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Windows Linux PowerShell Equivalents Processes

Windows PowerShell Get-Process equivalent in Linux

Lists running processes or searches for processes by name.

Windows PowerShell Get-Process
→
Linux equivalents
Debian/Ubuntu same command
ps aux
Fedora same command
ps aux
Arch same command
ps aux

Overview

What this command does

Lists running processes or searches for processes by name.

Migration tip: ps aux gives a complete snapshot. pgrep is faster when you only need matching process IDs.

Practical tasks

Common use cases

Find running processes

Lists running processes or searches for processes by name.

ps aux

List all processes

pgrep -a firefox

Find Firefox processes with arguments

ps -eo pid,user,%cpu,%mem,comm --sort=-%cpu

Sort by CPU usage

Ready to run

Copyable Linux commands

Review paths, device names, package names and permissions before running any command.

ps aux
pgrep -a firefox
ps -eo pid,user,%cpu,%mem,comm --sort=-%cpu

Walkthrough

Examples with explanations

ps aux # list all running processes
pgrep -a firefox # find processes by name
ps -eo pid,user,%cpu,%mem,comm --sort=-%cpu # show the highest CPU users first

Reference

Common options and variations

Command or optionUse
ps auxList all processes
pgrep -a firefoxFind Firefox processes with arguments
ps -eo pid,user,%cpu,%mem,comm --sort=-%cpuSort by CPU usage

Distro differences

Debian/Ubuntu vs Fedora vs Arch

This command is the same on Debian/Ubuntu, Fedora and Arch Linux when the relevant tool is installed.

DistributionPackage manager / baseEquivalent commandDifference to notice
Debian/Ubuntu same command ps aux Same command on this distribution.
Fedora same command ps aux Same command on this distribution.
Arch same command ps aux Same command on this distribution.

Keep learning

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