Labthrift Labthrift What to buy. What to skip. Why.

Written 27 Aug 2026. This is a how-to, not a product card. Buy links are not tagged yet.

See what is keeping the leftover box busy

The leftover box feels slow. Check which program is using the CPU before you buy a new mini PC.

The leftover box feels slow. Memory room is a different look: see if the leftover box still has free memory. Disk room is see if the leftover box still has room. This note asks which program is using the leftover box's worker (the CPU) right now.

Skip until SSH works

If ping fails and SSH hangs, start with is the leftover box still on? If you have never logged in from the couch, that is SSH from the couch. Prefer this look after you already checked memory: see if the leftover box still has free memory. This note assumes you can log in from the couch.

What this is

A look, not a shopping trip. One busy program can make SSH feel late. A copy, a weekly update, or a movie job you started can sit at the top and then go away. Do not buy a mini PC for a one-off copy. Do not kill programs tonight.

Ask which program is busy

SSH in from the couch, then ask:

ps aux --sort=-%cpu | head

ps is the leftover box listing running programs. | head keeps the first few lines so you do not get a wall of text. The first line is labels. Point at %CPU (how busy that program is) and COMMAND (the name). The top names after the labels are the busy ones right now.

A copy often shows rsync. A weekly fix often shows apt or unattended-upgrades. Those can wait. If the same name stays at the top while you are not copying or updating, that program is the squeeze.

Optional load hint

If you want a second hint that the leftover box is piled up:

uptime

That is the same optional look as see if the leftover box still has free memory. Load numbers that stay high with nothing happening can mean the leftover box is working too hard. Keep this light. You do not need to learn load averages in depth tonight.

If something is busy

Wait out a copy or a weekly update. Do not kill processes tonight. Do not stack a movie library, a VM, and Pi-hole on a 4 GB leftover laptop. If memory is also tight, that is still see if the leftover box still has free memory. A later leftover-next mini is a tiny computer you can leave on, when you actually need it. Skip buying one this morning if the busy name was a one-off job.

What next

Memory room stays see if the leftover box still has free memory. Disk room stays see if the leftover box still has room. If a house job quit after a reboot, later: see if any house jobs failed to start. How many workers the leftover box already has: see how many workers the leftover box already has. Skip a new mini PC this morning if the leftover box was only busy for a copy.

Skip

Sources

Debian: ps. Ubuntu: ps. Debian: uptime. Official pages only. For memory room, see see if the leftover box still has free memory. For disk room, see see if the leftover box still has room. For the awake check, see is the leftover box still on?. For the login, see SSH from the couch. A leftover-next mini is later: a tiny computer you can leave on.

Also on this topic

See if the leftover box still has free memoryThe leftover box feels slow. Check free memory before you buy a new mini PC. See if the leftover box still has roomAfter the house folder is working, check that the leftover box is not filling up. Photos stop copying when the disk is full. You do not need a NAS for this look. When something broke, look at the leftover-box logSSH works, but a house job does not. Ask the leftover box what it just said before you buy a monitoring box. See how many workers the leftover box already hasBefore you buy a tiny computer, check how many workers the leftover box already has. A tiny computer you can leave onDo not buy one of these first. Use the old laptop, or a retired OptiPlex from Marketplace. These quiet little PCs are the later buy, when you know you will leave a box on and you want it small and silent.