Linux Atlas
ENRU

Logs and Diagnostics

dmesg

Reads kernel ring buffer messages.

dmesg shows kernel messages about hardware, drivers, boot, devices, and kernel-level events.

Syntax
dmesg [options]

Arguments explained

  • -T shows human-readable timestamps on many systems.
  • -w follows new messages.
  • -l filters by log level.

Common examples

Read recent kernel messages
sudo dmesg -T | tail

Shows recent kernel messages with readable time.

Follow kernel messages
sudo dmesg -w

Streams new kernel messages.

dmesg Command
FieldDetails
Commanddmesg
CategoryLogs and Diagnostics
Primary useReads kernel ring buffer messages.
Syntaxdmesg [options]

Related articles

journalctl

Reads the systemd journal.

tail

Shows the last lines of a file or follows new output.

less

Opens text in a scrollable pager.