Systemctl Cheet Sheet

systemctl Cheat Sheet

This is a generic `systemctl` cheat sheet using `alloy.service` as the example unit name.

Service Status

systemctl status alloy.service
systemctl is-active alloy.service
systemctl is-enabled alloy.service

Start, Stop, Restart

systemctl start alloy.service
systemctl stop alloy.service
systemctl restart alloy.service
systemctl reload alloy.service

Enable or Disable at Boot

systemctl enable alloy.service
systemctl disable alloy.service
systemctl enable --now alloy.service
systemctl disable --now alloy.service

Reload Unit Files

systemctl daemon-reload

Use this after changing a unit file in `/etc/systemd/system/`.

View Unit Definition

systemctl cat alloy.service
systemctl show alloy.service

Edit a Unit

systemctl edit --full alloy.service
systemctl edit alloy.service

Notes:

• `--full` edits the whole unit file
• without `--full`, systemd creates a drop-in override

Remove Overrides

systemctl revert alloy.service

Logs

journalctl -u alloy.service
journalctl -u alloy.service -n 50 --no-pager
journalctl -u alloy.service -f

Failed Units and Unit Files

systemctl list-units --failed
systemctl --failed
systemctl list-unit-files

Mask and Unmask

systemctl mask alloy.service
systemctl unmask alloy.service

`mask` prevents manual or automatic start.

Dependencies

systemctl list-dependencies alloy.service

Common Workflow After Changing a Service

systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl restart alloy.service
systemctl status alloy.service
journalctl -u alloy.service -n 50 --no-pager

Common Troubleshooting

systemd-analyze verify /etc/systemd/system/alloy.service
systemctl cat alloy.service
journalctl -xeu alloy.service