Recommended tools

This page is intended to list system administration related tools recommended for use in a shell (terminal/console) environment. See Recommended applications for other software.

Hardware

 * - Enhanced df (disk free) tool, which uses colors and a semi-graphical representation of disk usage.
 * - Ncurses-based disk usage tool, with easy navigation through the filesystem tree to see du results.
 * - Attempts to replicate the functionality of the 'old' apm command on ACPI systems.
 * - A Linux ACPI client, allowing you to query or set ACPI values. It provides informations on battery status, AC adapter presence, thermal reading, etc.
 * - Resource-specific view of processes.
 * - Linux tool to dump x86 CPUID information about the CPUs.
 * - Interactive process viewer (improved alternative for top), with easy function-keys for process management.
 * - Simple top like I/O monitor.
 * - Lists open files for running Unix processes.

Network

 * - Display bandwidth usage on an interface.
 * - Console-based network monitoring utility.
 * - Layer Four Traceroute: An advanced traceroute implementation.
 * - Console application which monitors network traffic and bandwidth usage in real time.
 * - Network traffic monitoring.
 * - Active OS fingerprinting tool. This is Xprobe2.
 * - A FrameWork for layer 2 protocol attacks. Working on DHCP, STP, IEEE 802.1q and also some other Cisco proprietary network protocols.
 * - Ncurses based monitor for IEEE 802.11 wireless LAN cards.

File management

 * - GNU Midnight Commander is a text based file manager.
 * - The missing terminal file manager for X.
 * - Console file manager with vi(m)-like keybindings. Offers familiar navigation for vim junkies.

Shell environment

 * - Enhanced pager (alternative to more and less) with colored highlighting. Also consider emerging  with.
 * - A generic colouriser that beautifies system log files or command output.
 * - Command-line interface to various pastebin-like websites.
 * - Readline wrapper.
 * - Command-line interface to X selections (clipboard).
 * - Terminal multiplexer
 * - screen manager with VT100/ANSI terminal emulation

Others

 * - Stores, retrieves, generates, and synchronizes passwords securely using gpg, pwgen, and git.
 * - Interactive who</tt>-like program that displays information about users currently logged on in real time.
 * - Dynamic virtual terminal manager.
 * - Visual diffing tool for binary files.
 * - A top</tt> clone for mysql