Glances

What is it?

Glances is a monitoring tool that goes beyond a single-machine TUI. It collects CPU, memory, disk, network, sensor, container, and process data, and can display it in the terminal, a web browser, or export it to InfluxDB, Prometheus, or another Glances instance. A client/server mode lets one dashboard watch a whole fleet.

Why use it?

Glances is the bridge between a quick local look and real monitoring. You can run glances for an instant snapshot, then enable the web UI when you want a browser tab, all without installing a full monitoring stack. Its plugin architecture and REST API make it easy to script against, and the alert thresholds are configurable.

Key features

• Local TUI, web interface, and REST API in one tool
• Client/server mode for monitoring multiple hosts
• Sensors, GPU, Docker, and process plugins
• Export to InfluxDB, Prometheus, CSV, and more
• Configurable thresholds and alerts
• Cross-platform: Linux, macOS, Windows, and BSD

How it compares

Against htop and btop, Glances is wider in scope but heavier — it is a Python application and shows it. Against full platforms such as Prometheus plus Grafana it is dramatically simpler, though less powerful. Choose Glances when you want monitoring that scales from one command to a small fleet without leaving the terminal world.