htop-dev/htop
Freehtop - an interactive process viewer
FreeFree tier
About htop-dev/htop
htop is a cross-platform interactive process viewer. It allows scrolling the list of processes vertically and horizontally to see their full command lines and related information like memory and CPU consumption. System-wide information like load average or swap usage is also displayed. The display is configurable through a graphical setup and processes can be sorted and filtered interactively. Tasks such as killing and renicing can be performed without entering PIDs. htop is written in C and requires ncurses libraries.
Key Features
Scroll process list vertically and horizontally
View full command lines, memory and CPU consumption
System-wide information (load average, swap usage)
Configurable display via graphical setup
Interactive sorting and filtering of processes
Kill and renic processes without entering PIDs
Cross-platform support (Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD, Solaris)
Written in C, requires ncurses libraries
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Cross-platform support across multiple Unix-like systems
- Interactive scrolling and filtering without needing PIDs
- Configurable display with sortable columns
- Lightweight terminal-based tool
- Free and open-source software
Cons
- Requires ncurses library support on the terminal
- No built-in graphical user interface (terminal-only)
- Not a system service; must be run manually or via script
Best For
System monitoring and performance troubleshootingInteractive process management in terminalViewing detailed process information in real-timeIdentifying resource-intensive processes
FAQ
What operating systems does htop support?
htop supports various Unix-like operating systems including Linux, FreeBSD, macOS (Darwin), NetBSD, OpenBSD, and Solaris, as indicated by the platform-specific source code directories.
How do I install htop?
Installation instructions are not provided on the repository homepage, but htop is typically available via package managers (e.g., apt, yum, brew) or can be compiled from source. The repository includes build instructions for developers.