whatis proc-filesystem
/proc
Also known as: procfs, proc filesystem
A virtual filesystem the kernel generates on the fly, exposing live information about processes and system state as readable files.
What Is /proc in Linux?
Nothing in /proc is stored on disk. Each running process has a directory named after its PID with its command line, open files, memory maps, and status. System-wide files like /proc/cpuinfo, /proc/meminfo, and /proc/loadavg report hardware and load.
Tools like ps, top, and free are mostly friendly front ends for /proc. The writable /proc/sys/ tree holds kernel tunables that sysctl reads and changes.
Example
cat /proc/loadavg
ls /proc/$$/fdLearn more about /proc
- The /proc Filesystem Explained /proc is a virtual filesystem that exposes live kernel and process information as ordinary files, and it is what tools like ps, free, and top actually read from. This guide covers what /proc is, its most useful files, and how to read it directly.
- sysctl Explained: Reading and Changing Kernel Parameters IP forwarding, swappiness, file descriptor limits, and connection backlogs are all kernel parameters you can read and change at runtime. Here is how sysctl works and which settings are actually worth touching.