How to Kill a Process in htop?

This article provides a straightforward, step-by-step guide on how to find, signal, and terminate processes using the htop interactive process viewer in Linux. You will learn the specific keyboard shortcuts required to open the signal menu, how to select different termination signals like SIGTERM and SIGKILL, and how to safely close stuck applications directly from your terminal interface.

Step 1: Launch htop

Open your terminal and start the utility by typing htop and pressing Enter. If it is not installed, you can typically install it via your package manager (e.g., sudo apt install htop on Ubuntu/Debian or sudo dnf install htop on Fedora/RHEL).

Step 2: Locate the Target Process

Once htop is running, you need to find the process you want to manage. You can navigate the list using the Up and Down arrow keys.

To speed up the process, you can search or filter the list:

• Press F3 (or /) to open the search bar and type the name of the process.
• Press F4 (or \) to filter the list so only processes matching your search term are displayed.

Step 3: Open the Signal Menu

After highlighting the target process with your cursor, you can initiate the kill command:

• Press F9 (or the k key) to open the signal menu on the left side of the screen.

Step 4: Select and Send the Signal

The signal menu lists various Unix signals you can send to the process. Use the arrow keys to choose the appropriate action:

• 15 SIGTERM (Standard Kill): This is the default and safest choice. It requests the process to terminate gracefully, allowing it to save its current state and release resources.
• 9 SIGKILL (Forced Kill): Use this if the process is completely frozen and unresponsive to SIGTERM. It forces the operating system to immediately terminate the process without letting it clean up.

Once you have highlighted your desired signal, press Enter to send it. The process will be signaled immediately, and if terminated, it will disappear from your htop display.