--- title: "How to Check Your Linux VPS's Technical Specs" description: "Discover the essential commands to check your Winheberg Linux VPS's CPU, RAM, storage, and network, whatever your distribution." category: vps subcategory: vps-linux icon: tabler:file-text date: 2026-07-24 author: Winheberg slug: "vps-linux-specs" order: 7 image: /statics/images/docs/en/vps-linux/vps-linux-specs.webp tags: [vps, linux, cpu, ram, monitoring] keywords: [linux vps specs, cpu ram vps commands, fastfetch htop nload, lscpu free df, winheberg vps] link_fr: "/docs/vps-linux/caracteristiques-techniques-vps-linux" --- ## Context You just received your **Linux VPS** at Winheberg and want to check its technical specs. Whether it's to confirm the resources you ordered, diagnose slowness, or simply get to know your machine better, Linux offers many commands to find out everything about your system. This guide covers the essential commands for checking your server's CPU, RAM, storage, operating system, and network. It covers every distribution we offer at deployment, Debian 11/12/13, Ubuntu 23.10/24.04/25.04, AlmaLinux 9/10, Rocky Linux 9/10, Fedora 41/42, and Alpine Linux 3.22. > [!NOTE] > Alpine Linux uses BusyBox, which provides lightweight versions of many commands. Some options change or require installing the full package. Affected cases are flagged throughout this guide. ## Why check your VPS's specs? - **Verify your plan** by confirming you actually have the CPU, RAM, and disk resources you ordered - **Diagnose slowness** by spotting whether your server is saturated on memory, CPU, or storage - **Size an application** by checking your resources are enough before installing a new service - **Plan for scaling** by anticipating an upgrade as you approach your limits ## Prerequisites - An active **Linux VPS** at Winheberg - Root SSH access to your server ## 1. Operating system Let's start by identifying the installed Linux distribution and version. ### Distribution and version ```bash cat /etc/os-release ``` This gives you the distribution's name, version, and codename. ``` PRETTY_NAME="Debian GNU/Linux 12 (bookworm)" NAME="Debian GNU/Linux" VERSION_ID="12" VERSION="12 (bookworm)" ``` ### Linux kernel version ```bash uname -r ``` The result looks like this. ``` 6.1.0-18-amd64 ``` ### Processor architecture ```bash uname -m ``` You'll usually see `x86_64`, the standard 64-bit architecture, or `aarch64` for 64-bit ARM. This information is useful later for picking the right package during a manual installation. > [!TIP] > To get all this information in a single command, use `uname -a`. ## 2. Processor (CPU) ### Detailed CPU specs ```bash lscpu ``` This command shows a lot of useful information. ``` Architecture: x86_64 CPU(s): 4 Thread(s) per core: 2 Core(s) per socket: 2 Model name: Intel(R) Xeon(R) Platinum 8168 CPU @ 2.70GHz CPU MHz: 2700.000 Cache L3: 33 MiB ``` The most telling lines are detailed below. ::MdTable{caption="Reading the main lscpu lines" variant="info" striped} | Line | Meaning | |---|---| | `CPU(s)` | Total number of virtual cores available | | `Model name` | Exact processor model | | `CPU MHz` | Frequency in megahertz | :: > [!NOTE] > On Alpine, `lscpu` isn't provided by BusyBox. Install it with `apk add util-linux` before using it. ### Number of cores only ```bash nproc ``` This command directly returns the number of available cores, handy in a script. ### Raw CPU details ```bash cat /proc/cpuinfo ``` This command shows the kernel's raw information, with one block per core. Very thorough, but verbose. ## 3. Memory (RAM) RAM determines your server's ability to run several services in parallel. ### Total and used RAM ```bash free -h ``` The `-h` option shows values in GB and MB rather than kilobytes. ``` total used free shared buff/cache available Mem: 7.8Gi 1.2Gi 4.5Gi 50Mi 2.1Gi 6.3Gi Swap: 2.0Gi 0B 2.0Gi ``` Here's how to read this table. ::MdTable{caption="Reading the free -h output" variant="info" striped} | Column | Meaning | |---|---| | `total` | Total amount of RAM installed | | `used` | RAM actually used by processes | | `free` | Fully free RAM | | `available` | RAM available for new applications, the most relevant value | | `Swap` | Disk space used as virtual memory when RAM is saturated | :: > [!NOTE] > On Alpine, BusyBox's `free` doesn't show the `available` column and doesn't always support the `-h` option. To get the full display, install `apk add procps`. ## 4. Storage Storage is often the first resource to fill up on a server. ### Disk space used ```bash df -h ``` This command shows the available space on each partition. ``` Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on /dev/sda1 75G 12G 63G 16% / tmpfs 3.9G 0 3.9G 0% /dev/shm ``` The `Use%` column shows the usage percentage. Beyond 80%, it becomes worth cleaning up or expanding your disk. ### Disks and partitions ```bash lsblk ``` This command shows a tree view of disks and their partitions. ``` NAME SIZE TYPE MOUNTPOINT sda 75G disk └─sda1 75G part / ``` > [!NOTE] > On Alpine, `lsblk` also comes from util-linux, install it with `apk add util-linux` if the command is missing. ### Detailed usage of a folder If your disk is filling up, identify the largest folders. ```bash du -h --max-depth=1 /var ``` You can replace `/var` with any folder, the command shows the size of each subfolder. > [!TIP] > To sort from largest to smallest, add `sort` at the end, for example `du -h --max-depth=1 /var | sort -h`. On Alpine, BusyBox uses the short form `du -d 1 /var`. ## 5. Network Knowing your server's network configuration is essential for diagnosing connectivity. ### Network interfaces and IP addresses ```bash ip a ``` You'll see every network interface, loopback and ethernet, with their associated IP addresses. ### Public IP address ```bash curl -s ifconfig.me ``` This command contacts an external service to retrieve your public IP as seen from the Internet. > [!NOTE] > `curl` isn't always preinstalled on minimal images. Install it with `apt install curl -y`, `dnf install curl -y`, or `apk add curl` depending on your distribution, or use the `wget -qO- ifconfig.me` alternative. ### Connectivity test ```bash ping -c 4 google.com ``` The `-c 4` option limits the command to 4 pings, otherwise it runs continuously. ### Real-time network traffic with nload The **nload** tool shows the bandwidth used by your server live, for example during a download. Install it depending on your distribution. :::MdTabs ::MdTab{label="Debian and Ubuntu"} ```bash apt install nload -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="Fedora"} ```bash dnf install nload -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="AlmaLinux and Rocky"} These distributions don't provide nload in their base repositories. First enable the EPEL repository. ```bash dnf install epel-release -y dnf install nload -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="Alpine"} ```bash apk add nload ``` :: ::: Then launch the tool. ```bash nload ``` You get a text-mode interface with two graphs. The top one shows incoming traffic (`Incoming`), the bottom one outgoing traffic (`Outgoing`), with instant speed, average, and peak. To exit, press `q`. > [!TIP] > If your server has several network interfaces, the left and right arrow keys let you switch between them. ## 6. Full summary with Fastfetch The **Fastfetch** tool shows a visual summary of your system, along with an ASCII logo of your distribution. In one command, you get the distribution, kernel, uptime, installed packages, shell, CPU, RAM, and more. > [!NOTE] > Neofetch, long the go-to tool, has been archived since April 2024, its development has stopped. Fastfetch is its successor, faster, more modern, and actively maintained. Install Fastfetch depending on your distribution. :::MdTabs ::MdTab{label="Debian and Ubuntu"} On Debian 13 and Ubuntu 25.04 and later versions, the package is available directly. ```bash apt install fastfetch -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="Fedora"} ```bash dnf install fastfetch -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="AlmaLinux and Rocky"} First enable the EPEL repository, which provides fastfetch. ```bash dnf install epel-release -y dnf install fastfetch -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="Alpine"} ```bash apk add fastfetch ``` :: ::: > [!WARNING] > On Debian 11, Debian 12, as well as Ubuntu 23.10 and 24.04, fastfetch isn't present in the repositories, the `apt install fastfetch` command fails. The package is only directly available via apt starting with Debian 13 and Ubuntu 25.04. On older versions, download the `.deb` package matching the architecture found with `uname -m`, from the fastfetch project's releases page on GitHub, then install it with `dpkg -i package-name.deb`. Then launch the tool. ```bash fastfetch ``` ## 7. Real-time monitoring with htop The **htop** tool monitors your server's processes, CPU, and RAM live. Install it depending on your distribution. :::MdTabs ::MdTab{label="Debian and Ubuntu"} ```bash apt install htop -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="Fedora"} ```bash dnf install htop -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="AlmaLinux and Rocky"} First enable the EPEL repository, which provides htop. ```bash dnf install epel-release -y dnf install htop -y ``` :: ::MdTab{label="Alpine"} ```bash apk add htop ``` :: ::: Then launch the tool. ```bash htop ``` You get an interactive interface listing every running process, with a CPU and RAM usage graph at the top. To exit, press `q`. > [!TIP] > The `F6` key sorts by column, CPU or RAM for example, and `F9` ends a process directly from the interface. ## Summary of useful commands ::MdTable{caption="Essential commands for inspecting your VPS" variant="default" striped footer="Adapt the package names to your distribution as shown earlier in this guide."} | Information | Command | |---|---| | Linux distribution | `cat /etc/os-release` | | Kernel version | `uname -r` | | CPU specs | `lscpu` | | Number of cores | `nproc` | | RAM | `free -h` | | Disk space | `df -h` | | Disks and partitions | `lsblk` | | Network interfaces | `ip a` | | Live network traffic | `nload` | | Full summary | `fastfetch` | | Real-time monitoring | `htop` | :: ## Need help? If you run into an issue getting your VPS's specs, or if the values shown don't match your plan, our team is available. Open a ticket in the **Technical** department from your client area and fill in the **Related Product** field with the VPS in question. You now know how to inspect your Linux VPS from top to bottom 🐧