How to use the command system_profiler (with examples)

The system_profiler command is a powerful tool on macOS that allows users to report system hardware and software configuration. It provides detailed information about the system’s hardware, software, and network settings. This article will illustrate several use cases of the system_profiler command along with their code, motivations, explanations, and example outputs.

Use case 1: Display a report with specific details level

Code:

system_profiler -detailLevel level

Motivation: This use case is helpful when you want to generate a system report with a specific level of detail. The available detail levels are mini (which excludes personal information), basic, or full.

Explanation: The -detailLevel flag is used to specify the level of detail you want in the report. The available options are “mini”, “basic”, or “full”.

Example output:

Hardware Information:

    ⓘ Mini detail level example output ⚠️ This may not match your actual system information ⚠️

      Model Name: MacBook Pro
      Model Identifier: MacBookPro15,1
      Processor Name: 8-Core Intel Core i9
      Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
      Number of Processors: 1
      Total Number of Cores: 8
      L2 Cache (per Core): 256 KB
      L3 Cache: 16 MB
      Hyper-Threading Technology: Enabled
      Memory: 16 GB
      Serial Number (system): C02SF12345678
      Hardware UUID: ABCDEFAB-CDEF-ABCD-EFAB-CDEF01234567

Software Information:

  ⓘ Mini detail level example output ⚠️ This may not match your actual system information ⚠️

    System Version: macOS Big Sur 11.2
    Kernel Version: Darwin 20.3.0
    Computer Name: MacBook Pro
    User Name: user
    Secure Virtual Memory: Enabled
    System Integrity Protection: Enabled
    Time since boot: 10 days 2:24
   

Use case 2: Display a full system profiler report which can be opened by System Profiler.app

Code:

system_profiler -xml > MyReport.spx

Motivation: This use case is useful when you want to generate a full system profile report in XML format that can be opened by the System Profiler.app. This allows for further analysis or sharing of the report.

Explanation: The -xml flag is used to output the system profiler report in XML format, while the > symbol is used to redirect the output to a file named “MyReport.spx”.

Example output: No example output provided as the output will be saved to the “MyReport.spx” file.

Use case 3: Display a hardware overview and software data

Code:

system_profiler SPHardwareDataType SPSoftwareDataType

Motivation: This use case is beneficial when you want to get a combined report with both hardware and software information in a concise manner.

Explanation: The command consists of two arguments, SPHardwareDataType and SPSoftwareDataType, which specify the types of data to be displayed. SPHardwareDataType retrieves the hardware information, while SPSoftwareDataType fetches the software information.

Example output:

Hardware:

    Hardware Overview:

      Model Name: MacBook Pro
      Model Identifier: MacBookPro15,1
      Processor Name: 8-Core Intel Core i9
      Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
      Number of Processors: 1
      Total Number of Cores: 8
      L3 Cache: 16 MB
      Memory: 16 GB

Software:

    Software Overview:

      System Version: macOS Big Sur 11.2
      Kernel Version: Darwin 20.3.0
      Time since boot: 10 days 2:24
   

Use case 4: Print the system serial number

Code:

system_profiler SPHardwareDataType | grep "Serial Number (system)" | awk '{ print $4 }'

Motivation: Printing the system serial number is useful when you need to quickly reference or verify the unique identifier of the system.

Explanation: The SPHardwareDataType argument is used to retrieve the hardware information, while the subsequent commands grep "Serial Number (system)" and awk '{ print $4 }' filter and print the system serial number from the hardware data.

Example output:

C02SF12345678

Conclusion:

The system_profiler command is a versatile tool for generating detailed reports about the hardware and software configuration of a macOS system. By utilizing its various options, users can obtain specific levels of detail, create full system profiles in XML format, retrieve hardware and software information together, or print out system serial numbers. These use cases highlight the flexibility and utility of the system_profiler command in managing and analyzing macOS systems.