What is a BASHRC file? Shell file used by Linux and Mac OS X terminal applications; contains setup instructions for the shell, such as declarations for environment variables and default scripts to run; often used for setting user command prompt preferences as well as paths for common directories and program executables.

More Information BASHRC files are executed automatically when a user creates a new shell that is a non-interactive login shell. In other words, BASHRC files run for every Bash command that executes after the terminal has been created. This can be useful for initializing the same settings for embedded shell scripts. BASHRC files differ from .BASH_PROFILE files, which execute for interactive login shells (when a user enters login credentials or opens a new terminal). NOTE: BASHRC files are hidden and do not contain a filename prefix. They always have the filename .bashrc and are located in the user's home directory.