Hardware & System Information
lshw - List Hardware
lshw
Displays detailed hardware information including CPU, memory, storage, and devices.
Performance Analysis & Monitoring
iostat - I/O Statistics (sysstat)
iostats
Reports CPU and input/output statistics for devices and partitions. Useful for identifying disk I/O bottlenecks.
sar - System Activity Reporter
sar 5 5
Collects, reports, and saves system activity information. The command above runs 5 samples at 5-second intervals.
vmstat - Virtual Memory Statistics
vmstat -s
Reports memory statistics including virtual memory, physical memory, and swap usage.
swapon - Show Swap Information
swapon --show
Displays active swap spaces and their usage.
Networking
ifconfig - Network Configuration (net-tools)
ifconfig
Shows network interface configuration and status. Note: ip command is the modern alternative.
arp - Address Resolution Protocol
arp
Displays ARP table showing MAC addresses mapped to IP addresses.
netstat - Network Statistics
netstat -tulpn
Shows all TCP and UDP sockets in listening state with associated processes.
netstat -rn
Displays the kernel routing table.
Quick Reference
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
lshw |
Hardware inventory |
iostat |
Disk I/O statistics |
sar 5 5 |
System activity (5 samples, 5s intervals) |
vmstat -s |
Virtual memory summary |
swapon --show |
Active swap spaces |
ifconfig |
Network interface config |
arp |
ARP table (IP-MAC mappings) |
netstat -tulpn |
Listening ports & processes |
netstat -rn |
Routing table |
Modern Alternatives
For newer systems, consider these alternatives:
-
lshw→lsblk,lscpu -
ifconfig→ip addr show -
arp→ip neigh -
netstat→ss,ip route
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