Monitoring tools provide essential observability for Linux systems by tracking system metrics (CPU, memory, disk, network), application health, logs, and alerting. These tools help maintain system reliability and performance.
For public service status pages, see Status Pages.
For diagnostics and packet inspection tools, see Troubleshooting.
| Tool | Technical Stack | License | Setup Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adagios | Python, Docker | AGPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Alerta | Python | Apache-2.0 | Setup |
| Beszel | Go | MIT | Setup |
| Cacti | PHP | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| cAdvisor | Go | Apache-2.0 | Setup |
| checkmk | Python, PHP | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| dashdot | Node.js, Docker | MIT | Setup |
| EdMon | Java | MIT | Setup |
| eZ Server Monitor | PHP, Shell | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| glances | Python | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Grafana | Go | AGPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Healthchecks | Python | BSD-3-Clause | Setup |
| Icinga | C++, PHP | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| LibreNMS | PHP | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Linux Dash | Node.js, Go, Python, PHP | MIT | Setup |
| Monit | C | AGPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Munin | Perl, Shell | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| Naemon | C | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| Nagios | C | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| Netdata | C | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| NetXMS | Java, C++, C | LGPL-3.0/GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Observium Community Edition | PHP | QPL-1.0 | Setup |
| openITCOCKPIT Community Edition | Deb packages, Docker | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Performance Co-Pilot | C | LGPL-2.1/GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| PHP Server Monitor | PHP | GPL-3.0 | Setup |
| PhpSysInfo | PHP | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| Prometheus | Go | Apache-2.0 | Setup |
| Riemann | Java | EPL-1.0 | Setup |
| rtop | Go | MIT | Setup |
| ruptime | Shell | AGPL-3.0 | Setup |
| Scrutiny | Go | MIT | Setup |
| Sensu | Go | MIT | Setup |
| Status | Python | MIT | Setup |
| Thruk | Perl | GPL-1.0 | Setup |
| Wazuh | C | GPL-2.0 | Setup |
| Zabbix | C, PHP | AGPL-3.0 | Setup |
Above tools are commonly used for monitoring many systems at once. As a Linux admin you also need to be familiar with Basic Command-Line Monitoring Tools.
| Tool | Type | Best For | Latest Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prometheus | Metrics + alerting | Metrics scraping and alerting at scale | 3.10.0 (LTS 3.5.1) |
| Grafana | Dashboards | Visualization and alerting | 12.4.1 |
| Zabbix | Full suite | All-in-one monitoring | 7.4.7 |
| Icinga | Classic monitoring | Custom checks + APIs | 2.15.2 |
| Nagios | Classic monitoring | Plugin-driven checks | 4.5.11 |
| Monit | Lightweight watchdog | Local service monitoring | 5.35.2 |
| ELK Stack | Log management | Log search + dashboards | 9.3.1 (Elastic Stack) |