Updated: 11 October 2026 · Applies to: AlmaLinux 9, Rocky Linux 9, Ubuntu 24.04 and Debian 12
See and control running processes:
ps -ef # all processes ps aux --sort=-%cpu # busiest first top # live view (P: CPU, M: memory, q: quit) kill PID # ask a process to stop kill -9 PID # force it (last resort) pkill -f name # stop processes by name command & # run in the background jobs; fg; bg # list, resume in foreground/background nohup command & # keep running after you log out
Tip: For long tasks over SSH, tmux or screen keep them running if your connection drops.
