4

Some things in top's output are pretty straightforward, like memory and swap usage. But load average numbers are a bit of a mystery: what do these three numbers mean? Also, what exactly is a zombie process and how is it different from a sleeper?

top - 13:20:58 up 69 days,  7:07,  1 user,  load average: 0.03, 0.02, 0.00
Tasks:  80 total,   1 running,  79 sleeping,   0 stopped,   0 zombie
Cpu(s):  0.0% us,  0.2% sy,  0.0% ni, 99.8% id,  0.0% wa,  0.0% hi,  0.0% si
Mem:   8054888k total,  7975100k used,    79788k free,   130240k buffers
Swap:  1572856k total,       84k used,  1572772k free,  6393160k cached
Improve this question
2
  • I might suggest checking out htop as a top replacement. It has a much nicer interface.
    – baudtack
    May 12, 2009 at 18:08
  • 2
    Arrrgh, I can't edit the formatting! Browsing ServerFault is going to drive me crazy...
    – mmyers
    May 12, 2009 at 18:10

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
3

Load average reference.

Zombie process reference.

Improve this answer
2

The 3 load average numbers is the load your system has been under for the past minute, 5 minutes, and 15 minutes.

I'm not exactly clear on how load is calculated - but it has something to do with how many processes are demanding cpu time at once. A server that is running consistently below 1.0 means it has no processes waiting for the cpu (ie. it is running at maximum speed)

Improve this answer
1
  • 3
    The value of "1" only applies on a single CPU machine. Multiply it by the number of CPUs in the system to get your "overload limit." That is, in a four processor machine, a value equal to or less than 4.0 indicates that the machine is not overloaded.
    – Boden
    May 12, 2009 at 19:00

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.