Microsoft Brings Its Own Open-Source Procmon For Linux

Microsoft has released a Linux version of the popular Procmon utility that Linux users can monitor running processes.
Procmon For Linux

Above all, this application scans the table of running processes, killing those that has exceeds a given CPU-time limit or has gone for lunch. Filtering of processes is optionally done on command name, ranging from absolute to fuzzy.

What is Procmon for GNU/Linux

On the official GitHub page for the project, Microsoft explains:

Theย Procmon is a Linux reimagining of the classic Procmon tool from the Sysinternals suite of tools for Windows. Procmon provides a convenient and efficient way for Linux developers to trace the syscall activity on the system.

How Procmon Works

When using it, you can specify the process IDs that you would like to monitor or specific system calls using the following arguments:

Usage: procmon [OPTIONS]
   OPTIONS
      -h/--help                Prints this help screen
      -p/--pids                Comma separated list of process ids to monitor
      -e/--events              Comma separated list of system calls to monitor
      -c/--collect [FILEPATH]  Option to start Procmon in a headless mode
      -f/--file FILEPATH       Open a Procmon trace fileCode language: PHP (php)
Procmon for Linux

Microsoft released the source code to their Procmon Linux version and is marked as a 1.0 preview release. Microsoft is also making available a Debian/Ubuntu package of this preview build.

Building Procmon for Linux

Since it is released as a preview, it is limited to systems running Ubuntu 18.04 with kernel 4.18 up to 5.3 at the time of writing. Several users tried to build or install the process monitor tool on Ubuntu 20.04 systems and failed.

Microsoft plans to add more configurations to the system requirements in the future to take these systems into account.

Installation instructions on Ubuntu 18.04 devices are straightforward. Run the following commands:

wget -q https://packages.microsoft.com/config/ubuntu/$(lsb_release -rs)/packages-microsoft-prod.deb -O packages-microsoft-prod.deb
sudo dpkg -i packages-microsoft-prod.deb
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install procmonCode language: JavaScript (javascript)

Unfortunately, Procmon cannot be compiled under WSL due to the lack of Kernel event tracing.

Conclusion

Linux already has several graphical and command-line process monitoring tools such as Top, Htop, and Stacer. However, Procmon is the freshly-baked official Linux version of the Windows Process Monitor tool.

It is a powerful system monitoring tool for advanced uses. In addition, the Linux version comes without the help file that the Windows version of Procmon includes.

Bobby Borisov

Bobby Borisov

Bobby, an editor-in-chief at Linuxiac, is a Linux professional with over 20 years of experience. With a strong focus on Linux and open-source software, he has worked as a Senior Linux System Administrator, Software Developer, and DevOps Engineer for small and large multinational companies.

Think You're an Ubuntu Expert? Let's Find Out!

Put your knowledge to the test in our lightning-fast Ubuntu quiz!
Ten questions to challenge yourself to see if you're a Linux legend or just a penguin in the making.

1 / 10

Ubuntu is an ancient African word that means:

2 / 10

Who is the Ubuntu's founder?

3 / 10

What year was the first official Ubuntu release?

4 / 10

What does the Ubuntu logo symbolize?

5 / 10

What package format does Ubuntu use for installing software?

6 / 10

When are Ubuntu's LTS versions released?

7 / 10

What is Unity?

8 / 10

What are Ubuntu versions named after?

9 / 10

What's Ubuntu Core?

10 / 10

Which Ubuntu version is Snap introduced?

The average score is 68%

Related Posts