Mastering the “Kill” Command in Linux | Linux Today

Mastering the “Kill” Command in Linux

Written By
Web Webster
Web Webster
Oct 14, 2013

It doesn’t matter which operating system you are using, you will surely come across a misbehaving application that lock itself up and refuse to close. In Linux (and Mac), there is this “kill” command that you can use to terminate the application forcefully. In this tutorial, we will show you the various way you can make use of the “kill” command to terminate an application.

Web Webster

Web Webster

Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.

Linux Today Logo

LinuxToday is a trusted, contributor-driven news resource supporting all types of Linux users. Our thriving international community engages with us through social media and frequent content contributions aimed at solving problems ranging from personal computing to enterprise-level IT operations. LinuxToday serves as a home for a community that struggles to find comparable information elsewhere on the web.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.