How to Invert Sort Order in htop on Ubuntu

This article provides a concise guide for Ubuntu users managing system processes with htop. It outlines the specific keyboard command needed to reverse the listing order of processes based on your selected column. By following these instructions, you can quickly toggle between ascending and descending views to prioritize high or low resource usage.

Launching and Sorting Processes

Open your terminal and type htop to start the process viewer. By default, processes are sorted by CPU usage. You can change the sorting column by clicking on a header with your mouse or pressing F6 to select a specific category such as Memory or Time.

Inverting the Sort Order

To invert the current sort order, press the I key on your keyboard. This action immediately switches the list from ascending to descending order or vice versa. An arrow indicator next to the column header will change direction to reflect the new sort orientation. This shortcut allows for rapid analysis without navigating through additional menus.