Linux System Administration Tools

Tools for remote administration, processes, monitoring, disks, logs, file transfer and backup.

Everyday tools for looking after Linux machines, from your own laptop to a fleet of servers.

Part of the IT Engineer / IT Support and System Administrator toolkits, which explain when you would use each tool.

Remote administration

Securely log in to and manage other computers.

OpenSSH
Secure remote administration.
Open SourceWin / Mac / Linux
Remmina
Remote desktops.
Open SourceLinux

Processes and resources

Interactive views of processes, CPU and memory.

htop
Interactive process viewer.
Open SourceMac / Linux
btop
Detailed resource monitor.
Open SourceMac / Linux
Glances
Overview of the whole system.
Open SourceWin / Mac / Linux

Logs

Navigate and search log files.

lnav
Search and navigate log files.
Open SourceMac / Linux

Disks and snapshots

Partition disks and take system snapshots.

GParted
Partition management.
Open SourceLinux
Timeshift
System snapshots before risky changes.
Open SourceLinux

Terminal utilities

Keep sessions running and work in several panes.

tmux
Keep sessions running and split panes.
Open SourceMac / Linux
GNU Screen
Long-established alternative to tmux.
Open SourceMac / Linux

File transfer and sync

Transfer and synchronise files.

rsync
Copy and mirror files efficiently.
Open SourceMac / Linux
FileZilla
Graphical file transfers.
Open SourceWin / Mac / Linux

More Linux tools