.conf (Not a standardized format)

.conf extension doesn't have a specific standardized file format on Linux. It's just a convention to indicate "configuration file" and can contain various formats:

Common formats found in .conf files:

• Key-value pairs: option=value or option: value
• INI-style: Sections with [section] headers
• Apache-style: Directive-based like ServerName example.com
• Shell-style: Variables like VARIABLE="value"
• JSON: Valid JSON objects
• XML: Structured XML data
• YAML: YAML syntax
• Custom formats: Whatever the specific application expects

Examples:

# /etc/ssh/sshd_config uses simple key-value
Port 22
PermitRootLogin no

# /etc/systemd/system.conf uses INI-style
[Manager]
LogLevel=info

# Apache uses directive-style
<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName example.com
</VirtualHost>

The actual format depends entirely on the application reading it. The .conf extension is purely a human-readable convention to help identify configuration files. Always check the documentation for the specific application to know what format its .conf file should use.

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Backlinks

• /etc - Editable Text Configuration