[lttng-docs.git] / contents / installing-lttng / intro.md

---
id: installing-lttng
---

**LTTng** is a set of software components which interact to allow
instrumenting the Linux kernel and user applications as well as
controlling tracing sessions (starting/stopping tracing,
enabling/disabling events, and more). Those components are bundled into
the following packages:

  * **LTTng-tools**: libraries and command line interface to control
    tracing sessions.
  * **LTTng-modules**: Linux kernel modules for tracing the kernel.
  * **LTTng-UST**: user space tracing library.

Most distributions mark the LTTng-modules and LTTng-UST packages as
optional. In the following sections, the steps to install all three are
always provided, but note that LTTng-modules is only required if
you intend to trace the Linux kernel and LTTng-UST is only required if
you intend to trace user space applications.

This chapter shows how to install the above packages on a Linux
system. The easiest way is to use the package manager of the system's
distribution ([desktop](#doc-desktop-distributions) or
[embedded](#doc-embedded-distributions)). Support is also available for
[enterprise distributions](#doc-enterprise-distributions), such as
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES).
Otherwise, you can
[build the LTTng packages from source](#doc-building-from-source).
Commit	Line	Data
	1	---
	2	id: installing-lttng
	3	---
	4
	5	LTTng is a set of software components which interact to allow
	6	instrumenting the Linux kernel and user applications as well as
	7	controlling tracing sessions (starting/stopping tracing,
	8	enabling/disabling events, and more). Those components are bundled into
	9	the following packages:
	10
	11	* LTTng-tools: libraries and command line interface to control
	12	tracing sessions.
	13	* LTTng-modules: Linux kernel modules for tracing the kernel.
	14	* LTTng-UST: user space tracing library.
	15
	16	Most distributions mark the LTTng-modules and LTTng-UST packages as
	17	optional. In the following sections, the steps to install all three are
	18	always provided, but note that LTTng-modules is only required if
	19	you intend to trace the Linux kernel and LTTng-UST is only required if
	20	you intend to trace user space applications.
	21
	22	This chapter shows how to install the above packages on a Linux
	23	system. The easiest way is to use the package manager of the system's
	24	distribution ([desktop](#doc-desktop-distributions) or
	25	[embedded](#doc-embedded-distributions)). Support is also available for
	26	[enterprise distributions](#doc-enterprise-distributions), such as
	27	Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES).
	28	Otherwise, you can
	29	[build the LTTng packages from source](#doc-building-from-source).