systemctl-kill
Send signals to unit processes
TLDR
SYNOPSIS
systemctl kill [OPTIONS] PATTERN...
DESCRIPTION
systemctl kill sends a signal to one or more processes of a unit. By default, it sends SIGTERM to all processes in the unit's cgroup. This provides more control than `systemctl stop`, which follows the unit's configured stop behavior.The `--kill-whom` option controls which processes receive the signal: main (the main process), control (control processes), or all (every process in the cgroup).
PARAMETERS
-s, --signal= SIGNAL
Signal to send (name or number, default: SIGTERM)--kill-whom= WHO
Which processes to kill: main, control, or all (default: all). Older systemd versions use `--kill-who`.--user
Kill user service processes
INSTALL
CAVEATS
Bypasses the unit's configured ExecStop commands. Killing main process may leave child processes orphaned depending on unit configuration. SIGKILL cannot be caught or ignored by processes.
HISTORY
The kill subcommand provides direct signal delivery to unit processes, useful when the normal stop procedure is insufficient or when specific signals are needed (like SIGHUP for config reload).
SEE ALSO
systemctl(1), systemctl-stop(1), systemctl-restart(1), kill(1)
