What is the primary purpose of the 'kill' command?

The primary purpose of the 'kill' command in Linux is to terminate processes. This command sends a specified signal to a process, which can instruct it to stop running. By default, it sends the TERM signal, which gracefully requests a process to terminate, allowing it to clean up resources and exit properly. In cases where a process does not respond to this signal, the kill command can send a more forceful signal, such as KILL, which immediately stops the process without allowing it to perform any cleanup.

This capability is crucial for process management in a Linux environment, where users often need to stop background services or unresponsive applications. Understanding how to use the 'kill' command effectively is an important skill for managing system performance and resource utilization.