rgwood

systemctl-tui: Manage systemd Services and Logs

systemctl-tui is a Rust terminal interface for browsing systemd services, timers, and logs, and managing units on Linux. It also supports managing remote hosts over SSH without installing the tool on them.

ActiveRustMITTerminalLinuxCLI
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Stars
2.1k
Forks
58
Stars, last 30 days
+24
Last commit
12 days ago
Contributors
10

Our take

Activeregular commits and releases

Health score

48/100

How it is scored
Activity
64
Community
25
Issues
33
Pull requests
68

+24 stars in the last 30 days

  • Slower to close issues than 97% of the projects we track

An actively maintained, focused systemd TUI with frequent releases, but adoption should account for its Linux-only scope and the fact that most contributions come from one person.

Good fit if

  • You want one terminal interface for service and timer status, logs, and common management tasks on Linux.
  • You need to inspect or manage remote systemd hosts over SSH without installing systemctl-tui remotely.
  • You value a Rust tool with an MIT license and recent commits and releases.

Look elsewhere if

  • You need a tool that works outside Linux, or your WSL setup does not have systemd enabled.
  • Your workflow requires editing unit files on remote hosts, which is not supported yet.
  • Your adoption policy requires development to be spread across contributors: the project has ten contributors, but most code comes from one person.
All health signals
Last commit2026-10-03 (12 days ago)
Commits, last 90 days54
Releases, last 12 months11 (latest v0.8.0, 2026-07-27)
Contributors10 (top contributor: 97% of commits)
Issues closed, last 90 days5 (typically closed in 570 days)
Pull requests merged, last 90 days20 (typically merged in 0 days)
Project age3 years

Checked on 2026-10-16 with the GitHub API.

Project history

Daily GitHub snapshots since Oct 7, 2026. History covers stars and forks; health signals are not tracked historically.

Selected snapshot

Stars

2,105

Forks

60

Change since Nov 13, 2026: 0 stars·0 forks

Overview

systemctl-tui is a Rust terminal user interface for working with systemd units and their logs on Linux. It brings service and timer status, log browsing, unit management, and unit-file editing into one focused interface for people who want a quicker alternative to switching between systemctl, journalctl, and an editor.

It can also connect to remote machines over SSH, so administrators can inspect and manage systemd on a host without installing systemctl-tui there. The project aims to keep its scope small rather than provide a general-purpose system administration dashboard.

Key Features

  • Browse systemd service and timer status.
  • View logs for units.
  • Manage services and timers from the interface.
  • View and edit unit files on the local machine.
  • Manage remote hosts with --host user@hostname or --remote over SSH.
  • Install prebuilt x64 and ARM64 binaries, distro packages, or build with Rust.

Use Cases

  • Linux administrators checking service health and recent logs during routine troubleshooting.
  • Developers managing systemd services and timers while testing deployments on a Linux machine.
  • Operators inspecting a remote system over SSH without installing another application on the server.
  • Users who prefer a keyboard-driven terminal interface for common systemd tasks.

What you need

Detected in the repository

  • Rust (from Cargo.toml)
  • A test suite and automated checks on GitHub Actions

License in plain words

MITpermissive

  • Commercial use: yes
  • Modify and redistribute: yes
  • You must keep: the copyright and license notice
  • Share your changes: no

A summary, not legal advice: the LICENSE file is what applies.

Getting Started

On a Linux system with Rust installed, install it with:

cargo install systemctl-tui --locked

For binary releases, distro packages, remote-host requirements, and other installation options, see the README.

Considerations

  • The project works only on Linux; WSL requires systemd to be enabled.
  • Remote management requires systemd-stdio-bridge and journalctl on the remote host. Viewing user-scope services also requires a running user manager.
  • Remote unit-file editing is not supported.
  • Development is active, with regular commits and releases, but code contributions are highly concentrated in one contributor. The measured median time to close issues is long, so do not assume reported issues will be resolved quickly.

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