What linux version is this

How to Find Out What Version of Linux You Are Running

There are several ways of knowing the version of Linux you are running on your machine as well as your distribution name and kernel version plus some extra information that you may probably want to have in mind or at your fingertips.

Therefore, in this simple yet important guide for new Linux users, I will show you how to do just that. Doing this may seem to be relatively easy task, however, having a good knowledge of your system is always a recommended practice for a good number of reasons including installing and running the appropriate packages for your Linux version, for easy reporting of bugs coupled with many more.

With that said, let us proceed to how you can figure out information about your Linux distribution.

Find Out Linux Kernel Version

We will use uname command, which is used to print your Linux system information such as kernel version and release name, network hostname, machine hardware name, processor architecture, hardware platform and the operating system.

To find out which version of Linux kernel you are running, type:

Shows Current Linux Kernel Version Running on System

In the preceding command, the option -o prints operating system name and -r prints the kernel release version.

You can also use -a option with uname command to print all system information as shown:

Shows Linux System Information

Next, we will use /proc file system, that stores information about processes and other system information, it’s mapped to /proc and mounted at boot time.

Simply type the command below to display some of your system information including the Linux kernel version:

Shows Linux System Information

From the image above, you have the following information:

1. Version of the Linux (kernel) you are running: Linux version 4.5.5-300.fc24.x86_64
2. Name of the user who compiled your kernel: [email protected]
3. Version of the GCC compiler used for building the kernel: gcc version 6.1.1 20160510
4. Type of the kernel: #1 SMP (Symmetric MultiProcessing kernel) it supports systems with multiple CPUs or multiple CPU cores.
5. Date and time when the kernel was built: Thu May 19 13:05:32 UTC 2016

Find Out Linux Distribution Name and Release Version

The best way to determine a Linux distribution name and release version information is using cat /etc/os-release command, which works on almost all Linux system.

Find Linux Distribution Name and Release Version

In this article, we walked through a brief and simple guide intended to help new Linux user find out the Linux version they are running and also get to know their Linux distribution name and version from the shell prompt.

Perhaps it can also be useful to advanced users on one or two occasions. Lastly, to reach us for any assistance or suggestions you wish to offer, make use of the feedback form below.

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How to check your Linux version: easy ways to view the distribution and version number

When most people think of Linux, an open source operating system that serves as an alternative to Microsoft and Apple comes to mind. But unlike these market leaders that offer commercial operating systems, there is no single Linux operating system.

Instead, there is a whole series of free, open-source operating systems (referred to as “distributions”) that are built based on the Linux kernel. This means that Linux merely serves as the basis for potential operating systems, which are then built from the kernel and other programming elements. While Microsoft and Apple release closed-source, proprietary software products, the Linux kernel is open-source code that any member of the Linux community can use or modify to make their own applications and operating systems.

Since there exist countless Linux versions, it’s of utmost importance to know which version you’re running, especially when you run into technical problems, have questions, or want to do an update. Luckily, it’s very easy to find out. Keep reading for instructions on how tocheck your Linux version.

Linux version: what do the distribution and version number mean?

As of June 2020, there are now over 500 unique Linux distributions. The best-known are Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, SUSE, Manjaro, and Linux Mint.

The family tree for Ubuntu alone contains over 65 software applications built on the basis of Ubuntu. The current distribution was released in 2020 with the version number 20.04. The first version of Ubuntu came out in 2004 and was based on the Debian operating system.

The various Linux distributions can be roughly divided into three basic family trees as well as countless other smaller branches and independent versions. For example, the entire Ubuntu family is based on Debian, the distribution Fedora is based on Red Hat Linux, and SUSE used Slackware.

Even though they’re all based on the Linux kernel, the various distributions serve as their own operating systems with different GNU toolchains and graphic interfaces. In order to find your way in the busy Linux landscape, it’s important to know which version of the Linux kernel and which distribution you’re using.

Checking the Linux version in the terminal

Whether you’re using Linux privately or professionally, it’s always important to know which Linux version and distribution you’re working with. That way you’ll know which package manager you’ll need for downloading new tools and updates, and which Linux forum you should turn to when you have questions or experience problems.

If you’re looking for details about your Linux version, there are two words which will be of particular significance:

1. The version number of the distribution
2. The version of the Linux kernel

To find out these two values, you’ll need to use Linux commands. In general, when working in Linux, user input is entered into so-called “shells”, which are interfaces between systems and users. Shells run using a graphic terminal that processes the commands in the relevant programming language. This will serve as your starting point in checking your Linux version.

Step 1: Distribution version number

Open the Linux terminal with the keys [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [T] or by using the search function. Type the following command into the terminal and then press enter:

The asterisk in the code ensures that the command will apply to all distributions and shows you the installed version. The data that you see now may look a bit messy, with some lines appearing twice or several ending in “release”. The most important line here is “PRETTY_NAME=”, which contains the name of the distribution and version number that you’re currently using.

Another command that works on all distributions without the need for a special tool is the following:

If you only need the name and version number of your current distribution, the following command will suffice:

In the following example, you can see that Ubuntu 20.04 LTS is currently running:

The command “lsb_release -d” shows the current distribution and its version number.

The following command lists more comprehensive information about the version:

The command “lsb_release -a” shows additional information about the distribution version you’re currently running.

This command should work on every Linux distribution, as long as you’ve installed the lsb-release package or it’s part of your Ubuntu version. If you haven’t already installed it, you can easily do so with the following command for Debian and Ubuntu:

Step 2: Linux kernel version number

If you’d like to know which version of the Linux kernel you’re using, type the following command into the terminal and press enter:

The command “uname -r” shows the version of the Linux kernel that you’re currently using.

You’ll now see which Linux kernel you’re using. In the above example, the Linux kernel is 5.4.0-26.

If you’d like to see more information (about computer architecture for example), you can enter the following command:

The command “uname -a” shows the version of the Linux kernel you’re using, as well as additional details.

Step 3: View everything at once with Inxi

With the tool Inxi, you can easily view all the information about your hardware, host, Linux kernel, desktop environment, and distribution. To install the program in Debian/Ubuntu, enter the following command into the terminal:

Once installed, you can view the above-mentioned data with this simple command:

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  How To Find Out My Linux Distribution Name and Version

  H ow do I find out what version of Linux distribution I am using from the shell (bash) prompt? How can I tell my Linux distribution name and version using command-line options over ssh-based session?

  Tutorial details
  Difficulty level	Easy
  Root privileges	No
  Requirements	lsb_release
  Est. reading time	2 minutes

  You can use any one of the following method to find out your Linux distribution and name:
  a] /etc/*-release file.

  b] lsb_release command

  c] /proc/version file.

  d] hostnamectl command

  Method 1. Use /etc/*-release file to display Linux distro version

  To find out what version of Linux (distro) you are running, enter the following cat command at the shell prompt:
  $ cat /etc/*-release
  Sample output from my RHEL v5.x server:

  Sample outputs from my Ubuntu Linux v7.10 server:

  Method 2. Use lsb_release command To find out Linux distribution name and version

  The lsb_release command displays certain LSB (Linux Standard Base) and distribution-specific information. Type the following command:
  $ lsb_release -a
  Sample outputs:

  Method 3. Use hostnamectl to find out my Linux distribution name and version

  For GNU systemd based distro this is the best option:
  $ hostnamectl

  What version of Linux am I running?

  How do I find out My Linux kernel version?

  Type the following uname command:
  $ uname -a
  OR
  $ uname -mrs
  Sample outputs:

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  1. Linux – Kernel name
  2. 2.6.32-5-amd64 – Kernel version number
  3. x86_64 – Machine hardware name (64 bit)

  Here is output from my SUSE Enterprise Linux server:

  Get Linux distribution name and version number in a shell

  Say hello to /proc/version

  Type the following command to see kernel version and gcc version used to build the same:
  $ cat /proc/version
  Sample outputs:

  Another outputs from my CentOS 7 box:

  And SUSE Enterprise Linux server:

  Related media

  This tutorial is also available in a quick video format:

  Putting It All Together

  Animated gif.01: Finding out Linux distribution name and version with various commands demo

  Conclusion

  This page showed various commands to figure out what Linux kernel version and Linux distribution your server/desktop/laptop is running.

  🐧 Get the latest tutorials on Linux, Open Source & DevOps via

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  Comments on this entry are closed.

  But how to find version of other unix systems like FreeBSD. cat /etc/*-release won’t give it

  Thanks for giving command cat /etc/*-release
  Really this is useful

  For FreeBSD uname -a works OK

  Well, the article was entitled “HowTo: Find Out My Linux Distribution Name and Version”… 🙂

  Generally speaking, “uname -a” will tell you what you need to know. You may need to know a couple of quirks about the O.S. in question. For example, Solaris calls itself “SunOS” (long history there). AIX breaks the version number up into two different uname fields (“5 2” instead of “5.2” – it might even be “2 5” IIRC, which you then have to know to turn into “5.2”). Solaris has an /etc/release.

  If you’re going to use /etc/*-release, I would loose the dash

  as you’ll pick up a couple more flavors of Unix like that.

  “uname” was supposed to be the universal way to do this sort of thing, however, the output varies way too much from vendor to vendor.

  PS: Technically, Solaris is a “package deal” consisting of an operating system, an X-Windows package, etc. – 5 things that previously they had not bundled together. So, technically, Solaris 10 (for example) contains an operating system called SunOS 5.10. So when Solaris says “SunOS” in uname, it’s not really incorrect.

  This isn’t exactly a general solution. It assumes the distribution supports some LSB stuff, I think.
  For debian and slackware, one could try:

  On debian stable, lsb-release exists, but just isn’t in /etc/. There is an lsb-release package, and you can run:

  $ lsb_release -a
  No LSB modules are available.
  Distributor ID: Debian
  Description: Debian GNU/Linux 4.0r1 (etch)
  Release: 4.0r1
  Codename: etch

  By the way, lsb_release -a also works on the older Ubuntu version I have.

  You can also cat version in proc…

  :; cd /proc
  ;; cat version
  Linux version 2.6.9-42.0.3.ELsmp (brewbuilder@hs20-bc1-7.build.redhat.com) (gcc version 3.4.6 20060404 (Red Hat 3.4.6-3)) #1 SMP Mon Sep 25 17:28:02 EDT 2006

  Thanks Richard,
  cat /proc/version worked for me..

  Thanks alot ! all commands gave some good info about my sys.

  And “cat /etc/issue” as well, for my ubuntu 8

  Well, that’s all fine well and good for home use, but security people will tell you announcing your o.s. and version in /etc/issue is a bad idea (why give hackers that info?). They will want you to replace /etc/issue with some kind of warning notification (“This computer is only for use by authorized employees of company X. Usage is subject to monitoring. All users are expected to comply with company security policy Y. Unauthorized use is subject is grounds for termination and/or criminal prosecution.”, etc.). Any computer owned by a company that has security people or lawyers, this isn’t going to work on. 🙂

  thanx richy. it works

  Thanks for the quick command. Worked perfectly.

  hi guys,
  can this kind of file which contains the version info be modified? for example when I want to remaster Ubuntu to new name with my name: Maxx

  do we just to modify a file? or what should we do?

  thanks in advance!

  hai ,
  i read ur information for linux.but, i want “what r the different versions available in linux”.please give ans immediately

  would you also like a foot massage with that ??

  Ha ha.. Nice one Bro

  Please specify the which Linux ? Redhat or else….

  Thanks Daniel, that helped on FreeBSD

  Hi Daniel, I think your solution will only give the hostname, Kernel, arhitecture etc, but NOT the “distribution name” as is quoted on the question. Havent checked on anyother distro, but at least thats what happens on my CentOS 5.4, the other solutions seem to work.

  ]# uname -a
  Linux myhostname.mydomanin.com 2.6.18-164.el5 #1 SMP Thu Sep 3 03:33:56 EDT 2009 i686 i686 i386 GNU/Linux

  Thanks. Was digging few old linux machines and found this works. Running very old ubuntu 😉

  I’m on rhel .. if I type cat /etc/*release I get:
  Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS release 4 (Nahant Update 3)

  but if I type cat /proc/version I get:
  Linux version 2.6.9-34.0.1.EL.ADSKsmp (root@oka) (gcc version 3.4.4 20050721 (Red Hat 3.4.4-2))

  I’m confused 🙁 so what’s my distribution??

  Your distribution is RHEL and your kernel version is 2.6.9-34.0.1.

  Both are different.

  hi guys
  please tyr
  FOR UNIX:
  #cat /etc/issue
  #cat /etc/*-release
  #cat /proc/version
  #uname -a

  FOR Debai/slackware:
  #cat /etc/*version

  /etc/issue works for Debian too! I use something like this:

  This solution works perfect.

  Nice example!
  Anyhow I can not see why needed the [A-Za-z] part. Please let me know.
  So here are the roots of a brand new all platformer ver.sh one-liner…. B-)

  cd /etc && cat *_ver* *-rel* /proc/version && uname -a && lsb_release -a

  Let us know what does it miss?? (I know – this must be considered as pre-alpha version. B-) some file and command availability should be implemented…)

  …. OK – sorry for the OT-like summary here.
  —
  R

  I typed this in and it worked: cat /proc/version

  And this came up : Linux version 2.6.34houkouonchi-web100-ioat-vlan (root@houkouonchi) (gcc version 4.1.2 (Gentoo 4.1.2)) #1 SMP Thu Oct 14 16:27:09 PDT 2010

  What distro would this be. I am running my linux through a data center that I have access to.

  Oh it would be Gentoo. THANKS! answered my own question =P

  thank u .. it works

  Thanks, Its really a great tips

  smarcell – you are so clever. I am in awe.

  but when I type that into the little white box thing, it just says “cat /etc/lsb-release.d: Is a directory”

  and I still have no idea what my OS is ;-P

  maxx – no you don’t want to change these files or try; what you want to do is something like (just an e.g.) in

  /etc/rc.local
  #!/bin/sh
  #other stuff will be here probably, put your stuff at the end

  echo “Hello, you’ve just successfully gained access to Maxx’s computer” > /etc/motd
  cat /proc/version >> /etc/motd
  echo `uname -a` >> /etc/motd

  and so on. you are printing text and the output of programs to the file /etc/motd using shell syntax (the little backticks mean “interpret as a command to run” and echo means “print this” and > means “create a file and send this to it” and “>> means append this to the end of this file”

  generally, motd will be printed on login (“message of the day”, quite old school, some systems might not have it I guess. My Scientific Linux 6.1 does. I think ubuntu does. maybe not.)

  if not, you can make it yourself and have it in everyone’s .bashrc by editing /etc/skel. For that matter you can put anything you want in .bashrc or .profile and it will run whevever a shell is opened (a bash shell obviously).

  /proc isn’t usually somewhere you want to write, unless you know why you are doing it.

  please send me linux versions and release dates

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