How to Get System Information from the Command Line on Windows, macOS, and Linux

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The command depends on your operating system: use systeminfo on Windows, system_profiler SPHardwareDataType SPSoftwareDataType on macOS, and a combination of hostnamectl, uname -a, and lscpu on Linux. You can redirect the results to a text, CSV, or JSON file for troubleshooting or technical support.

What “system information” can include

System information is not one specific value. It may include:

• Software: operating-system name, edition, version, build, kernel, architecture, hostname, uptime, logged-in user, and updates.
• Hardware: manufacturer, model, CPU, cores, threads, RAM, BIOS/UEFI, graphics, storage, PCI devices, USB devices, and network adapters.
• Current state: available memory, disk usage, running processes, services, network addresses, temperatures, and fan readings where supported.

Some values are relatively static, such as CPU model and installed RAM. Others are dynamic, such as free disk space, available memory, CPU load, and running processes. A complete report is not always the most useful report: it can be large, slow, difficult to parse, or contain private identifiers.

Windows

Use Command Prompt for a complete overview

Open Command Prompt and run:

systeminfo

Microsoft documents systeminfo for Windows 10, Windows 11, and supported Windows Server editions. It reports detailed Windows configuration, operating-system information, security details, memory, disks, network cards, and other hardware properties. See the Microsoft systeminfo documentation for the current syntax and supported options.

To save the output as a text file:

systeminfo > systeminfo.txt

To create a CSV file suitable for a spreadsheet:

systeminfo /fo csv > systeminfo.csv

For a key-value-style report instead of the default table:

systeminfo /fo list

To suppress column headings in table or CSV output:

systeminfo /fo csv /nh

The documented output formats are TABLE, LIST, and CSV. Use CSV when another program needs to process the result rather than relying on the spacing of human-readable output.

Query another Windows computer

If your account has the required access and the remote computer is configured for remote management, you can query it with:

systeminfo /s COMPUTERNAME

To specify an account:

systeminfo /s COMPUTERNAME /u DOMAINusername

Microsoft also documents a /p option for supplying a password. Avoid placing a real password directly in a command that may remain in shell history or be visible to another user. Prefer an interactive credential prompt or your organization’s approved remote-administration method.

Use PowerShell for structured Windows data

In PowerShell or Windows Terminal, run:

Get-ComputerInfo

Get-ComputerInfo returns a consolidated object containing Windows system and operating-system properties. It is a Windows cmdlet; installing PowerShell on another operating system does not make this Windows inventory provider available there.

To show version-related properties:

Get-ComputerInfo -Property "*Version"

To select a smaller set of useful fields:

Get-ComputerInfo |
    Select-Object CsName, WindowsProductName, WindowsVersion,
        OsArchitecture, CsProcessors, CsTotalPhysicalMemory,
        BiosManufacturer, BiosVersion

Export the object to CSV:

Get-ComputerInfo | Export-Csv .computer-info.csv -NoTypeInformation

Export it as JSON:

Get-ComputerInfo | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 4 > computer-info.json

Query individual Windows hardware components

Use CIM when you need specific fields, filtering, reusable scripts, or remote administration:

Get-CimInstance Win32_Processor |
    Select-Object Name, NumberOfCores, NumberOfLogicalProcessors, MaxClockSpeed

Get-CimInstance Win32_ComputerSystem |
    Select-Object Manufacturer, Model, TotalPhysicalMemory

Get-CimInstance Win32_OperatingSystem |
    Select-Object Caption, Version, BuildNumber, OSArchitecture, LastBootUpTime

Get-CimInstance Win32_DiskDrive |
    Select-Object Model, MediaType, Size, SerialNumber

systeminfo is a good overview, but it is not a complete hardware-inventory or diagnostic tool. Component sensors, driver details, storage-health attributes, and vendor-specific information may require other providers or tools.

Fast Windows commands for one fact

Need	Command
Computer name	hostname
Windows version string	ver
Selected OS fields	systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name" /C:"OS Version" /C:"System Type"
Network adapter configuration	ipconfig /all
Running processes	tasklist
Registered services	sc query

Older guides often recommend WMIC. Treat it as legacy rather than the preferred basis for new scripts. Use PowerShell with Get-ComputerInfo and Get-CimInstance instead.

macOS

Generate a hardware and software profile

macOS does not provide the Windows systeminfo command. Its main built-in command-line profile tool is system_profiler:

system_profiler SPHardwareDataType SPSoftwareDataType

This reports key hardware and software profile data. Apple’s system_profiler reference documents the command. Exact fields vary by macOS release, Mac model, hardware, and whether the system is physical or virtual.

For a broader, potentially lengthy report:

system_profiler

Save the focused report to a file:

system_profiler SPHardwareDataType SPSoftwareDataType > mac-info.txt

Display the output while saving it:

system_profiler SPHardwareDataType SPSoftwareDataType | tee mac-info.txt

Get specific macOS details

For the macOS product name, version, and build:

sw_vers
sw_vers -productName
sw_vers -productVersion
sw_vers -buildVersion

See Apple’s sw_vers reference.

For logical CPU count and installed memory:

sysctl -n hw.ncpu
sysctl -n hw.memsize

Apple silicon and Intel Macs can expose different hardware keys, so do not assume every sysctl field behaves identically on every macOS release. Apple documents sysctl and its available system variables.

For mounted filesystem capacity:

df -h

For disks and partitions:

diskutil list

Inspect specific Mac hardware categories

system_profiler SPHardwareDataType
system_profiler SPDisplaysDataType
system_profiler SPStorageDataType
system_profiler SPNetworkDataType
system_profiler SPUSBDataType
system_profiler SPThunderboltDataType

Some categories may be absent, renamed, restricted, or irrelevant to particular hardware. Missing output does not necessarily prove that a component does not exist.

Linux

Linux has no single inventory command installed on every distribution. Start with the base commands available on most systems, then add focused tools as needed.

Kernel and operating-system identity

uname -a

For individual values:

uname -s   # kernel name
uname -r   # kernel release
uname -m   # machine architecture

uname reports selected kernel and system identity fields, not a complete hardware inventory.

To identify the Linux distribution and release:

cat /etc/os-release

On a system using systemd, this may provide a convenient combined summary:

hostnamectl

hostnamectl can show the static hostname, operating system, kernel, architecture, and hardware model. It is not universal: minimal installations, containers, non-systemd systems, and some embedded environments may not include it.

CPU

lscpu

Depending on the installed util-linux version, machine-readable JSON is available with:

lscpu -J

lscpu can report CPU count, model, sockets, cores, threads, NUMA nodes, caches, stepping, byte order, and architecture. In a virtual machine it generally reports the CPU configuration presented to the guest, not the complete physical host CPU.

Memory

free -h

For the underlying kernel-provided values:

cat /proc/meminfo

Linux’s free output distinguishes total, used, free, shared, buffer/cache, and available memory. When deciding whether applications can allocate more memory, available is usually more useful than the narrowly defined free value.

Storage

df -h

df shows space used and available on mounted filesystems. To see disks, partitions, and block-device relationships:

lsblk
lsblk -f

The -f form adds filesystem types, labels, UUIDs, and mount points where available.

PCI and USB hardware

List PCI devices:

lspci
lspci -nnk

lspci lists PCI buses and connected devices. Some configuration-space fields require root access and may appear as <access denied>. For scripts, -mm or -vmm is more suitable than column-aligned human output.

List USB devices:

lsusb
lsusb -t
lsusb -v

lsusb lists USB buses and connected devices. Detailed descriptors may require elevated privileges.

BIOS, motherboard, memory slots, and serial data

sudo dmidecode

Focused queries include:

sudo dmidecode -t system
sudo dmidecode -t bios
sudo dmidecode -t memory

dmidecode decodes DMI/SMBIOS tables supplied by firmware. It does not independently scan and verify every physical component, so firmware-reported manufacturer, model, serial, BIOS, or memory-slot values may be incomplete or inaccurate. It can also expose serial numbers and asset tags; review its output before sharing.

Optional inventory tools

These tools can provide broader reports but are not guaranteed to be installed:

sudo lshw
sudo lshw -short
inxi -Fxxxz

Package names and installation commands differ between distributions. For example, Debian-based and Fedora-based systems do not necessarily use the same package-management command. Do not treat lshw, inxi, lspci, lsusb, or dmidecode as universally available base commands.

Get only the information you need

Information	Windows	macOS	Linux
OS and version	systeminfo or Get-ComputerInfo	sw_vers	cat /etc/os-release
Kernel	systeminfo	system_profiler SPSoftwareDataType	uname -a
CPU	Get-CimInstance Win32_Processor	system_profiler SPHardwareDataType	lscpu
RAM	Get-CimInstance Win32_ComputerSystem	sysctl -n hw.memsize	free -h
Storage usage	systeminfo or PowerShell CIM	df -h	df -h
Disk topology	PowerShell storage cmdlets	diskutil list	lsblk -f
Graphics	PowerShell CIM or systeminfo	system_profiler SPDisplaysDataType	lspci -nnk
Network	ipconfig /all	system_profiler SPNetworkDataType	Distribution- and desktop-dependent tools
BIOS or firmware	systeminfo or CIM	system_profiler SPHardwareDataType	sudo dmidecode -t bios
Processes	tasklist	ps aux	ps aux
Uptime	systeminfo	uptime	uptime

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Save, filter, and export a report

Redirect output

On Windows:

systeminfo > report.txt

On macOS and Linux:

command > report.txt

Use >> to append rather than overwrite:

command >> report.txt

On Unix-like systems, capture standard output and errors together:

command > report.txt 2>&1

Use tee when you want to see the output and save it simultaneously:

uname -a | tee linux-info.txt

Filter carefully

For a quick Linux filter:

lscpu | grep -E 'Model name|Socket|Core|Thread|CPU(s)'

In PowerShell:

Get-ComputerInfo | Select-String "Windows|Os|Bios|Cs"

Filtering displayed labels is convenient for a person but fragile in scripts because labels can change with language settings, command versions, and operating-system releases. Prefer PowerShell objects, documented CSV, JSON, or key-value formats when automation matters.

Remote systems, virtual machines, WSL, and containers

Windows systeminfo supports remote queries through /s, /u, and related options. On macOS and Linux, SSH can run a small collection of commands remotely:

ssh user@host 'uname -a; lscpu; free -h; df -h'

The environment matters. A command run inside SSH, Docker, WSL, or a virtual machine normally describes the environment in which it runs:

• A virtual machine generally exposes guest-assigned CPU, memory, storage, and virtual devices rather than the full physical host.
• WSL reports the Linux environment, not a complete Windows hardware inventory.
• Containers may hide host devices, firmware tables, sensors, and other information.
• Remote sessions can restrict access to devices, processes, services, or network details.

Additional host-level permissions or a separate host-side command may be required to identify the physical system.

Why output may be incomplete or inaccurate

• Permissions: BIOS data, SMBIOS tables, PCI configuration, USB descriptors, sensors, disk-health attributes, and protected processes may require Administrator or root access.
• Firmware: tools such as dmidecode report what firmware supplies, which may be missing or wrong.
• Virtualization: guest tools usually report the virtual hardware presented to the guest.
• Unsupported hardware or drivers: a device may exist but lack a provider capable of reporting it.
• Tool availability: Linux commands such as hostnamectl, lshw, and inxi depend on the distribution or installation.
• Version and locale differences: options and displayed labels may vary, especially when scripts parse human-readable output.

If a command is not found, first use the operating system’s base commands. Install optional packages only through your distribution’s normal package-management process, and use elevated access only when the required information actually needs it.

Protect private information before sharing

System reports can reveal more than a support technician needs. Before posting or emailing one, redact:

• Windows product IDs and license-related identifiers
• Serial numbers and asset tags
• MAC addresses, IP addresses, and Bluetooth identifiers
• Hostnames, usernames, domain names, and company names
• Mounted network paths and share names
• Disk identifiers, UUIDs, and detailed storage metadata
• Installed software or services that reveal business or security information

Send only the fields relevant to the problem. A short CPU, OS, memory, and storage summary is often safer and more useful than an unedited full dump.

Quick reference

Platform	Best first command	Purpose
Windows Command Prompt	systeminfo	Detailed Windows configuration and system overview
Windows PowerShell	Get-ComputerInfo	Structured Windows system and OS properties
macOS Terminal	system_profiler SPHardwareDataType SPSoftwareDataType	Hardware and software profile
Linux	hostnamectl; uname -a; lscpu	Host, OS/kernel, and CPU information where supported

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