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How to find a process by name on Linux

James Robert Taylor

Aug 26, 2025 am 03:02 AM

To find processes by name in Linux, the most common method is to use the ps command combined with grep. First execute ps aux to list all processes, and then filter the target name through grep. For example, ps aux | grep nginx can view nginx process information. The first line shows the details of running processes, and the second behavior grep's own process needs to be ignored; if you are not sure about the name case, you can use ps aux | grep -i nginx to ignore case queries. If you only need to check whether the process exists and get the PID, it is recommended to use pgrep nginx, which is simple and only the process ID. Adding the -l parameter can display the name pgrep -l nginx at the same time. -i also supports ignoring upper and lower case. For exact matches, try pidof nginx, but the tool is less flexible and the system may not be preinstalled. Each of the three methods has its advantages. Use ps grep for details, use pgrep for quick query, and use pidof for exact match.

How to find a process by name on Linux

To find a process by name on Linux, the most common and effective method is using the ps command combined with grep . This lets you quickly filter running processes based on their names or parts of them.

Use `ps` and `grep` Together

This is the go-to method for most users. The basic idea is to list all running processes and then search for the one you're interested in.

Here's how you do it:

 ps aux | grep process_name

ps aux lists all running processes.
grep process_name filters that list to show only lines containing the name you're looking for.

For example, if you're trying to find if nginx is running:

 ps aux | grep nginx

You'll see output like this:

 root 1234 0.0 0.1 12345 6789 ? Ss 10:00 0:00 /usr/sbin/nginx
user 5678 0.0 0.0 11223 4567 pts/0 S 10:05 0:00 grep --color=auto nginx

The second line is the grep command itself — just ignore that. The first line shows nginx is actually running.

One thing to note: case matters. If you're not sure about the exact name or want to ignore case, add -i to grep :

 ps aux | grep -i nginx

Try `pgrep` for a Simpler Output

If you don't need full details but just want to check if a process is running, pgrep is your friend. It prints only the process IDs (PIDs), which can be useful if you plan to use the PID in another command later.

Usage:

 pgrep process_name

Example:

 pgrep nginx

If nginx is running, this will return something like:

That's the PID. If nothing shows up, the process isn't running.

You can also use -l to show the process name along with the PID:
```
 pgrep -l nginx
```
And again, -i makes the match case-insensitive:
```
 pgrep -li nginx
```

Consider `pidof` for Exact Matches

Another quick tool is pidof , which finds the PID of a running process by its exact execute name.

Basic usage:

 pidof process_name

Example:

 pidof nginx

This returns the same as pgrep , but it's stricter — it matches only the exact execute name.

Some systems might not have pidof installed by default.
It doesn't support case-insensitive matching like pgrep does.

So while it's fast and clean, it's a bit less flexible than pgrep .

All three methods work well depending on what you need. For detailed info, stick with ps grep . For quick looksups, pgrep is more convenient. And if you know the exact name and want speed, pidof gets the job done.

Basically that's it.

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