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pxpx 3.6.2
ps, top and pstree for Human Beings
See below for how to install.
ptop is what I usually use when Bubblemon shows something unexpected is
going on.
px I use for figuring out things like “do I still have any Flutter
processes running in the background”?
pxtree can be used as watch --color pxtree brew to figure out what
Homebrew is doing.
Output
ptop
If you’re coming from htop or some other top variant, here’s what to
expect from ptop, with explanations below the screenshot:
Note the core count right next to the system load number, for easy comparison.
Note the load history graph next to the load numbers. On this system the load
has been high for the last 15 minutes. This is a visualization of the numbers
you get from uptime.
Note the bars showing which programs / users are using your memory below the
memory numbers
Note the IO Load number, showing which IO device had the highest average
throughput since ptop launched.
Note how the default sort order of CPUTIME-since-ptop-started makes the
display mostly stable and enables you to sort by CPU usage.
Note that binaries launched while ptop is running are listed at the bottom
of the display.
Note how the Python program on the second to last line is shown as
run_adapter.py (the program) rather than python3 (the runtime). This
support is available for many VMs like Java, Node, …
Selecting a process with Enter will offer you to see detailed information
about that process, in $PAGER, moar or less. Or to kill it.
After you press q to quit, the display is retained and some lines at the
bottom are removed to prevent the information you want from scrolling out of
view.
A help text on the bottom hints you how to search / filter (interactively),
change sort order or how to pick processes for further inspection or killing.
pxtree
Note how search hits are highlighted in bold
Note how PIDs (process IDs) are printed by default
Note how multiple processes with the same names are coalesced and printed with
the count in parentheses
Note how the process names make sense (lsp_server.py rather than python3)
px
Running just px lists all running processes, with the most interesting ones last.
Output truncated for brevity.
PID COMMAND USERNAME CPU CPUTIME RAM COMMANDLINE
0 kernel root -- -- -- kernel PID 0
273 SandboxHelper _coreaudiod 0% 0.01s 0% /System/Library/Frameworks/AudioToolbox.framework/XPCServices/com.apple.audio.SandboxHelper.xpc/Contents/MacOS/com.apple.audio.SandboxHelper
596 installerdiagd root 0% 0.01s 0% /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/InstallerDiagnostics.framework/Versions/A/Resources/installerdiagd
983 periodic-wrapper root 0% 0.01s 0% /usr/libexec/periodic-wrapper daily
...
57417 Google Chrome Helper johan 0% 1m03s 2% /Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/Versions/70.0.3538.102/Google Chrome Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome Helper --type=renderer --field-trial-handle=5536258455526146518,14669732848005555331,131072 --service-pipe-token=7224348701576210538 --lang=sv --metrics-client-id=576E1A60-CA59-34F4-6C0C-57F64BD5F01C --enable-offline-auto-reload --enable-offline-auto-reload-visible-only --num-raster-threads=4 --enable-zero-copy --enable-gpu-memory-buffer-compositor-resources --enable-main-frame-before-activation --service-request-channel-token=7224348701576210538 --renderer-client-id=1119 --no-v8-untrusted-code-mitigations --seatbelt-client=418
14983 studio johan 0% 1h22m 14% /Applications/Android Studio.app/Contents/MacOS/studio
57993 kcm root 0% 0.02s 0% /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Heimdal.framework/Helpers/kcm --launchd
57602 Code Helper johan 0% 12.73s 2% /private/var/folders/cg/d7qzk4s13s9c8t49t3txdjpr0000gn/T/AppTranslocation/B5DDDD81-5A91-4961-B18B-20DAB3925EB0/d/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Frameworks/Code Helper.app/Contents/MacOS/Code Helper --type=renderer --js-flags=--nolazy --no-sandbox --primordial-pipe-token=570B948A976AACDA8EBB532E5680C83E --lang=sv --app-path=/private/var/folders/cg/d7qzk4s13s9c8t49t3txdjpr0000gn/T/AppTranslocation/B5DDDD81-5A91-4961-B18B-20DAB3925EB0/d/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents/Resources/app --node-integration=true --webview-tag=true --no-sandbox --background-color=#171717 --disable-blink-features=Auxclick --enable-pinch --num-raster-threads=4 --enable-zero-copy --enable-gpu-memory-buffer-compositor-resources --enable-main-frame-before-activation --content-image-texture-target=0,0,3553;0,1,3553;0,2,3553;0,3,3553;0,4,3553;0,5,3553;0,6,3553;0,7,3553;0,8,3553;0,9,3553;0,10,34037;0,11,34037;0,12,34037;0,13,3553;0,14,3553;0,15,3553;1,0,3553;1,1,3553;1,2,3553;1,3,3553;1,4,3553;1,5,3553;1,6,3553;1,7,3553;1,8,3553;1,9,3553;1,10,34037;1,11,34037;1,12,34037;1,13,3553;1,14,3553;1,15,3553;2,0,3553;2,1,3553;2,2,3553;2,3,3553;2,4,3553;2,5,3553;2,6,3553;2,7,3553;2,8,3553;2,9,3553;2,10,34037;2,11,34037;2,12,34037;2,13,3553;2,14,3553;2,15,3553;3,0,3553;3,1,3553;3,2,3553;3,3,3553;3,4,3553;3,5,34037;3,6,3553;3,7,3553;3,8,3553;3,9,3553;3,10,3553;3,11,3553;3,12,34037;3,13,3553;3,14,34037;3,15,34037;4,0,3553;4,1,3553;4,2,3553;4,3,3553;4,4,3553;4,5,34037;4,6,3553;4,7,3553;4,8,3553;4,9,3553;4,10,3553;4,11,3553;4,12,34037;4,13,3553;4,14,34037;4,15,34037 --service-request-channel-token=570B948A976AACDA8EBB532E5680C83E --renderer-client-id=110
57996 cat johan 0% 0.0s 0% cat
57745 GradleDaemon johan 0% 32.75s 3% /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_60.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -Xmx1536m -Dfile.encoding=UTF-8 -Duser.country=SE -Duser.language=sv -Duser.variant -cp /Users/johan/.gradle/wrapper/dists/gradle-4.6-all/bcst21l2brirad8k2ben1letg/gradle-4.6/lib/gradle-launcher-4.6.jar org.gradle.launcher.daemon.bootstrap.GradleDaemon 4.6
To give you the most interesting processes close to your next prompt, px
puts last in its output processes that:
Have been started recently (can be seen in the list as high PIDs)
Are using lots of memory
Have used lots of CPU time
Java processes are presented as their main class (GradleDaemon) rather
than as their executable (java). This support is available for many VMs.
px java
This lists all Java processes. Note how they are presented as their main class
(GradleDaemon) rather than as their executable (java). This support is available for many VMs.
PID COMMAND USERNAME CPU CPUTIME RAM COMMANDLINE
57745 GradleDaemon johan 0% 35.09s 3% /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_60.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -Xmx1536m -Dfile.encoding=UTF-8 -Duser.country=SE -Dus
px _coreaudiod
This lists all processes owned by the _coreaudiod user.
PID COMMAND USERNAME CPU CPUTIME RAM COMMANDLINE
273 SandboxHelper _coreaudiod 0% 0.01s 0% /System/Library/Frameworks/AudioToolbox.framework/XPCServices/com.apple.audio.SandboxHelper.xpc/Contents/MacOS/com.apple.audio.SandboxHelper
190 DriverHelper _coreaudiod 0% 0.3s 0% /System/Library/Frameworks/CoreAudio.framework/Versions/A/XPCServices/com.apple.audio.DriverHelper.xpc/Contents/MacOS/com.apple.audio.DriverHelper
182 coreaudiod _coreaudiod 0% 11m28s 0% /usr/sbin/coreaudiod
sudo px 80727
This shows detailed info about PID 80727.
/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_60.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java
-Xmx1536M
-Dfile.encoding=UTF-8
-Duser.country=SE
-Duser.language=sv
-Duser.variant
-cp
/Users/johan/.gradle/wrapper/dists/gradle-3.5-all/7s64ktr9gh78lhv83n6m1hq9u6/gradle-3.5/lib/gradle-launcher-3.5.jar
org.gradle.launcher.daemon.bootstrap.GradleDaemon
3.5
kernel(0) root
launchd(1) root
--> GradleDaemon(80727) johan
31m33s ago GradleDaemon was started, at 2017-06-18T13:47:53+02:00.
7.6% has been its average CPU usage since then, or 2m22s/31m33s
Other processes started close to GradleDaemon(80727):
-fish(80678) was started 9.0s before GradleDaemon(80727)
iTerm2(80676) was started 9.0s before GradleDaemon(80727)
login(80677) was started 9.0s before GradleDaemon(80727)
mdworker(80729) was started just after GradleDaemon(80727)
mdworker(80776) was started 21.0s after GradleDaemon(80727)
Users logged in when GradleDaemon(80727) started:
_mbsetupuser
johan
2017-06-18T14:19:26.521988: Now invoking lsof, this can take over a minute on a big system...
2017-06-18T14:19:27.070396: lsof done, proceeding.
Others sharing this process' working directory (/)
Working directory too common, never mind.
File descriptors:
stdin : [PIPE] <not connected> (0x17d7619d3ae04819)
stdout: [CHR] /dev/null
stderr: [CHR] /dev/null
Network connections:
[IPv6] *:56789 (LISTEN)
[IPv6] *:62498 (LISTEN)
Inter Process Communication:
mDNSResponder(201): [unix] ->0xe32cbd7be6021f1f
For a list of all open files, do "sudo lsof -p 80727", or "sudo watch lsof -p 80727" for a live view.
The command line has been split with one argument per line. This makes long
command lines readable.
The process tree shows how the Gradle Daemon relates to other processes.
Details on how long ago Gradle Daemon was started, and how much CPU it has been
using since.
A list of other processes started around the same time as Gradle Daemon.
A section describing where the standard file descriptors of the process go.
A list of users logged in when the Gradle Daemon was started.
A list of other processes with the same working directory as this one.
A list of network connections the process has open.
The IPC section shows that the Gradle Daemon is talking to mDNSResponder
using Unix domain sockets.
The IPC data comes from lsof. sudo helps lsof get more detailed
information; the command will work without it but might miss some information.
Killing processes
If you want an interactive process killer using px and fzf, you can make
a shell alias out of this:
px --sort=cpupercent | fzf --bind 'ctrl-r:reload(px --sort=cpupercent)' --height=20 --no-hscroll --tac --no-sort --header-lines=1 | awk '{print $1}' | xargs kill -9
Type for fuzzy process search, use arrow keys to pick a process, Enter to kill,
CTRL-R to refresh the process list.
Or with previews for the currently selected process:
px --sort=cpupercent --no-username | fzf --preview='px --color {1}' --bind 'ctrl-r:reload(px --sort=cpupercent --no-username)' --height=20 --no-hscroll --tac --no-sort --header-lines=1 | awk '{print $1}' | xargs kill -9
Installation
On Debian 10 Buster or later, and on Ubuntu 19.04 Disco and later, install using:
sudo apt install px
If you have Homebrew on your system (likely on macOS):
brew install px
On Arch Linux:
paru -S px_ptop
On other systems, install into /usr/local/bin by copy / pasting this command
into a terminal:
curl -Ls https://github.com/walles/px/raw/python/install.sh | bash
Or you can install from Pypi. At least on macOS this can be problematic however,
so brew or the above install script is still preferred:
sudo pip install --upgrade pxpx
After installing you should be able to run px, px --help or ptop
from the command line. Otherwise please verify that /usr/local/bin is in
your $PATH.
To try px without installing it, just download the latest px.pex,
chmod a+x px.pex, then run ./px.pex.
Usage
Just type px or ptop, that’s a good start!
To exit ptop, press “q”.
Also try px --help to see what else px can do except for just listing all
processes.
If you run into problems, try running with the --debug switch, it will print
debug logging output after px/ptop is done.
Development
Prerequisites
A Python 3.6+ version
tox
Building and Running
Note that before editing any code, you need to run tox.sh once to create
the px/version.py file.
Note that the build infrastructure here is designed to create a px.pex file
that works on “all” machines with Python 3 interpreters (tested on Linux and
macOS).
Clone: git clone [email protected]:walles/px.git ; cd px
Build and test: ./tox.sh
Run: ./px.pex
To add dependencies, edit requirements.txt
You can also run ./devbin/tox-in-docker.sh, which can be used to run Linux
tests on a Mac.
Releasing a new Version
To release a new version, run ./devbin/release.sh and follow instructions.
Performance testing
Store the output of lsof -F fnaptd0i from a big system in lsof.txt.
./devbin/benchmark_ipcmap.py lsof.txt
Keeping this benchmark performant is important to be able to use px on big
systems.
To run it in a profiler, install pyinstrument and:
python3 -m pyinstrument ./devbin/benchmark_ipcmap.py lsof.txt
Or, to benchmark process listing:
pyinstrument -r html ./devbin/benchmark_proc_get_all.py
TODO top replacement
Disable terminal line wrapping for smoother handling of terminal window
resizes.
TODO iotop replacement
When given the --top flag and enough permissions, record per process IO
usage and present that in one or more columns.
TODO misc
Details: When no users were found to be logged in at process start,
automatically detect whether it’s because we don’t have history that far back or
whether it seems to be that nobody was actually logged in. Inform the user about
the outcome.
In the px / top views, in the process owner column, maybe print other non-root
process owners of parent processes inside parentheses?
Ignore -E switch on Python command lines
DONE
Make px list all processes with PID, owner, memory usage (in % of available
RAM), used CPU time, full command line
Output should be in table format just like top or ps.
Output should be truncated at the rightmost column of the terminal window
Output should be sorted by score, with score being (used CPU time) * (memory usage). The intention here is to put the most interesting processes on
top.
Each column should be wide enough to fit its widest value
Add a section about installation instructions to this document.
Add making-a-release instructions to this document
Add a .travis.yml config to the project that:
OK: Runs flake8 on the code
OK: Tests the code on OS X
OK: Tests the code on Linux
When piping to some other command, don’t truncate lines to terminal width
If we get one command line argument, only show processes matching that string
as either a user or the name of an executable.
If we get something looking like a PID as a command line argument, show that
PID process in a tree with all parents up to the top and all children down. This
would replace pstree.
If we get something looking like a PID as a command line argument, for that
PID show:
A list of all open files, pipes and sockets
For each pipe / domain socket, print the process at the other end
For each socket, print where it’s going
Doing px --version prints a git describe version string.
Add a column with the name of each running process
Put column headings at the top of each column
In the details view, list processes as Name(PID) rather than PID:Name.
To humans the name is more important than the PID, so it should be first.
In the details view, list a number of processes that were created around the
same time as the one we’re currently looking at.
Implement support for px --top
If the user launches px through a symlink that’s called something ending in
top, enter top mode.
top: On pressing “q” to exit, redraw the screen one last time with a few less
rows than usual before exiting.
top: Print system load before the process listing.
Parse Java and Python command lines and print the name of the program being
executed rather than the VM.
In the details view, list users that were logged in when the process was
started.
In the details tree view, print process owners for each line
Print $SUDO_USER value with process details, if set
Run CI on both Python 2 and Python 3
In the details report, if the current process has a working directory that
isn’t /, list all other processes that have the same working directory.
ptop: Load bar: Set foreground color in green section to black, white on
green is hard to read.
ptop: Let user switch between CPU time sort and memory sort
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