dashmotd

A two-column system dashboard delivered through the standard Linux update-motd framework (/etc/update-motd.d + pam_motd).

dashmotd separates collect (slow / privilege-sensitive data, hourly) from render (login always composes the grid from live samples + collected cache), so SSH logins stay fast while system info, partitions, and containers reflect current status.

Features

• Fast SSH logins — slow lookups run hourly; render stays light
• Two-column auto-sized grid of system status cells
• Live sections (sysinfo, partitions, docker) sampled at every login; others cached by collect
• Works across Debian, RHEL, Arch, and SUSE families
• Optional tools (smartctl, openssl, figlet, docker, …) degrade gracefully when missing

Prerequisites

• A supported Linux distribution (see Supported distributions)
• Root privileges to install (the installer configures systemd and MOTD hooks)
• systemd recommended (hourly collect timer); without it, run dashmotd-collect from cron
• On Debian-family systems: pam_motd + /etc/update-motd.d (usual default). Elsewhere the installer falls back to /etc/profile.d

Required commands: bash, paste, free, awk, sed, grep, mktemp

Recommended (sections degrade gracefully if missing): smartmontools (smartctl), openssl, curl or wget, figlet (dashmotd bundles the mono9 font), docker; on Arch also pacman-contrib (checkupdates)

# Debian / Ubuntu / Raspberry Pi / Zorin
sudo apt-get install -y smartmontools openssl wget curl figlet

# RHEL / Oracle Linux / Rocky / Alma / Fedora
sudo dnf install -y smartmontools openssl wget curl figlet

# Arch / Manjaro
sudo pacman -S --needed smartmontools openssl wget curl figlet pacman-contrib

Quick install

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wsj-br/dashmotd/main/install.sh | sudo bash

Or install from a local tarball / clone:

# from a git clone
sudo ./install.sh

# from a release archive
DASHMOTD_TARBALL=./dashmotd.tar.gz sudo -E bash install.sh

See Installation for prerequisites, update options, and config conflict handling.

Usage

Update an existing install:

sudo /opt/dashmotd/update.sh

Preview the dashboard:

run-parts /etc/update-motd.d/
# or
/opt/dashmotd/bin/dashmotd-render

Force a refresh of collected (cached) data, then preview again:

sudo systemctl start dashmotd.service
# or
sudo /opt/dashmotd/bin/dashmotd-collect

Dashboard sections

Layout key	Script	When	Contents
sysinfo	system_info.sh	live	Kernel, tasks, CPU %, load, memory %, temperature
network	network_info.sh	collect	Public IP (IPv6 + IPv4 when dual-stack; daily cache) and private IP
partitions	partition_info.sh	live	Usage % plus free/total from df -h (e.g. 66% / 304G free of 917G)
disks	disk_info.sh	collect	SMART power-on / temp / cycles / spare (smartctl)
packages	packages_info.sh	collect	Upgradable count via apt/dnf/yum/pacman/zypper + reboot flag
certs	certificate_info.sh	collect	TLS certificate expiry via openssl
docker	docker_info.sh	live	Container names and running/stopped marks
lastupdate	last_update.sh	collect	When dashmotd-collect last refreshed cached data

Supported distributions

Family	Examples	Package manager	Login display
Debian	Debian, Ubuntu, Zorin, Raspberry Pi OS, Mint, Pop!_OS	apt	/etc/update-motd.d + pam_motd
RHEL	Oracle Linux, RHEL, Rocky, Alma, Fedora, Amazon Linux	dnf / yum	/etc/profile.d (if no update-motd.d)
Arch	Arch, Manjaro, EndeavourOS	pacman (+ checkupdates)	/etc/profile.d
SUSE	openSUSE, SLES	zypper	/etc/profile.d

Package manager is auto-detected (PKG_MANAGER=auto); override in config if needed.

Documentation

• Installation — prerequisites, install/update options, uninstall
• Configuration — config reference, custom sections, static MOTD
• Architecture — collect/render paths and shell hooks
• Troubleshooting — common issues and fixes

Uninstall

sudo /opt/dashmotd/uninstall.sh

See Installation for what is removed and restored.

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Waldemar Scudeller Junior.

Licensed under the MIT License — see LICENSE.