Something rarely goes wrong with Linux, but that doesn’t mean the operating system is immune to problems. Every once in a while, I’ll install a new service or app and then go to start it with the command:
sudo systemctl start NAME
Where NAME is the name of the app or service.
Also: The first 5 Linux commands every new user should learn
There have been instances where the service refuses to start or run properly. When that happens, where do you turn? You could always check log files (usually the best place to start) or turn to another command that is a companion to systemctl. That command is journalctl.
The journalctl command queries the systemd journal and lists the contents of a journal that could include insights into why a particular app or service isn’t running properly. Often, when you attempt to start a service with systemctl, if the service doesn’t start properly (or at all), you’ll see a suggestion in the output to use the journalctl command…
