How to Move Meters in htop Header From Left to Right

The htop interactive process viewer allows users to customize its header layout, including moving performance meters like CPU, memory, and tasks between the left and right columns. This article provides a straightforward, step-by-step guide on how to enter the htop setup menu and use keyboard navigation to shift these meters from the left side of the header to the right side.

Accessing the htop Setup Menu

To begin customizing the interface, you first need to open the tool and access the configuration screen.

  1. Open your terminal and launch the tool by typing htop and pressing Enter.
  2. Once the interface loads, press the F2 key on your keyboard. Alternatively, you can press the S key. This action opens the Setup menu, pausing the real-time process monitoring.

Inside the setup interface, you will see a split screen with categories on the left and specific options or layouts on the right.

  1. Use the Down Arrow key to highlight the Meters option under the “Setup” column.
  2. Press the Right Arrow key or Enter to move your cursor into the active layout columns. You will now see columns labeled Left column and Right column, which represent the current structure of your header.

Moving Meters from Left to Right

With the columns accessible, you can now reposition the specific meters.

  1. Use the arrow keys to navigate to the Left column list.
  2. Use the Up Arrow or Down Arrow keys to highlight the specific meter (for example, CPU or Memory) that you want to move to the right side.
  3. Once the desired meter is highlighted, press the F6 key (or Move action indicated at the bottom of the screen).
  4. Use the Right Arrow key to shift that meter over into the Right column list.
  5. Use the Up Arrow or Down Arrow keys to position the meter exactly where you want it within the right column’s vertical stack.
  6. Press Enter to lock the meter into its new position.

Saving Your New Layout

After rearranging the header components, you must save the changes so they persist the next time you launch the tool.

  1. Press the F10 key (or Done action) to save your new configuration and exit the setup menu.
  2. The interface will refresh immediately, displaying your chosen meters on the right side of the header.