Understanding the wget Command

Basic Usage of wget

The wget command is a widely used utility for non-interactive downloading of files from the web. It supports HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP protocols and can handle recursive downloads, making it very powerful for retrieving content from websites.

Common Options for wget

wget has a variety of options to customize its behavior:

• -V, --version - Display version information and exit.
• -h, --help - Display a help message and exit.
• -b, --background - Go to background after startup.
• -N, --timestamping - Don't re-download files unless newer.
• -P - Set the directory prefix to directory.
• -r, --recursive - Download files recursively.
• -l - Set the maximum recursion depth.
• -k, --convert-links - Convert links for local viewing.
• -p, --page-requisites - Download all necessary elements for HTML pages.
• -q, --quiet - Turn off output.
• -c, --continue - Resume a partially downloaded file.
• -O - Save the downloaded file as file.
• --limit-rate= - Limit the download speed to rate.

Examples of wget Command

Download a Single File

This command downloads the specified file from the provided URL.

Download a File and Save with a Different Name

This command downloads the file and saves it as newfile.zip.

Download a Webpage and Its Assets

This command downloads the specified webpage along with all the assets required to display it properly.

Download Files Recursively

This command recursively downloads all files from the specified directory.

Limit Download Speed

This command limits the download speed to 200 KB/s.

Understanding wget Output

The output of the wget command includes information about the download progress, including:

• Percentage: Indicates how much of the file has been downloaded.
• Download Speed: Displays the current download speed.
• Estimated Time: Shows the estimated time remaining for the download.
• Downloaded Size: Shows the total size of the file being downloaded.

Summary of Options