Is there an Ubuntu Equivalent of the Windows Task Manager?

waffles

October 25, 2012

I finally took the plunge and decided to try out the latest version of Ubuntu, which is 12.10. As relatively new Linux user, I’ve found the OS to be interesting and admittedly a bit overwhelming. One of the first things I wanted to do was check the system resources with my old familiar Task Manager from Windows. Does such an app exist in Ubuntu?

Searching for this answer on Google provided answers dating back years, many of which weren’t very helpful. So my question became: Is there a ctrl-alt-del Windows Task Manager equivalent in Ubuntu 12.10? And the answer is yes, and you don’t have to install anything.

Windows “Task Manager“ = Ubuntu “System Monitor”
In Windows, the control-alt-delete keystroke brings up the task manager. You can find a very similar application called the “System Monitor” in Ubuntu. Simply type “system” into the Dash Home and it will show up there. You can also look up “Gnome System Monitor” in the Ubuntu Software Center to see more info and user reviews. Below I’ve included a screen shot to show you how it looks in 12.10.

I found some old answers via Google, which tells me that this monitor may not have been included in some older releases of Ubuntu (I could be wrong).

Once again, I am a relative Linux newbie! I offer this article as a newb to other newbs to Ubuntu in hopes of saving someone a little time. I’ll offer more newbie commentary on Ubuntu as I continue along the learning curve.

I invite more experienced Linux/Ubuntu users to chime in here with any additions, comments, or corrections.