Here are a few bash commands for finding out stuff.
Handy bash commands for finding out stuff in Linux:
# Find CPU specifications
cat /proc/cpuinfo
# Find running kernel version
uname -r
# What compiler version do I have installed
gcc -v
gcc --version
# What is the running kernel and compiler installed
cat /proc/version
# Find X server version
X -showconfig
# What pci cards are installed and what irq/port is used
cat /proc/pci
# What kernel modules are loaded
lsmod
# Memory and swap information
cat /proc/meminfo
free
An article: Tips for Optimizing Linux Memory
# How are the hard drives partitioned
fdisk -l
# How much free/used drive space
df -h
# Show disk usage by current directory and all subdirectories
du | less
# What takes up so much space on your box
# Run from the directory in question and the largest chunk shows up last
find $1 -type d | xargs du -sm | sort -g
# What is the distribution
cat /etc/.product
cat /etc/.issue
cat /etc/issue
cat /etc/issue.net
sysinfo
# For finding or locating files
find
locate
which
whereis
# Use dmesg to view the kernel ring buffer (error messages)
dmesg | less
# Watch error messages as they happen (sysklog needed)
as root, tail -f /var/log/messages (shows last 10 lines, use a number in front of f for more lines)
# What processes are running
ps -A
# Find a process by name
ps -ef | grep -i <plain text>
For example, XCDroast
ps -ef xcdroast
# See current environment list, or pipe to file
env | more
env > environmentvariablelist.txt
# Show current userid and assigned groups
id
# See all command aliases for the current user
alias
# See rpms installed on current system
rpmquery --all | less
rpmquery --all > <filename>
rpmquery --all | grep -i <plaintext>
Autospec for tarballs
RPM tools
# What directory am I using
pwd
# Get ls colors in less
ls --color=always | less -R
Look at man <command> or info <command> for the flags I used and for other options you can use for bash commands.