How to check CPU information in Linux

Linux stores CPU information in several system files, including /proc/cpuinfo and /sys (or sysfs). These files contain essential details about your system's CPU, such as architecture, model, and manufacturer. Accessing this information helps in understanding the processing power and capabilities of your Linux machine.

To simplify the process of gathering CPU details, Linux provides command-line tools like lscpu, dmidecode, and hwinfo. These tools retrieve and display information about the CPU in a readable format. While lscpu and dmidecode are usually pre-installed, you may need to install hwinfo on some distributions like Ubuntu.

The steps below outline how to check your CPU information on a Linux system. These steps help you identify key details, such as the number of cores, architecture, and possible vulnerabilities.

1. Open the terminal.
2. Display basic CPU information.

   $ lscpu
   Architecture:                    x86_64
   CPU op-mode(s):                  32-bit, 64-bit
   Model name:                      Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-9880H CPU @ 2.30GHz
   CPU(s):                          8
   Thread(s) per core:              2

3. Check the CPU architecture.

   $ lscpu | grep ^Architecture
   Architecture:                    x86_64

4. Identify the CPU op-mode.

   $ lscpu | grep ^CPU\ op-mode
   CPU op-mode(s):                  64-bit

   64 bit processors can run both 64 and 32 bit operating systems. Run uname -p to see the if your Linux system is running the 64 or 32 bit version.

5. Find the CPU maker or manufacturer.

   $ sudo dmidecode --type processor | grep Manufacturer:
     Manufacturer: Intel(R) Corporation

6. Find the CPU model name and version.

   $ lscpu | grep ^Model\ name
   Model name:                      Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-9880H CPU @ 2.30GHz

7. Determine the number of CPU cores.

   $ lscpu | grep ^CPU\(s\)
   CPU(s):                          8

8. Check the number of threads per core.

   $ lscpu | grep ^Thread
   Thread(s) per core:              2

   Multiply the number of cores by the number of threads per core to get the total number of threads.

9. Identify known CPU vulnerabilities.

   Vulnerabilities:       
     Itlb multihit:       Not affected
     L1tf:                Not affected
     Mds:                 Not affected
     Meltdown:            Not affected
     Mmio stale data:     Not affected
     Retbleed:            Not affected
     Spec store bypass:   Mitigation; Speculative Store Bypass disabled via prctl
     Spectre v1:          Mitigation; __user pointer sanitization
     Spectre v2:          Not affected
     Srbds:               Not affected
     Tsx async abort:     Not affected

10. Check the current CPU speed.

    $ lscpu | grep ^CPU\ MHz
    CPU MHz:                         2304.000

    Related: How to check CPU clock speed in Linux

11. Retrieve the CPU ID or serial number.

    $ sudo dmidecode --type processor | grep -m1 ID\: 
    	ID: ED 06 09 00 FF FC 8B 1F

    The CPU ID is unique to each processor and can be used for identification purposes.