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seq Command on Linux: Generate Number Sequences in Shell

· dinesh
seq command linux - custom-seq-featured.png

seq on Linux prints incremental numbers — handy when brace expansion {1..100} fails because the limits are in variables, or when you need floating-point steps for quick benchmarks.

See: sort,
bash functions,
shell scripting.

Simple range

seq LAST or seq FIRST LAST.

bashrange
seq 5
seq 3 7
seq
range

Step size

Three-argument form: start, increment, end.

bashstep
seq 0 2 10
seq step
increment

Formatted output

-f uses printf-style format for zero-padded IDs.

bashpadded
seq -f 'host-%03g' 1 5
seq -f
format

In loops

Safer than eval when bounds come from user input — still validate integers.

TipFor large ranges, prefer while counters — seq builds the full list in memory.
for loop
bash

Quick Reference

  • seq 1 10
  • Step: seq 1 2 10
  • Pad: seq -f '%03g' 1 9

Related tutorials

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