Quick Tip

Taming `ps` Output: Focused Process Info with `awk`

Challenge: The output of the ps command can be overwhelming, making it difficult to find specific process information quickly.

The Solution: Combine ps with awk to filter and display only the columns you need.

ps aux | awk '{print $1, $2, $11}'

Why it works: This command pipes the full output of ps aux to awk, which then prints only the user (column 1), PID (column 2), and the command name (column 11) for each process.

Pro-Tip: Replace the column numbers with the specific fields you want to see, such as $4 for CPU usage and $5 for memory usage, to customize the output further.

Linux Tips & Tricks | © ngelinux.com | 5/17/2026