stop

stop [service_name]

service_name
    Specifies the name of the service to stop. The interpretation of 'service_name' and available services depends entirely on the init system used. Without a service_name it may result in system shutdown (depending on init system and permissions).

The stop command, while often used to imply immediate system shutdown, is more commonly associated with stopping services managed by service management tools like systemd or Upstart. Its behavior varies depending on the context and the init system in use.

When used in conjunction with systemd, it usually stops a specific service unit. When run without a specified service, the stop command might initiate a system shutdown procedure, but it's crucial to understand that this shutdown process is not guaranteed to be immediate and can depend on the system configuration and other running processes. Improper usage can lead to data loss if processes aren't gracefully terminated. It's generally safer to use shutdown or systemctl poweroff for system shutdown, especially in modern Linux distributions using systemd. For services, the systemctl stop command is almost always the correct choice. The actual result of using stop is highly dependent on the specific distribution and its configuration.

The stop command's behavior is highly variable. It's best to avoid it for system shutdown and explicitly use shutdown, poweroff, or reboot commands instead. Always understand which service management tool is being used (e.g., systemd, Upstart, SysVinit) to predict the behavior of the command.

Historically, Linux systems used SysVinit, which employed scripts in /etc/init.d to manage services. Modern distributions often use systemd, which uses unit files to define services. The stop command's functionality is heavily influenced by the init system. When using systemd, use systemctl stop.

Executing stop typically requires root privileges. Without proper permissions, you might not be able to stop services or shut down the system.

shutdown(8), reboot(8), poweroff(8), systemctl(1)