Navigating Up One Directory Level in UNIX Shells Which command changes the current working directory to its parent (one level up)?

Introduction / Context:
Command-line navigation relies on relative and absolute paths. Moving to the parent directory is a frequent task when traversing project trees or system hierarchies on UNIX-like systems.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• POSIX shell behavior for cd.
• .. represents the parent directory in UNIX filepath semantics.
• User has execute permissions on the parent directory.

Concept / Approach:
cd .. instructs the shell to change into the directory referenced by .., which is the parent of the current working directory. This relative notation is consistent across UNIX shells (sh, bash, zsh, etc.).

Step-by-Step Solution:
Check current directory: pwd.Execute cd ...Confirm new location with pwd; path now reflects the parent directory.

Verification / Alternative check:
Use cd - to jump back to the previous directory and verify movement. Use ls -a to see the special entries . (current) and .. (parent).

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
cd alone goes to your home directory, not up one level.cd/ is not a standard UNIX idiom; cd / (with a space) changes to root.chdir may exist as a synonym on some systems, but without an argument it behaves like cd and with an argument it requires .. to target the parent; the canonical answer here is cd ...

Common Pitfalls:

• Accidentally typing Windows-style paths (backslashes) instead of UNIX forward slashes.
• Confusing cd .. with cd ../.., which goes up two levels.

Final Answer:
cd ..