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The ps command in Linux is a versatile tool used to gather information about processes running on a system. It stands for “process status” and offers various options to view and manage processes.
Basic Usage
The basic usage of ps involves displaying a snapshot of active processes. Here’s a simple command:
ps
This command provides a list of processes initiated by the current user in the current terminal session. However, it might not display all processes on the system.
Useful Options
Display All Processes
To display all processes running on the system, including those owned by other users, use the -e or -A option:
ps -e
or
ps -A
Detailed Information
For more detailed information about processes, including the process ID (PID), terminal associated with the process, CPU and memory usage, use the -l option:
ps -l
Tree View
View processes in a hierarchical/tree format, indicating parent-child relationships, using the --forest option:
ps --forest
Continuous Monitoring
For continuous updates displaying running processes every second, combine the watch command with ps. For instance:
watch -n 1 'ps aux'
This command will update the displayed processes every second.
Created on: Dec 29, 2023