Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!think.com!spool.mu.edu!agate!dog.ee.lbl.gov!elf.ee.lbl.gov!torek
From: torek@elf.ee.lbl.gov (Chris Torek)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: VMSTAT
Message-ID: <13820@dog.ee.lbl.gov>
Date: 2 Jun 91 12:43:23 GMT
Article-I.D.: dog.13820
References: <162@wcsn.csms.com>
Reply-To: torek@elf.ee.lbl.gov (Chris Torek)
Organization: Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley
Lines: 22
X-Local-Date: Sun, 2 Jun 91 05:43:23 PDT

In article <162@wcsn.csms.com> ken@wcsn.csms.com
(Kenneth D. Fox WCSN Sr. Operations Engineer) writes:
>I would like to know (in plain english) what the output of [vmstat]
>is telling me. 

This is probably impossible; ordinary English does not have concepts
like `paging' and `virtual memory' and `context switches'.  Your best
bet is to pick up a book on Unix internals (e.g., the Bach System V or
Karels/Leffler/McKusick/Quarterman BSD book).  In any case:

>   procs  	       paging                              system        cpu
>r  b  w  si  so  ch  cm ffr swr sww rec shf shc cpy  pf  in   sy  cs  us su id

this is not a standard BSD header.  The usual BSD header looks like:

 procs     memory              page               disk       faults     cpu
  r b w   avm   fre  re at  pi  po  fr  de  sr s0 d1 d2 d3  in  sy  cs us sy id

so you should mention whose machines and operating systems you use.
-- 
In-Real-Life: Chris Torek, Lawrence Berkeley Lab CSE/EE (+1 415 486 5427)
Berkeley, CA		Domain:	torek@ee.lbl.gov