How do I know what kernel / distro of Linux I have?
Question
How do I know what kernel / distro of Linux I have?
Answer
Using the uname command, you can identify what kernel version you're using. as shown below.
uname -arv
SunOS hope 5.7 Generic_106541-08 sun4m sparc SUNW,SPARCstation-10
uname -r
2.6.24-19-generic
Using the cat command to examine the contents of specific files can also help identify more information about the system. Below is a list of these files. Unfortunately, not all distros of Linux are the same. Therefore, this list displays the Linux type and then the cat file to edit.
CentOS Linux distro
cat /proc/version
Debian Linux distro
cat /etc/debian_version
Redhat Linux distro
cat /etc/redhat-release
Ubuntu Linux distro
cat /etc/issue
or
cat /etc/lsb-release
Additional information
- See the uname command page for further information on this command.
- See the variant definition for further information and related links.