Monitoring System Activity/Usage¶

When writing both applications programs and systems programs it is sometimes necessary to monitor memory usage (e.g., for leaks) and/or CPU usage (e.g., for bottlenecks). All operating systems have some tools that can perform basic monitoring.

MS Windows¶

Press "Ctrl"+"Alt"+"Del" and click on the "Task List" button.

OS X¶

Run the "Activity Monitor" (e.g., "Command"+"Spacebar", enter "Activity Monitor" in Spotlight, and click on "Activity Monitor").

UNIX/Linux¶

From the command line, run top (and type "q" when done).

In Gnome, run the gnome-system-monitor.

Last modified: 2026-01-26 16:30 by Dylan (3c67503)