inxi

What is inxi?

inxi is a long-standing shell script designed to gather and display system information. It has been maintained for years and is stable across major distributions. Unlike GUI tools, it outputs text to the terminal, making it ideal for scripting and remote troubleshooting where a desktop environment is not available.

It targets Linux users who need quick, detailed hardware and software reports. System administrators use it to diagnose issues, while enthusiasts share their specs. If you are used to opening a GUI app to check your CPU or GPU, inxi requires you to type a command and read the resulting text block in your terminal.

Compared to CPU-Z, inxi is less visual but more comprehensive regarding the Linux ecosystem. CPU-Z focuses on CPU and chipset details with a clean interface. inxi covers a wider range, including network, audio, and display servers. You trade the graphical layout for the ability to copy-paste full system reports easily into forums or bug trackers.

Best for: Quickly generating a complete system report for troubleshooting or sharing specs in text-based environments.

Key features of inxi

• Reports CPU, motherboard, and BIOS details
• Lists GPU, monitor, and display server info
• Shows network interfaces and wireless status
• Details audio drivers and sound cards
• Identifies OS, kernel, and desktop environment
• Supports JSON and HTML output formats
• Works in headless environments without a GUI
• Includes flags for specific component focus

Tips for Windows users

If you are coming from CPU-Z, forget about clicking tabs. Instead, run 'inxi -F' for a full report or 'inxi -C' for CPU details. You will not find real-time graphs; for that, use 'htop' or 'nmon'. The output is plain text, so you can easily save it to a file with 'inxi -F > sysinfo.txt' for sharing. Remember that Linux hardware detection is driver-dependent, so some fields might be less detailed than in Windows if proprietary drivers are missing.