How to list Services on Ubuntu Linux

About systemctl command:

The systemctl command is the main tool you use to manage system services on Ubuntu. It lets you check if background tasks are running, stopped, or set to start automatically when your computer turns on. Older versions of Ubuntu also use the older service command for similar tasks.

Using both systemctl and service commands, you can list all services running, stopped, or disabled.

Syntax:

The syntax is the rule and format of how the systemctl command can be used. These syntax options can be reordered, but a straight format must be followed.

Below is an example syntax of how to use the systemctl command.

systemctl [OPTIONS.] {COMMAND} .

Options:

The command line options are switches or flags that determine how the commands are executed or controlled. They modify the behavior of the commands. They are separated by spaces and followed after the commands.

Below are some options for the systemctl command:

Examples:

Below are some examples of how to run and use the systemctl on Ubuntu Linux.

Simply run the systemctl command to invoke it.

Starting and Stopping Services

To start or stop services using the systemctl command, run the commands below:

sudo systemctl start application.service

To stop:

sudo systemctl stop application.service

You can also reference the application name without the ending .service

Example:

sudo systemctl start application

Restarting and Reloading

Restarting and reloading services on Ubuntu helps you apply new settings or fix broken background tasks without rebooting the whole computer. A restart stops the service completely before starting it again, while a reload updates the configuration while the service keeps running.

sudo systemctl restart application.service

Or reload:

sudo systemctl reload application.service

Reloading a service only reloads configuration changes to a running service and won't entirely restart the service. To fully restart a running service, you use the restart option.

Enabling and Disabling Services

Enabling and disabling services on Ubuntu gives you control over what starts up automatically when you turn on your computer. Enabling a service makes it launch on boot, while disabling it keeps the service turned off until you start it manually.

sudo systemctl enable application.service

Or disable:

sudo systemctl disable application.service

Check service status

To check the status of a service, you use the status option.

sudo systemctl status application.service

Listing all services:

Listing all services on Ubuntu gives you a complete view of every background task, showing you clearly which ones are running, stopped, or disabled. You can run a simple command in your terminal to check the status of every service installed on your system at once.

systemctl list-units --all --type=service --no-pager

That should list all services and output a similar screen as below:

 UNIT                                  LOAD      ACTIVE   SUB     DESCRIPTION                                                 
  accounts-daemon.service               loaded    active   running Accounts Service                                            
  acpid.service                         loaded    active   running ACPI event daemon                                           
  alsa-restore.service                  loaded    active   exited  Save/Restore Sound Card State                               
  alsa-state.service                    loaded    inactive dead    Manage Sound Card State (restore and store)                 
  anacron.service                       loaded    inactive dead      
..

To list all inactive services, you run the commands below:

sudo systemctl list-units --all --state=inactive

For only active services:

sudo systemctl list-units --all --state=inactive

When you run systemctl with the --help option, you'll see the help text below:

systemctl [OPTIONS.] {COMMAND} .

Query or send control commands to the systemd manager.

  -h --help           Show this help
     --version        Show package version
     --system         Connect to system manager
     --user           Connect to user service manager
  -H --host=[USER@]HOST
units installed on
.

Previous versions of Ubuntu using the service can use the commands below:

sudo service --status-all

That's it!

Congratulations! You've learned how to use the systemctl to manage and list services on Ubuntu.

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