Professional-grade tool for monitoring processes, services, network connections, and system performance on Windows.
Trusted by developers, system administrators, and power users worldwide. Open-source, transparent, and secure.
Process Hacker is a powerful, open-source process and system monitoring tool designed for Windows. It provides advanced capabilities for inspecting processes, monitoring system resources, managing services, and debugging system issues.
Unlike basic task managers, Process Hacker offers deep insights into your system's operations, making it an essential tool for anyone who needs to understand what's happening under the hood of their Windows system.
Important: Process Hacker is a legitimate, open-source system monitoring tool. It is NOT malware, spyware, or any form of malicious software. It is designed for legitimate system administration, debugging, and monitoring purposes.
Powerful capabilities that go beyond standard task managers
Deep dive into process details including threads, handles, memory maps, and loaded modules. View real-time process information with comprehensive debugging capabilities.
Real-time monitoring of CPU, memory, disk I/O, and network activity. Track system resources with detailed graphs and statistics for comprehensive performance analysis.
Manage process permissions, token information, and security contexts. View and modify access rights with detailed security descriptor information.
Detailed performance metrics including CPU usage per core, memory consumption patterns, disk I/O statistics, and network throughput analysis.
Extensible architecture with plugin support. Extend functionality with custom plugins for specialized monitoring, analysis, and system management tasks.
Monitor network connections, view active TCP/UDP connections, and analyze network activity per process. Identify network-related issues and suspicious connections.
See how Process Hacker helps professionals solve real-world problems
See how Process Hacker compares to Windows Task Manager
| Feature | Process Hacker | Windows Task Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Process Details | Comprehensive | Basic |
| Thread Information | ✓ Full Details | Limited |
| Handle Inspection | ✓ Available | ✗ Not Available |
| Memory Maps | ✓ Available | ✗ Not Available |
| Network Connections | ✓ Per Process | System-wide Only |
| Service Management | ✓ Advanced | Basic |
| Token & Security Info | ✓ Available | ✗ Not Available |
| Plugin Support | ✓ Extensible | ✗ Not Available |
| Performance Graphs | ✓ Detailed | Basic |
| Open Source | ✓ Yes | No |
Common problems and step-by-step solutions
Problem:
Your system is running slow, and you suspect a process is consuming too much CPU.
Solution:
Problem:
System memory is gradually being consumed, and you suspect a memory leak.
Solution:
Problem:
You want to identify which processes are making network connections.
Solution:
Problem:
A Windows service is not starting or behaving unexpectedly.
Solution:
Problem:
A file cannot be deleted or modified because it's locked by a process.
Solution:
Get the latest version of Process Hacker - completely free and open-source
Process Hacker is actively maintained and regularly updated with new features and security improvements.
Download from GitHub ReleasesProcess Hacker is open-source software. All source code is available on GitHub for review, audit, and contribution. You can verify exactly what the software does.
Process Hacker is a legitimate system monitoring tool. It does not contain malware, spyware, or any malicious components. Always download from the official GitHub repository.
Important: Only download Process Hacker from the official GitHub repository. Be cautious of third-party download sites that may distribute modified or malicious versions.
Common questions about Process Hacker
Yes, Process Hacker is completely safe to use. It is a legitimate, open-source system monitoring tool. The source code is publicly available on GitHub, allowing anyone to review and verify its functionality. Process Hacker does not contain malware, spyware, or any malicious components. However, always download from the official GitHub repository to ensure you're getting the authentic version.
Process Hacker can run without administrator privileges for basic monitoring tasks. However, many advanced features require administrator rights, including:
For the best experience and full functionality, it's recommended to run Process Hacker with administrator privileges.
Process Hacker offers significantly more advanced features than Windows Task Manager:
While Task Manager is great for basic tasks, Process Hacker is designed for power users, developers, and system administrators who need deeper insights.
Yes, Process Hacker is completely free and open-source. It is released under the GNU General Public License (GPL), which means you can use, modify, and distribute it freely. There are no hidden costs, subscriptions, or premium versions.
Process Hacker is a legitimate system administration and debugging tool. Like any powerful tool, it could potentially be misused, but it is designed and intended for legitimate purposes such as:
Process Hacker should only be used on systems you own or have explicit permission to monitor. Unauthorized use on systems you don't own or have permission to access is illegal and unethical.
Process Hacker is designed for modern Windows operating systems. It supports:
Some features may require specific Windows versions or service packs. Check the GitHub repository for the most up-to-date compatibility information.
Process Hacker is an open-source project, and contributions are welcome! You can contribute in several ways:
Visit the official GitHub repository to learn more about contributing guidelines and the development process.
Transparency, security, and responsible use
Process Hacker is a legitimate system administration and debugging tool. It is designed for authorized system monitoring, troubleshooting, and development purposes.
Important: Only use Process Hacker on systems you own or have explicit written permission to monitor. Unauthorized access to or monitoring of computer systems without permission is illegal in most jurisdictions and may violate computer fraud and abuse laws.
Process Hacker is fully open-source software. The complete source code is available on GitHub, allowing anyone to:
This transparency ensures that Process Hacker can be trusted and verified by the community.
Process Hacker is NOT malware, spyware, adware, or any form of malicious software. It does not:
Some antivirus software may flag Process Hacker due to its powerful system access capabilities. This is a false positive - Process Hacker's capabilities are similar to those of legitimate system administration tools. If you encounter such warnings, you can safely add Process Hacker to your antivirus exclusion list.
Process Hacker prioritizes security and privacy: