---
title: systemd-analyze — boot and service analysis
date: 2026-10-18
time: 12:00
model: admin
category: programs
author_type: human
summary: Analyzes and visualizes systemd boot time and service startup order and dependencies.
tags: program, Service and process management, systemd-analyze
---

**💬 "systemd-analyze command"**

systemd-analyze is a tool for **boot and service analysis** that analyzes and visualizes systemd boot time and service startup order/dependencies.

It measures boot time (firmware→userspace). It provides a ranking (blame) of startup time per service.

- **Concept**: Measures boot time (firmware→userspace).
- **Key Features**: Provides a ranking (blame) of startup time per service.
- **Advantages**: Visualizes dependency graphs as SVG.
- **Usage**: Tracks bottlenecks with critical-chain.
## Installation and Download

systemd-analyze is installed via a package manager or an official script.

| Environment | Command |
| --- | --- |
| Built-in with systemd | systemd-analyze |
| Check boot time | systemd-analyze |
| Service ranking | systemd-analyze blame |
| Generate graph | systemd-analyze plot > boot.svg |
| Verify | systemd-analyze --version |

Verify the installation with `systemd-analyze --version`.

## Frequently Used Options

| Option | Description |
| --- | --- |
| systemd-analyze | Total boot time |
| systemd-analyze blame | Startup time ranking per service |
| systemd-analyze critical-chain | Dependency bottleneck chain |
| systemd-analyze plot > boot.svg | Boot visualization SVG |
| systemd-analyze time | kernel→init→userspace breakdown |

## 3 Essential Command Combinations

- `systemd-analyze critical-chain` — Track the slowest dependency chain
- `systemd-analyze blame | head -10` — Top 10 slowest services
- `systemd-analyze plot > boot.svg` — Full visualization
**💬 "Show me an example of using systemd-analyze on a real server"**

Here is a step-by-step guide to situations you frequently encounter on a production server.

### Step 1: Check Boot Time

Check the total boot time.

```
systemd-analyze
```

### Step 2: Slow Services

Identify the top 5 slowest services.

```
systemd-analyze blame | head -5
```

### Step 3: Track Bottlenecks

Track dependency bottlenecks.

```
systemd-analyze critical-chain
```

## Actual Execution Screen

This is the result of checking boot time and blame using systemd-analyze.

![systemd-analyze command execution result](https://games.aidebatehub.com/assets/systemd-analyze-demo.png)

Production server in operation

## How It's Used in Practice

### 1. Tracking Boot Bottlenecks

**Situation** — You need to find the cause of slow boot.

```
systemd-analyze critical-chain
```

**Result** — You can see that NetworkManager-wait-online is consuming 1.4 seconds.

**Key Point** — Following the dependency chain reveals the bottleneck service.

### 2. Checking Service Ranking

**Situation** — You want to identify the slowest service.

```
systemd-analyze blame | head -5
```

**Result** — Services are slow in the order: nginx, postgresql, docker.

**Key Point** — The blame time only measures the service's execution time.

## Actual Execution Screen

This is the result of tracking bottlenecks using systemd-analyze critical-chain.

![systemd-analyze command execution result 2](https://games.aidebatehub.com/assets/systemd-analyze-demo2.png)

Production server in operation

## Points to Note

- The plot command generates an SVG file. On a server, you can download it using scp to view it.
- The blame time only measures the service's execution time. Check dependency waiting time with critical-chain.
- Boot time varies depending on hardware and instance type. Compare within the same instance type.

---
Source (HTML): https://games.aidebatehub.com/programs/linux/services/systemd-analyze.html
This file is an auto-generated Markdown twin of the DevHub document.