How To Kill an Unresponsive Program in Ubuntu Terminal

In the world of Ubuntu, it’s not uncommon to come across a program that has stopped responding. When this happens, it’s important to know how to effectively terminate the unresponsive program to prevent it from consuming system resources. This article will guide you through several methods to kill an unresponsive program using the Ubuntu terminal.

Using the pkill Command

The pkill command is a powerful tool that allows you to send signals to processes by their names. To use pkill, simply type the command followed by the name of the unresponsive program. For example:

pkill totem

In this example, totem is the name of the unresponsive program. The pkill command will send a signal to all processes named “totem” and terminate them.

Using the top Command

The top command provides a dynamic, real-time view of the processes running on your system. To use top, type the command in your terminal:

top

You’ll see a list of processes currently running on your system. To kill a process, press k, then enter the PID (Process ID) of the unresponsive program, and press Enter twice. The PID can be found in the top output.

Using the htop Command

The htop command is similar to top, but with a more user-friendly interface. To use htop, type the command in your terminal:

htop

From the htop interface, you can navigate to the unresponsive program, press k, and then press Enter to kill it. You can also use the t key to toggle tree view and see parent processes.

Using the killall Command

The killall command is another useful tool for terminating unresponsive programs. To use killall, type the command followed by the name of the unresponsive program:

killall totem

This command will kill all instances of the program named “totem”.

Using the ps and kill Commands

The ps command allows you to view the current processes. You can use it in combination with the grep command to find the unresponsive program:

ps -ef | grep totem

This command will display a list of processes containing the name “totem”. Once you’ve found the PID of the unresponsive program, you can use the kill command to terminate it:

kill -9 <PID>

Replace <PID> with the actual PID of the unresponsive program. The -9 option tells the system to forcefully kill the process.

Using the xkill Command

If none of the above methods work, you can try using the xkill command. Open a terminal and type xkill. Your cursor will turn into an “X”. Click on the window of the unresponsive program to force it to close.

xkill

Please note that you should use sudo if the program is started by another user. Be aware that killing a process can lead to data loss or system instability if the process is critical to system operation.

In conclusion, Ubuntu provides a plethora of commands to manage unresponsive programs. By understanding and utilizing these commands, you can maintain control over your system’s resources and keep your Ubuntu environment running smoothly.