💡 Systemd & Services March 17, 2026 7

Linux Command: hostnamectl

Control system hostname

Terminal — Systemd & Services

Command

$ hostnamectl

Output

Shows hostname, OS, kernel, and architecture.

hostnamectl manages the system hostname. It can set the static hostname (persistent), the pretty hostname (UTF-8 descriptive name), and the transient hostname (temporary). hostnamectl is the systemd way to manage hostnames, replacing manual editing of /etc/hostname. Changes are permanent and take effect immediately. hostnamectl also shows useful system information including the machine ID, boot ID, operating system, kernel, and architecture.

Syntax

hostnamectl [COMMAND]

Common Examples

hostnamectl — Shows hostname, OS, kernel, and architecture.
sudo hostnamectl set-hostname production-web-01 — Permanently changes the hostname.
sudo hostnamectl set-hostname "Production Web Server 01" --pretty — Sets a descriptive name (can include spaces and special characters).
sudo hostnamectl set-hostname newname && sudo sed -i "s/oldname/newname/g" /etc/hosts — Changes hostname and updates /etc/hosts to match.