Monitor processes, CPU and RAM with htop

I've been using htop for so long that it's now my go-to tool for the visual representation of key process performance metrics on a server: CPU usage, RAM, Swap, average load and most resource-hungry processes.

htop command for process monitoring

This is how a default htop screen looks on a properly configured colour-capable terminal: just run "htop" wihtout any parameters.

How To Install htop in Linux

htop is available via EPEL repository for CentOS/RedHat/Fedora projects:

reys@rhel:~ $ yum whatprovides htop
Loaded plugins: fastestmirror, langpacks
Determining fastest mirrors
* base: centos.quelquesmots.fr
* epel: mirror.ibcp.fr
* extras: centos.mirrors.proxad.net
* updates: centos.crazyfrogs.org
htop-2.2.0-3.el7.x86_64 : Interactive process viewer
Repo : epel

Once EPEL is activated, you'll be able to just install htop with yum.

How To Install htop in MacOS

On MacOS I've been using brew to install htop:

greys@maverick:~ $ brew install htop

or

greys@maverick:~ $ brew upgrade htop
==> Upgrading 1 outdated package:
htop 2.0.2 -> 2.2.0_1
==> Upgrading htop
==> Installing dependencies for htop: ncurses
==> Installing htop dependency: ncurses
==> Downloading https://homebrew.bintray.com/bottles/ncurses-6.1.mojave.bottle.tar.gz
######################################################################## 100.0%
==> Pouring ncurses-6.1.mojave.bottle.tar.gz
==> Caveats
ncurses is keg-only, which means it was not symlinked into /usr/local,
because macOS already provides this software and installing another version in
parallel can cause all kinds of trouble.

If you need to have ncurses first in your PATH run:
echo 'export PATH="/usr/local/opt/ncurses/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bash_profile

For compilers to find ncurses you may need to set:
export LDFLAGS="-L/usr/local/opt/ncurses/lib"
export CPPFLAGS="-I/usr/local/opt/ncurses/include"

For pkg-config to find ncurses you may need to set:
export PKG_CONFIG_PATH="/usr/local/opt/ncurses/lib/pkgconfig"

==> Summary
🍺 /usr/local/Cellar/ncurses/6.1: 3,869 files, 8.3MB
==> Installing htop
==> Downloading https://homebrew.bintray.com/bottles/htop-2.2.0_1.mojave.bottle.tar.gz
######################################################################## 100.0%
==> Pouring htop-2.2.0_1.mojave.bottle.tar.gz
==> Caveats
htop requires root privileges to correctly display all running processes,
so you will need to run `sudo htop`.
You should be certain that you trust any software you grant root privileges.
==> Summary
🍺 /usr/local/Cellar/htop/2.2.0_1: 11 files, 188KB
Removing: /usr/local/Cellar/htop/2.0.2... (11 files, 185KB)
==> Caveats
==> ncurses
ncurses is keg-only, which means it was not symlinked into /usr/local,
because macOS already provides this software and installing another version in
parallel can cause all kinds of trouble.

If you need to have ncurses first in your PATH run:
echo 'export PATH="/usr/local/opt/ncurses/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bash_profile

For compilers to find ncurses you may need to set:
export LDFLAGS="-L/usr/local/opt/ncurses/lib"
export CPPFLAGS="-I/usr/local/opt/ncurses/include"

For pkg-config to find ncurses you may need to set:
export PKG_CONFIG_PATH="/usr/local/opt/ncurses/lib/pkgconfig"

==> htop
htop requires root privileges to correctly display all running processes,
so you will need to run `sudo htop`.
You should be certain that you trust any software you grant root privileges.

That's it for today. Hope you find htop command useful!

See Also

• htop – official page
• Unix Commands
• top command
• Basic Unix Commands
• Advanced Unix Commands

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