What does the chgrp command do?

The chgrp command is used to change the group ownership of a file or directory in a Linux environment. When executed, it allows a user with the necessary permissions to assign a different group to a specified file or directory. This is particularly useful in scenarios where files need to be shared within certain user groups, ensuring that users belonging to the new group have the appropriate access rights as determined by the file's permissions.

Using chgrp does not affect the owner of the file, which is managed by a different command called chown, nor does it alter file permissions or modify the file name. Thus, chgrp is specifically focused on group ownership, making it an essential tool for managing access control in multi-user environments.