If you are using Linux like operating system on your computer, then you are well aware of what Linux is running there, but what if you need to connect to someone else's server and do the same job? It's really helpful to know exactly what you are dealing with, and luckily it's very simple.
As with everything else in Linux, there are many ways to do this, so we'll show you a few different tricks, and you can choose which one is best for you.
How to see the Linux version name
The easiest and easiest way to see the Linux distribution name and version number, and it also works in almost any Linux. Just open a terminal and type the following there:
Cat / etc / issue
You will see something like what is shown in the screenshot at the top of this article, which looks something like this:
Linux Mint 17 Qiana
If you need more information you can use different commands, although they may not work on every distribution, but they certainly work on the most popular ones. Just like before, open a terminal and type the following there:
Cat / etc / * release
You will get something like the following screenshot, and you can see that not only the release information is here, but we were also given a codename and even a URL. What really happened here is that Mint has an / etc / os-release file, but other versions might have something like / etc / redhat-release or a completely different name. By using * in the command, we just dump the contents of any of them into the console.
The easiest method is of course cat / etc / issue, but the one we used is even better.
How to see the kernel version
Distro version and Linux kernel version are two completely different things. You can easily see the version number by opening a terminal and typing the following there:
Uname -r
In the output, this will give something like the following, where we can see that the kernel version is 3.13.0.
How to determine if a 64-bit kernel is in use or not
Sometimes the previous command can already tell whether a 64-bit kernel is being used, this can be determined by the text x86_64, but the easiest way to do it is a command from the terminal, which is exactly the same command as the previous one, but with -a (this is called a key) which means "everything" instead of a key -rwhich means "kernel release".
Uname -a
From this screenshot, you can tell that x86_64 is running linux version, which means 64 bits. If you were running 32-bit Linux, which you shouldn't have done on the server, it would display “i386 ″ or“ i686 ″ instead.
Naggers will probably notice that you can use the key -ito show if 32-bit or 64-bit is used (useful in scripts), but it's better to just use -a to display everything at once.
GNU / Linux has already found many fans and is gaining more and more popularity today. The number of distributions is growing rapidly, so you need to be able to figure out which one is the most optimal. And this is true, because Linux is the free graphical interface that rightfully enjoys the greatest success around the world. Often the user needs to know the Linux version, for example, to install any programs compiled for certain versions. Their numbers are calculated in the form "Year.Month" (or "YY.MM"). Thus, these numbers indicate the release date of the distribution. Another important point is that each release must have its own codename, for example "Karmic" or "Lucid Lynx".
What is the kernel really is, what are the differences between these kernels, why develop them constantly and give them an account? The core is the central link of the system, it is very large, but at the same time there is an ordered and clear hierarchy of different levels. Its main components are: system calls (SCI), process management (PM), memory management (MM), as well as the virtual file system (VFS), network stack, and various device drivers. To find out the version of Linux means to find information about the kernel as well. For ordinary users who are not too versed in the field of working with software, you have to deal with it extremely rarely, because not everyone will be able to cover all the important and subtle aspects of this software level. Versions differ in their interaction with hardware, drivers, and speed. And everything that the user uses is only a surface shell and GNU applications (this prefix must be present before the Linux label in the system version).
Check version Linux user can in various ways. For example, there is a utility called "lsb_release" that can be used in conjunction with the -a switch. You must first go to and then type the command. It may not be possible to install it, then the program will have to be downloaded from the repository. After entering, the screen will show the name of the distribution kit and its version.
You can see the Linux version by typing "cat / etc / issue". After that, the following data should be displayed on the monitor: Debian GNU / Linux 6.0 \\ n \\ l or Ubuntu 12.04.2 LTS \\ n \\ l.
The version of the kernel itself is recognized using the specified function "uname -r", but if instead of the last prefix you write -a, then all the information on this command will be output.
Also, if it is impossible to enter the system, you can find out the Linux version by rebooting system unit and find all the information you need in the download menu. A similar method serves to identify which distribution is in use.
Information on Linux system is also stored in the / etc / lsb-release file. Therefore, to open it, the following command is entered in the terminal: cat / etc / lsb-release. You can also find out the version in the Linux GUI system from the user manual.
So, various systems Linux families, being quite complex, provide fairly simple and affordable methods for determining the distribution version and kernel number. There are several options for viewing both with the use of the terminal and without it.