Lsof: Difference between revisions

lsof is a command used in many Unix-like systems that is used to report a list of all open files and the processes that opened them. It works in and supports several UNIX flavors.

Open files in the system include disk files, pipes, network sockets and devices opened by all processes. One use for this command is when a disk cannot be unmounted because (unspecified) files are in use. The listing of open files can be consulted (suitably filtered if necessary) to identify the process that is using the files.

# lsof /var
COMMAND PID USER FD TYPE DEVICE SIZE/OFF NODE NAME
syslogd 350 root 5w VREG 222,5 0 440818 /var/adm/messages
syslogd 350 root 6w VREG 222,5 339098 6248 /var/log/syslog
cron 353 root cwd VDIR 222,5 512 254550 /var -- atjobs

• netstat
• strace
• List of Unix programs

• lsof manpage on www.netadmintools.com
• Vic Abell's homepage, author of lsof.
• Sam Nelson's PCP script, an alternative to "lsof -i" for Solaris.