific users in Linux:

    Use the lastlog command with the username to filter the output for a specific user.

    Example code:

    lastlog -u username
    
  8. Monitoring user login patterns using last and lastlog:

    Regularly check last and lastlog to monitor user login patterns, identify anomalies, and ensure security.