Listed below is a brief index of commands within categories.
Some commands appear more than once -- their meaning or scope
may vary depending on the context in which they are issued.
4a. Global-Commands
<Ent/Sp> ?, =, 0,
A, B, d, E, e, g, h, H, I, k, q, r, s, W, X, Y, Z
4b. Summary-Area-Commands
C, l, t, m, 1, 2, 3, 4, !
4c. Task-Area-Commands
Appearance: b, J, j, x, y, z
Content: c, F, f, O, o, S, U, u, V, v
Size: #, i, n
Sorting: <, >, f, R
4d. Color-Mapping
<Ret>, a, B, b, H, M, q, S, T, w, z, 0 - 7
5b. Commands-for-Windows
-, _, =, +, A, a, g, G, w
5c. Scrolling-a-Window
C, Up, Dn, Left, Right, PgUp, PgDn, Home, End
5d. Searching-in-a-Window
L, &
4a. GLOBAL Commands
The global interactive commands are always available in both
full-screen mode and alternate-display mode. However, some of
these interactive commands are not available when running in
Secure mode.
If you wish to know in advance whether or not your top has been
secured, simply ask for help and view the system summary on the
second line.
<Enter> or <Space> :Refresh-Display
These commands awaken top and following receipt of any
input the entire display will be repainted. They also
force an update of any hotplugged cpu or physical memory
changes.
Use either of these keys if you have a large delay
interval and wish to see current status,
? | h :Help
There are two help levels available. The first will
provide a reminder of all the basic interactive commands.
If top is secured, that screen will be abbreviated.
Typing `h' or `?' on that help screen will take you to
help for those interactive commands applicable to
alternate-display mode.
= :Exit-Display-Limits
Removes restrictions on what is shown. This command will
reverse any `i' (idle tasks), `n' (max tasks), `v' (hide
children) and `F' focus commands that might be active. It
also provides for an exit from PID monitoring, User
filtering, Other filtering, Locate processing and Combine
Cpus mode.
Additionally, if the window has been scrolled it will be
reset with this command.
0 :Zero-Suppress toggle
This command determines whether zeros are shown or
suppressed for many of the fields in a task window.
Fields like UID, GID, NI, PR or P are not affected by this
toggle.
A :Alternate-Display-Mode toggle
This command will switch between full-screen mode and
alternate-display mode. See topic 5. ALTERNATE-DISPLAY
Provisions and the `g' interactive command for insight
into `current' windows and field groups.
B :Bold-Disable/Enable toggle
This command will influence use of the bold terminfo
capability and alters both the summary area and task area
for the `current' window. While it is intended primarily
for use with dumb terminals, it can be applied anytime.
Note: When this toggle is On and top is operating in
monochrome mode, the entire display will appear as normal
text. Thus, unless the `x' and/or `y' toggles are using
reverse for emphasis, there will be no visual confirmation
that they are even on.
* d | s :Change-Delay-Time-interval
You will be prompted to enter the delay time, in seconds,
between display updates.
Fractional seconds are honored, but a negative number is
not allowed. Entering 0 causes (nearly) continuous
updates, with an unsatisfactory display as the system and
tty driver try to keep up with top's demands. The delay
value is inversely proportional to system loading, so set
it with care.
If at any time you wish to know the current delay time,
simply ask for help and view the system summary on the
second line.
E :Enforce-Summary-Memory-Scale in Summary Area
With this command you can cycle through the available
summary area memory scaling which ranges from KiB
(kibibytes or 1,024 bytes) through EiB (exbibytes or
1,152,921,504,606,846,976 bytes).
If you see a `+' between a displayed number and the
following label, it means that top was forced to truncate
some portion of that number. By raising the scaling
factor, such truncation can be avoided.
e :Enforce-Task-Memory-Scale in Task Area
With this command you can cycle through the available task
area memory scaling which ranges from KiB (kibibytes or
1,024 bytes) through PiB (pebibytes or
1,125,899,906,842,624 bytes).
While top will try to honor the selected target range,
additional scaling might still be necessary in order to
accommodate current values. If you wish to see a more
homogeneous result in the memory columns, raising the
scaling range will usually accomplish that goal. Raising
it too high, however, is likely to produce an all zero
result which cannot be suppressed with the `0' interactive
command.
g :Choose-Another-Window/Field-Group
You will be prompted to enter a number between 1 and 4
designating the field group which should be made the
`current' window. You will soon grow comfortable with
these 4 windows, especially after experimenting with
alternate-display mode.
H :Threads-mode toggle
When this toggle is On, individual threads will be
displayed for all processes in all visible task windows.
Otherwise, top displays a summation of all threads in each
process.
I :Irix/Solaris-Mode toggle
When operating in Solaris mode (`I' toggled Off), a task's
cpu usage will be divided by the total number of CPUs.
After issuing this command, you'll be told the new state
of this toggle.
* k :Kill-a-task
You will be prompted for a PID and then the signal to
send.
Entering no PID or a negative number will be interpreted
as the default shown in the prompt (the first task
displayed). A PID value of zero means the top program
itself.
The default signal, as reflected in the prompt, is
SIGTERM. However, you can send any signal, via number or
name.
If you wish to abort the kill process, do one of the
following depending on your progress:
1) at the pid prompt, type an invalid number
2) at the signal prompt, type 0 (or any invalid signal)
3) at any prompt, type <Esc>
q :Quit
* r :Renice-a-Task
You will be prompted for a PID and then the value to nice
it to.
Entering no PID or a negative number will be interpreted
as the default shown in the prompt (the first task
displayed). A PID value of zero means the top program
itself.
A positive nice value will cause a process to lose
priority. Conversely, a negative nice value will cause a
process to be viewed more favorably by the kernel. As a
general rule, ordinary users can only increase the nice
value and are prevented from lowering it.
If you wish to abort the renice process, do one of the
following depending on your progress:
1) at the pid prompt, type an invalid number
2) at the nice prompt, type <Enter> with no input
3) at any prompt, type <Esc>
W :Write-the-Configuration-File
This will save all of your options and toggles plus the
current display mode and delay time. By issuing this
command just before quitting top, you will be able restart
later in exactly that same state.
X :Extra-Fixed-Width
Some fields are fixed width and not scalable. As such,
they are subject to truncation which would be indicated by
a `+' in the last position.
This interactive command can be used to alter the widths
of the following fields:
field default field default field default
GID 5 GROUP 8 WCHAN 10
RUID 5 LXC 8 nsIPC 10
SUID 5 RUSER 8 nsMNT 10
UID 5 SUSER 8 nsNET 10
TTY 8 nsPID 10
USER 8 nsUSER 10
nsUTS 10
You will be prompted for the amount to be added to the
default widths shown above. Entering zero forces a return
to those defaults.
If you enter a negative number, top will automatically
increase the column size as needed until there is no more
truncated data. You can accelerate this process by
reducing the delay interval or holding down the <Space>
bar.
Note: Whether explicitly or automatically increased, the
widths for these fields are never decreased by top. To
narrow them you must specify a smaller number or restore
the defaults.
Y :Inspect-Other-Output
After issuing the `Y' interactive command, you will be
prompted for a target PID. Typing a value or accepting
the default results in a separate screen. That screen can
be used to view a variety of files or piped command output
while the normal top iterative display is paused.
Note: This interactive command is only fully realized when
supporting entries have been manually added to the end of
the top configuration file. For details on creating those
entries, see topic 6b. ADDING INSPECT Entries.
Most of the keys used to navigate the Inspect feature are
reflected in its header prologue. There are, however,
additional keys available once you have selected a
particular file or command. They are familiar to anyone
who has used the pager `less' and are summarized here for
future reference.
key function
= alternate status-line, file or pipeline
/ find, equivalent to `L' locate
n find next, equivalent to `&' locate next
<Space> scroll down, equivalent to <PgDn>
b scroll up, equivalent to <PgUp>
g first line, equivalent to <Home>
G last line, equivalent to <End>
Z :Change-Color-Mapping
This key will take you to a separate screen where you can
change the colors for the `current' window, or for all
windows. For details regarding this interactive command
see topic 4d. COLOR Mapping.
* The commands shown with an asterisk (`*') are not available in
Secure mode, nor will they be shown on the level-1 help
screen.
4b. SUMMARY AREA Commands
The summary area interactive commands are always available in
both full-screen mode and alternate-display mode. They affect
the beginning lines of your display and will determine the
position of messages and prompts.
These commands always impact just the `current' window/field
group. See topic 5. ALTERNATE-DISPLAY Provisions and the `g'
interactive command for insight into `current' windows and field
groups.
C :Show-scroll-coordinates toggle
Toggle an informational message which is displayed
whenever the message line is not otherwise being used.
For additional information see topic 5c. SCROLLING a
Window.
l :Load-Average/Uptime toggle
This is also the line containing the program name
(possibly an alias) when operating in full-screen mode or
the `current' window name when operating in
alternate-display mode.
t :Task/Cpu-States toggle
This command affects from 2 to many summary area lines,
depending on the state of the `1', `2' or `3' command
toggles and whether or not top is running under true SMP.
This portion of the summary area is also influenced by the
`H' interactive command toggle, as reflected in the total
label which shows either Tasks or Threads.
This command serves as a 4-way toggle, cycling through
these modes:
1. detailed percentages by category
2. abbreviated user/system and total % + bar graph
3. abbreviated user/system and total % + block graph
4. turn off task and cpu states display
When operating in either of the graphic modes, the display
becomes much more meaningful when individual CPUs or NUMA
nodes are also displayed. See the the `1', `2' and `3'
commands below for additional information.
m :Memory/Swap-Usage toggle
This command affects the two summary area lines dealing
with physical and virtual memory.
This command serves as a 4-way toggle, cycling through
these modes:
1. detailed percentages by memory type
2. abbreviated % used/total available + bar graph
3. abbreviated % used/total available + block graph
4. turn off memory display
1 :Single/Separate-Cpu-States toggle
This command affects how the `t' command's Cpu States
portion is shown. Although this toggle exists primarily
to serve massively-parallel SMP machines, it is not
restricted to solely SMP environments.
When you see `%Cpu(s):' in the summary area, the `1'
toggle is On and all cpu information is gathered in a
single line. Otherwise, each cpu is displayed separately
as: `%Cpu0, %Cpu1, ...' up to available screen height.
2 :NUMA-Nodes/Cpu-Summary toggle
This command toggles between the `1' command cpu summary
display (only) or a summary display plus the cpu usage
statistics for each NUMA Node. It is only available if a
system has the requisite NUMA support.
3 :Expand-NUMA-Node
You will be invited to enter a number representing a NUMA
Node. Thereafter, a node summary plus the statistics for
each cpu in that node will be shown until the `1', `2' or
`4' command toggle is pressed. This interactive command
is only available if a system has the requisite NUMA
support.
4 :Display-Two-Abreast
This command turns the `1' toggle Off, thus showing
individual processors, and prints CPU and Memory results
two abreast. It requires a terminal with a minimum width
of 80 columns. If a terminal's width is decreased below
the minimum while top is running, top reverts to showing
CPU and Memory results on separate lines.
To avoid truncation when displaying detailed statistics,
as opposed to the graphic representations, a minimum width
of 165 columns would be required when the `4' toggle is
On.
! :Combine-Cpus-Mode
This command toggle is intended for massively parallel SMP
environments where, even with the `4' command toggle, not
all processors can be displayed. With each press of `!'
the number of additional cpus combined is doubled thus
reducing the total number of cpu lines displayed.
For example, with the first press of `!' one additional
cpu will be combined and displayed as `0-1, 2-3, ...'
instead of the normal `%Cpu0, %Cpu1, %Cpu2, %Cpu3, ...'.
With a second `!' command toggle two additional cpus are
combined and shown as `0-2, 3-5, ...'. Then the third '!'
press, combining four additional cpus, shows as `0-4, 5-9,
...', etc.
Such progression continues until individual cpus are again
displayed and impacts both the `1' and `4' toggles (one or
two columns). Use the `=' command to exit Combine Cpus
mode.
Note: If the entire summary area has been toggled Off for any
window, you would be left with just the message line. In that
way, you will have maximized available task rows but
(temporarily) sacrificed the program name in full-screen mode or
the `current' window name when in alternate-display mode.
4c. TASK AREA Commands
The task area interactive commands are always available in
full-screen mode.
The task area interactive commands are never available in
alternate-display mode if the `current' window's task display has
been toggled Off (see topic 5. ALTERNATE-DISPLAY Provisions).
APPEARANCE of task window
J :Justify-Numeric-Columns toggle
Alternates between right-justified (the default) and left-
justified numeric data. If the numeric data completely
fills the available column, this command toggle may impact
the column header only.
j :Justify-Character-Columns toggle
Alternates between left-justified (the default) and right-
justified character data. If the character data
completely fills the available column, this command toggle
may impact the column header only.
The following commands will also be influenced by the state of
the global `B' (bold enable) toggle.
b :Bold/Reverse toggle
This command will impact how the `x' and `y' toggles are
displayed. It may also impact the summary area when a bar
graph has been selected for cpu states or memory usage via
the `t' or `m' toggles.
x :Column-Highlight toggle
Changes highlighting for the current sort field. If you
forget which field is being sorted this command can serve
as a quick visual reminder, providing the sort field is
being displayed. The sort field might not be visible
because:
1) there is insufficient Screen Width
2) the `f' interactive command turned it Off
Note: Whenever Searching and/or Other Filtering is active
in a window, column highlighting is temporarily disabled.
See the notes at the end of topics 5d. SEARCHING and 5e.
FILTERING for an explanation why.
y :Row-Highlight toggle
Changes highlighting for "running" tasks. For additional
insight into this task state, see topic 3a. DESCRIPTIONS
of Fields, the `S' field (Process Status).
Use of this provision provides important insight into your
system's health. The only costs will be a few additional
tty escape sequences.
z :Color/Monochrome toggle
Switches the `current' window between your last used color
scheme and the older form of black-on-white or white-on-
black. This command will alter both the summary area and
task area but does not affect the state of the `x', `y' or
`b' toggles.
CONTENT of task window
c :Command-Line/Program-Name toggle
This command will be honored whether or not the COMMAND
column is currently visible. Later, should that field
come into view, the change you applied will be seen.
F :Maintain-Parent-Focus toggle
When in forest view mode, this key serves as a toggle to
retain focus on a target task, presumably one with forked
children. If forest view mode is Off this key has no
effect.
The toggle is applied to the first (topmost) process in
the `current' window. Once established, that task is
always displayed as the first (topmost) process along with
its forked children. All other processes will be
suppressed.
Note: keys like `i' (idle tasks), `n' (max tasks), `v'
(hide children) and User/Other filtering remain accessible
and can impact what is displayed.
f :Fields-Management
This key displays a separate screen where you can change
which fields are displayed, their order and also designate
the sort field. For additional information on this
interactive command see topic 3b. MANAGING Fields.
O | o :Other-Filtering
You will be prompted for the selection criteria which then
determines which tasks will be shown in the `current'
window. Your criteria can be made case sensitive or case
can be ignored. And you determine if top should include
or exclude matching tasks.
See topic 5e. FILTERING in a window for details on these
and additional related interactive commands.
S :Cumulative-Time-Mode toggle
When Cumulative mode is On, each process is listed with
the cpu time that it and its dead children have used.
When Off, programs that fork into many separate tasks will
appear less demanding. For programs like `init' or a
shell this is appropriate but for others, like compilers,
perhaps not. Experiment with two task windows sharing the
same sort field but with different `S' states and see
which representation you prefer.
After issuing this command, you'll be informed of the new
state of this toggle. If you wish to know in advance
whether or not Cumulative mode is in effect, simply ask
for help and view the window summary on the second line.
U | u :Show-Specific-User-Only
You will be prompted for the uid or name of the user to
display. The -u option matches on effective user whereas
the -U option matches on any user (real, effective, saved,
or filesystem).
Thereafter, in that task window only matching users will
be shown, or possibly no processes will be shown.
Prepending an exclamation point (`!') to the user id or
name instructs top to display only processes with users
not matching the one provided.
Different task windows can be used to filter different
users. Later, if you wish to monitor all users again in
the `current' window, re-issue this command but just press
<Enter> at the prompt.
V :Forest-View-Mode toggle
In this mode, processes are reordered according to their
parents and the layout of the COMMAND column resembles
that of a tree. In forest view mode it is still possible
to toggle between program name and command line (see the
`c' interactive command) or between processes and threads
(see the `H' interactive command).
Note: Typing any key affecting the sort order will exit
forest view mode in the `current' window. See topic 4c.
TASK AREA Commands, SORTING for information on those keys.
v :Hide/Show-Children toggle
When in forest view mode, this key serves as a toggle to
collapse or expand the children of a parent.
The toggle is applied against the first (topmost) process
in the `current' window. See topic 5c. SCROLLING a Window
for additional information regarding vertical scrolling.
If the target process has not forked any children, this
key has no effect. It also has no effect when not in
forest view mode.
SIZE of task window
i :Idle-Process toggle
Displays all tasks or just active tasks. When this toggle
is Off, tasks that have not used any CPU since the last
update will not be displayed. However, due to the
granularity of the %CPU and TIME+ fields, some processes
may still be displayed that appear to have used no CPU.
If this command is applied to the last task display when
in alternate-display mode, then it will not affect the
window's size, as all prior task displays will have
already been painted.
n | # :Set-Maximum-Tasks
You will be prompted to enter the number of tasks to
display. The lessor of your number and available screen
rows will be used.
When used in alternate-display mode, this is the command
that gives you precise control over the size of each
currently visible task display, except for the very last.
It will not affect the last window's size, as all prior
task displays will have already been painted.
Note: If you wish to increase the size of the last visible
task display when in alternate-display mode, simply
decrease the size of the task display(s) above it.
SORTING of task window
For compatibility, this top supports most of the former top
sort keys. Since this is primarily a service to former top
users, these commands do not appear on any help screen.
command sorted-field supported
A start time (non-display) No
M %MEM Yes
N PID Yes
P %CPU Yes
T TIME+ Yes
Before using any of the following sort provisions, top
suggests that you temporarily turn on column highlighting
using the `x' interactive command. That will help ensure that
the actual sort environment matches your intent.
The following interactive commands will only be honored when
the current sort field is visible. The sort field might not
be visible because:
1) there is insufficient Screen Width
2) the `f' interactive command turned it Off
< :Move-Sort-Field-Left
Moves the sort column to the left unless the current
sort field is the first field being displayed.
> :Move-Sort-Field-Right
Moves the sort column to the right unless the current
sort field is the last field being displayed.
The following interactive commands will always be honored
whether or not the current sort field is visible.
f :Fields-Management
This key displays a separate screen where you can
change which field is used as the sort column, among
other functions. This can be a convenient way to
simply verify the current sort field, when running top
with column highlighting turned Off.
R :Reverse/Normal-Sort-Field toggle
Using this interactive command you can alternate
between high-to-low and low-to-high sorts.
Note: Field sorting uses internal values, not those in column
display. Thus, the TTY and WCHAN fields will violate strict
ASCII collating sequence.
4d. COLOR Mapping
When you issue the `Z' interactive command, you will be presented
with a separate screen. That screen can be used to change the
colors in just the `current' window or in all four windows before
returning to the top display.
The following interactive commands are available.
4 upper case letters to select a target
8 numbers to select a color
normal toggles available
B :bold disable/enable
b :running tasks "bold"/reverse
z :color/mono
other commands available
a/w :apply, then go to next/prior
<Enter> :apply and exit
q :abandon current changes and exit
If you use `a' or `w' to cycle the targeted window, you will have
applied the color scheme that was displayed when you left that
window. You can, of course, easily return to any window and
reapply different colors or turn colors Off completely with the
`z' toggle.
The Color Mapping screen can also be used to change the `current'
window/field group in either full-screen mode or
alternate-display mode. Whatever was targeted when `q' or
<Enter> was pressed will be made current as you return to the top
display.
