In this article, we will explore how to fix the “Command not found: service” error in Ubuntu. This error typically occurs when the system is unable to locate the service command, which is used to manage system services in Ubuntu. We will walk through a step-by-step guide to resolve this issue.
To fix the "Command not found: service" error in Ubuntu, you need to check your Ubuntu version, verify the PATH variable, edit your shell’s configuration file to include the /usr/sbin directory in the PATH, reload the shell configuration, and verify the service command.
Understanding the Error
Before we delve into the solution, it’s important to understand what the error message “Command not found: service” means. This error occurs when the system cannot find the service command in the directories specified by the PATH environment variable. The service command is typically located in the /usr/sbin directory, so if this directory is not included in the PATH, you will encounter this error.
Checking Your Ubuntu Version
The first step in resolving this issue is to check your Ubuntu version. The method to manage services can vary depending on the version. You can use the following command to find out your Ubuntu version:
lsb_release -aThis command displays the Ubuntu version along with other system information.
Verifying the PATH Variable
Next, verify that the /usr/sbin directory is included in your PATH variable. You can check the current value of PATH by running the following command in your terminal:
echo $PATHThis command prints the value of the PATH variable, which is a colon-separated list of directories.
Editing Your Shell’s Configuration File
If the /usr/sbin directory is not included in the PATH, you need to add it. To do this, open your shell’s configuration file (~/.bashrc for Bash or ~/.zshrc for Zsh) in a text editor. Add the following line at the end of the file:
export PATH="$PATH:/usr/sbin"This line adds /usr/sbin to the PATH variable. Save the file and exit the text editor.
Reloading the Shell Configuration
After editing the configuration file, you need to reload it to apply the changes. Run the following command to reload the configuration:
source ~/.bashrcReplace ~/.bashrc with ~/.zshrc if you’re using Zsh. If you’re using a shell like ksh or dash, use the command . ~/.bashrc instead.
Verifying the Service Command
Now that you’ve updated the PATH, you should be able to use the service command. Try running a command like service sshd start to start the SSH service. If you still encounter issues, make sure that the sshd service is installed on your system. You can check this by running the following command:
sudo apt list --installed | grep openssh-serverThis command lists all installed packages and filters the output for openssh-server. If it’s not installed, you can install it using the following command:
sudo apt install openssh-serverThis command installs the openssh-server package, which provides the SSH service.
Conclusion
In this article, we’ve covered how to fix the “Command not found: service” error in Ubuntu. We’ve walked through how to check your Ubuntu version, verify the PATH variable, edit your shell’s configuration file, reload the shell configuration, and verify the service command. With these steps, you should be able to resolve this error and manage system services in Ubuntu effectively.
The service command is used to manage system services in Ubuntu. It allows users to start, stop, restart, enable, disable, and check the status of services running on their system.
This error occurs when the system cannot find the service command in the directories specified by the PATH environment variable. The service command is typically located in the /usr/sbin directory, so if this directory is not included in the PATH, you will encounter this error.
You can check your Ubuntu version by running the following command in the terminal: lsb_release -a. This command will display the Ubuntu version along with other system information.
To verify the current value of the PATH variable, you can run the following command in the terminal: echo $PATH. This command will print the value of the PATH variable, which is a colon-separated list of directories.
To edit your shell’s configuration file, you can open the file ~/.bashrc if you’re using Bash or ~/.zshrc if you’re using Zsh in a text editor. Add the line export PATH="$PATH:/usr/sbin" at the end of the file to include the /usr/sbin directory in the PATH variable.
After editing the shell’s configuration file, you need to reload it to apply the changes. Run the command source ~/.bashrc if you’re using Bash, or source ~/.zshrc if you’re using Zsh. If you’re using a shell like ksh or dash, use the command . ~/.bashrc instead.
To check if the service command is working, you can run a command like service sshd start to start the SSH service. If you still encounter issues, make sure that the sshd service is installed on your system. You can check this by running the command sudo apt list --installed | grep openssh-server. If it’s not installed, you can install it using the command sudo apt install openssh-server.
