I am using Kubuntu 1404 LTD

Is there an application that will tell me what is using up all my system resources?

Why I need such a program:
This dose not happen everyday but, two to three days a week, when it starts then it will completely stop for awhile, I can't figure out what's going on!

What happens is, I'll boot up the system and everything is fine, give it about 5 minutes. and bam, it just comes to a stop. I click on something and about three or four minutes later what I clicked starts to work, maybe, or starts then stops like everything else. The entire time the lights
on the modem/router are going full bore.

Sometimes, it starts after I open the FireFox browser, this seems to trigger it more often than not, and it just sits there and wont do
anything. I have to use the reset button to stop it down!

I have tried to use Htop, but I don't understand what it's telling me, another reason to find another program that can check the system at any given time and finding out what is going on.

Thanks, any help will be appreciated!

Well, I was going to recommend htop and use F6 and choose to sort by CPU% or MEM%. This will tell you which application(s) are hogging your resources if that's what your problem is. Of course, it might be your hardware. For all we know, you're using a 386 machine with 256MB of RAM.

You can also use KDE's System Monitor in GUI or "ps aux" in terminal. It would also be good to use a search engine for "Linux what processes I need" or something like that to inform you of commonly needed running processes for the way you use your PC, such as Home Desktop.

1 members found this post helpful.

Could this be the abominable Baloo?
https://community.kde.org/Baloo/Configuration
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2217434

Might look at command line tool, top.

If someone is really remotely using or some malware is taking over then you may not easily find the issue. Clean install from known good sources and apply as many best practices as you can to avoid this issue.

You can easily determine if anyone has control by using the "who" command and/or "lsof" and comparing that to how you are logged in and what you are running. Programs like "htop" and "ps aux" will reveal who owns what processes. That said, takeover of Linux boxes is extremely, EXTREMELY rare, though often suspected by those who don't check these things.

Malware in Linux is both a joke and extremely serious. It is a joke in that the most common sort of Malware, data mining, is all but impossible in a properly administered Linux install. People, in fact very heavy hitters and entire organizations, have tried for years and only last year someone finally was able to insert a malware app in Linux, but it was unable to operate. It just sat there.

The serious side is that if someone(s) is skilled enough (and that's REALLY skilled) to get root in a properly administered Linux system, they are very unlikely to waste time messing with your abilities to use the system or even continuously run an app in your system (though "rkhunter" would reveal that). They are far more likely to infect Firmware, way below the level of an OpSys and own your box without you ever knowing or even having any reason for suspecting. Don't panic. This is also exceedingly rare. The odds are miniscule.

To Steelheat (OP) - It is quite common that those attracted to Ubuntu are newcomers and that you are unaware of system monitoring commands makes me suspect this is true with you. There is zero shame in that. Everyone must begin as a beginner. It is similarly likely that you prefer GUI to CLI so I'm going to recommend that you use KDE System Monitor or, better, install GKrellm which is a docked app like an instrument panel that will monitor CPU and RAM usage as well as number of running processes fulltime and in realtime. It will also monitor all logins. With this you can easily see what is going on at all times. Later, as you learn the value of knowing code, you might replace GKrellm with Conky and have complete control over what is monitored, and how.

Most Importantly There seems to be either a bug or just a problem in Browsers (possibly only Mozilla-based) or YouTube, or Flash and/or html 5 that causes occasional lockups. Some people think nVidia drivers play a part but that is unconfirmed.

The bottom line is DO NOT HIT THE RESET BUTTON. First try Alt-Tab to switch between open apps (assuming you have more than one open, and I recommend you do exactly for this workaround)) and the mouse will free up and return to normal. There does seem to be some connection with rendering sound on streaming content, so check that out if that applies to you.

2 members found this post helpful.

Thanks weibullguy, I now realise the need to know these things and my system is a x86_64 and memory is 8175712 kB.

Thanks enorbet, Thanks for pointing these things out to me, I can see their importance to know. Now I'm armed up with "ps aux" I'll most likely be back for more help. Thanks again!
P.S. I also just found this command will help too: $ cat /proc/meminfo

http://www.linuxtopia.org/online_boo...Detection.html

I don't believe that any OS that is connected to the internet is also immune to attack. Every day we read about security issues. Every day we have to update because of critical issues. Every day we have to learn and use new skills to prevent data issues.

Thanks DavidMcCann, hopefully with "cat /proc/meminfo" and "ps aux" I'll be able to locate the system hog. And if it Baloo that I never heard of with your URL's I'll be able to tame it! Thanks again!

Thank you jefro, in checking out your URL it looked like all the tools they mention are to be used on a network, my system is just a desktop PC.
Correct me if I've misread it! I did bookmark the site tho, they have a lot of things worth reading up on.

Thanks again enorbet, for taking the time to help me out! I've installed both GKrellm and Conky, thanks for the heads-up. I'll be checking them both out. Thanks again!

Not sure you are being attacked, could be just a bad mouse or some issue with window manager.

It's hard to be totally secure. The link I posted is just some idea of the tools available. Some may be in your package manager.

The term "best practices" at skills and programs and settings that you can learn and use to make a more secure system. The more you learn and use the more likely that your data will be safe.