Linux Terminal Command: strace

The strace command is an essential tool in System Information & Hardware. In this tutorial, we will explore what strace does, look at everyday examples, and cover advanced options to supercharge your command-line workflow.

Concept & Explanation

The strace command intercepts and logs system calls made by a process and the signals it receives. It is an essential debugging tool.

Common Options & Syntax

strace [options] [arguments]

Here are the most common flags used with strace:

Simple Usage: Basic default commands.
Detailed View: Shows diagnostic information.
Advanced Actions: Can chain parameters for scripting.

1. Interactive Example (Simple)

Here is how most people run the command:

# Example
strace ls

What it does: Traces all system calls made by the ls command during execution.

2. Power-User Example (Advanced)

For scripting and advanced diagnostics, use this configuration:

# Advanced
sudo strace -p 1234 -e trace=openat,write -o trace_output.log

What it does: Attaches to running process 1234 (-p), records only the openat and write system calls (-e), and writes the log to a file.

⚙️ Warning & Common Pitfalls

[!WARNING] strace causes processes to run significantly slower (up to 10x-100x overhead). Avoid running it on production servers unless debugging critical issues.

Here are some related posts on cli_tty1 you might want to check out:

df : Report file system disk space usage.
du : Estimate file space usage.
free : Display amount of free and used memory in the system.