Hosting Operations
Read-onlyCheck the Nginx Site Symlink Target
You need to verify which release directory a site is serving.
Command
readlink -f /srv/www/example.com/currentBefore you run this
System impact: Read-only. Low when scoped to the shown target.
When not to use it: Do not delete old releases until you know rollback requirements.
Expected output
The absolute path of the active release directory.
System impact
Read-only. Nothing changes. The command resolves the live symlink target.
Recovery / rollback: no state is changed.
When to use it
Use this after a deploy or rollback.
When not to use it
Do not delete old releases until you know rollback requirements.
next steps
Related commands
Check the Active Release Symlink
Git may say one thing while the release pointer serves another.
readlink /srv/www/example/current && cat /srv/www/example/current/VERSION
Find Release Files Writable Outside the Owner
A release file that someone besides the owner can modify deserves a second look.
find /srv/www/example/releases/current -type f -perm /0022 -printf '%M %u:%g %p\n' 2>/dev/null | sort
Audit a Symlink Permission Chain
A symlink can make the path you audited different from the file the app opens.
find /srv/www/example -type l -printf '%p -> %l\n' -exec namei -l {} \; 2>/dev/null
Exclude the Current Release from Cleanup
Release cleanup should prove what current points to before listing old directories.
current=$(readlink -f /home/deploy/current); find /home/deploy/releases -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -type d ! -samefile "$current" -printf '%TY-%Tm-%Td %p\n' 2>/dev/null | sort
Rollback a Release Symlink in a Sandbox
Practice the pointer switch where the blast radius is zero.
ln -sfn /srv/www/example/releases/2026-06-25-1000 /tmp/linuxoneliners-current-release
Study mapping
Use this as independent command practice: read the notes, predict the output, then compare it with the example before using a real shell.
Independent study support only. No affiliation, endorsement, exam dumps, or real exam questions.