Chkservice – An Easy Way to Manage Systemd Units in Terminal

Systemd is the default init system for many modern Linux distributions, including Debian, Ubuntu, and Fedora. Systemd is responsible for starting and stopping services, managing system resources, and providing a variety of other system-related functions. Systemd units are the basic building blocks of systemd and define the services, targets, and other system objects that are managed by the system.

While systemd provides a powerful and flexible way to manage system resources, it can be somewhat complex and intimidating to use. Fortunately, there are several tools available that can help you manage systemd units more easily, and one of the most popular of these tools is chkservice.

Chkservice is a command-line tool that provides an easy way to manage systemd units in Terminal. With chkservice, you can start, stop, enable, disable, and manage systemd units in a simple and intuitive way. In this article, we will take a closer look at chkservice and show you how to use it to manage systemd units in your Linux system.

Installing Chkservice

Chkservice is available in the official repositories of many Linux distributions, including Debian, Ubuntu, and Fedora. To install chkservice on your system, open a terminal window and type the following command

sudo apt-get install chkservice

For other distributions, you can use the appropriate package manager

# For Fedora/RHEL/CentOS
sudo dnf install chkservice

# For Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S chkservice

If chkservice is not available in your distribution's repository, you can download it from the project's GitHub page and compile it manually.

Using Chkservice

Once you have installed chkservice, you can start using it to manage systemd units in your system. Chkservice provides a simple and intuitive interface that makes it easy to manage systemd units without needing to remember complex systemctl commands.

Listing Systemd Units

To list all the systemd units installed on your system, type the following command

chkservice

This will launch an interactive interface showing all systemd units with their current status. You can also list units in a simple format

chkservice --list

Interactive Mode

The main feature of chkservice is its interactive terminal interface. When you run chkservice without arguments, it opens a menu-driven interface where you can

• Navigate through services using arrow keys

• Press s to start/stop a service

• Press e to enable/disable a service

• Press r to restart a service

• Press R to reload a service

• Press q to quit

Command Line Operations

Starting and Stopping Services

To start a systemd unit, type the following command

sudo chkservice start <unit-name>

For example, to start the Apache web server

sudo chkservice start apache2

To stop a systemd unit

sudo chkservice stop apache2

Enabling and Disabling Services

To enable a systemd unit to start automatically at boot time

sudo chkservice enable apache2

To disable a systemd unit from starting automatically at boot time

sudo chkservice disable apache2

Restarting and Reloading Services

To restart a systemd unit

sudo chkservice restart apache2

To reload a systemd unit (reload configuration without stopping)

sudo chkservice reload apache2

Key Features

Managing Legacy SysVinit Scripts

In addition to managing systemd units, chkservice can also handle SysVinit scripts for backward compatibility. You can use the same commands for legacy scripts

sudo chkservice start script-name
sudo chkservice stop script-name
sudo chkservice enable script-name
sudo chkservice disable script-name

Advantages Over systemctl

• User-friendly interface Interactive menu eliminates need to remember complex systemctl syntax

• Visual feedback Clear display of service status and state changes

• Tab completion Makes command-line usage faster and error-free

• Unified management Handles both systemd units and legacy SysV scripts

Conclusion

Chkservice provides a simplified, user-friendly interface for managing systemd units and legacy SysVinit scripts in Linux. Its interactive terminal interface and intuitive commands make system service management more accessible, especially for users who prefer a menu-driven approach over complex systemctl syntax. Whether you're a system administrator or a Linux enthusiast, chkservice can significantly streamline your service management workflow.