acpi

Show battery information

$ acpi

$ acpi [[-t|--thermal]]

$ acpi [[-c|--cooling]]

$ acpi [[-tf|--thermal --fahrenheit]]

$ acpi [[-V|--everything]]

$ acpi [[-p|--proc]]

acpi [OPTION]...

-a, --all
    Display all available ACPI information (battery, temperature, thermal)

-b, --battery
    Show only battery information

-t, --temperature
    Show only temperature information

-T, --thermal
    Show only thermal zone information

-V, --version
    Print version information and exit

-h, -?, --help
    Show help message and exit

-v, --verbose
    Be more verbose in output

-f, --file=<FILE>
    Read from specified file instead of /proc/acpi

-d, --dir=<DIR>
    Use custom directory for proc/sysfs tree

-s, --sysfs
    Prefer sysfs over /proc/acpi

-p, --proc
    Force use of /proc/acpi

The acpi command retrieves and displays information from Linux's ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface) subsystem, focusing on power management, battery status, temperatures, and thermal zones. It is particularly useful on laptops to quickly check remaining battery charge, discharge rate, and system temperatures from the command line or scripts.

By default, acpi shows battery information if available, reading from legacy /proc/acpi or modern /sys/class interfaces. Options allow targeting specific data like batteries (-b), temperatures (-t), or thermal zones (-T). Verbose mode provides more details, and it supports custom files or directories for debugging or embedded use.

This lightweight tool depends on kernel ACPI support and hardware compatibility. It outputs human-readable status, such as 'Battery 0: Full, 100%, 01:23:45 remaining', aiding power monitoring without graphical tools.

Deprecated on modern kernels favoring sysfs; /proc/acpi may be absent. Requires kernel ACPI support and compatible hardware. Output varies by system; may show no data if unavailable.
Run as root for full access in some cases.

acpi
Display default battery status.

acpi -b
Battery info only.

acpi -t
Temperature sensors.

acpi -V
Version info.

Reads /proc/acpi/battery/BAT[0-9]/*, /proc/acpi/thermal_zone/, or /sys/class/power_supply/, /sys/class/thermal/.

Introduced in early 2000s with Linux kernel ACPI v2+ support (around 2.4/2.6 series). Developed by ACPI subsystem maintainers like Len Brown; part of acpi-utils or standalone packages. Evolved to support sysfs transition post-2.6.24.

acpid(8), sensors(1), powertop(1), upower(1)