## htop Cheatsheet
## Basic Syntax
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
htop |
Launches the htop interactive interface to show running processes, CPU, memory, and swap usage. |
## Common Options with htop
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
-d <delay> |
Sets the delay between screen updates (e.g., -d 10 means 10 seconds delay). |
-u <user> |
Displays only processes owned by the specified user. |
-p <pid> |
Shows only processes with specific PIDs. |
-s <column> |
Sorts the process list by the specified column (e.g., -s CPU). |
-t |
Displays the process hierarchy in a tree view. |
--no-color |
Runs htop in monochrome mode, disabling color. |
-v or --version |
Outputs the version of htop and exits. |
## Examples
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
htop -d <delay> |
Example: htop -d 10 — Adds a delay of 10 seconds between screen updates. |
htop -u <username> |
Example: htop -u kunwarvikas — Displays processes owned by kunwarvikas. |
htop -p <pid> |
Example: htop -p 369 — Displays only the process with PID 369. |
htop -s <column> |
Example: htop -s PRIORITY — Sorts processes by priority. |
htop -t |
Displays processes in a tree view to show parent-child relationships. |
htop --no-color |
Runs htop without color. |
htop -v |
Outputs the version of htop and exits. |
## Interactive Commands in htop
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| Arrow Keys | Navigate the process list (up, down, left, right). |
| Page Up / Page Down | Scroll the process list one page up or down. |
| Home / End | Jump to the top or bottom of the process list. |
| Space | Tag or untag a process (select it for further actions). |
| U | Untag all processes. |
| s | Trace system calls of the selected process. |
| F1 | Help: Displays help and usage information. |
| F2 | Setup: Opens the setup menu for customizing the interface and appearance. |
| F3 | Search: Search for a process by name or PID. |
| F4 | Filter: Filter processes by a part of the command name. |
| F5 | Tree View: Show processes in a tree structure. |
| F6 | Sort: Choose a column to sort the processes (e.g., by CPU, memory). |
| F7 | Increase the priority (nice value) of the selected process. |
| F8 | Decrease the priority (nice value) of the selected process. |
| F9 | Kill: Send a signal to the selected process (e.g., TERM, KILL, etc.). |
| F10 | Quit: Exit htop. |
## Additional Tips
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| PID | Process ID: Unique identifier for each running process. |
| CPU Usage | Percentage of CPU consumed by each process. |
| Memory Usage | The amount of RAM used by each process. |
| Priority | The priority (nice value) of the process. Lower values mean higher priority. |
| Tree View | Shows processes in a hierarchical tree structure. |
## Quick Command Summary
| Command/Action | Description |
|---|---|
| F1 | Help: Displays help and usage information. |
| F2 | Setup: Opens the setup menu for customizing the interface and appearance. |
| F3 | Search: Allows searching for a process by name or PID. |
| F4 | Filter: Filter processes based on specific criteria. |
| F5 | Tree View: Switches to a tree view of processes, showing the hierarchy. |
| F6 | Sort: Changes the sorting order of processes. |
| F7 | Increase priority: Increases the “nice” value (lowers priority). |
| F8 | Decrease priority: Decreases the “nice” value (raises priority). |
| F9 | Kill: Sends a signal to a process (e.g., TERM, KILL, etc.). |
| F10 | Quit: Exits htop. |
| Arrow Keys | Navigation: Move up/down, left/right to scroll through processes or menus. |
| Page Up/Page Down | Navigation: Scroll up or down one page at a time. |
| Enter | Select a process: Selects a process to view detailed information. |
| q | Quit: Exit htop. |
| Space | Mark process: Toggles the selection of a process for killing or other actions. |
| u | Show User: Filter processes by a specific user. |
| P | Sort by CPU usage: Orders processes by CPU consumption. |
| M | Sort by Memory usage: Orders processes by memory consumption. |
| T | Sort by Time: Orders processes by their cumulative runtime. |
| C | Toggle Columns: Show/hide specific columns (e.g., PID, User, CPU, Memory). |
| F | Show Full Command: Toggles between showing the full command or just the command name. |
| 1 | Toggle CPU Core Usage: Displays CPU usage per core. |
| +/- | Increase/Decrease CPU frequency (if available). |
| s | Set delay between updates (e.g., s to set in seconds). |
| i | Toggle Idle Processes: Show/hide idle processes. |
| H | Show threads: Display individual threads instead of just processes. |
| L | Display load average: Show system load averages for 1, 5, and 15 minutes. |
| N | Sort by PID: Sort processes based on their Process ID. |
| F12 | Force Quit: Ends the program without any confirmation. |