Find Out What Type And Revision Your Raspberry Pi Is Running On

Learn how to determine the exact model and revision of your Raspberry Pi with a few simple commands in the command line interface. This information can be useful for identifying compatibility issues o …

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Learn how to determine the exact model and revision of your Raspberry Pi with a few simple commands in the command line interface. This information can be useful for identifying compatibility issues or making sure you have the right hardware before installing software.

If you’re new to Raspberry Pi, it might not be immediately clear which model and revision your device is running on. This can make it challenging to troubleshoot issues, ensure compatibility with certain hardware, or install specific software packages. Fortunately, there are a few simple commands you can use in the command line interface (CLI) to find out what type of Raspberry Pi you have and which revision it is running on.

Checking The Model Of Your Raspberry Pi

The first step to finding out your Raspberry Pi’s model and revision is to open a terminal window. You can do this by clicking the “Terminal” icon in the top left corner of the desktop or by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T simultaneously. Once you have the terminal open, run the following command:

cat /proc/device-tree/model

This will output a string that includes information about your Raspberry Pi’s model and revision. Here are some examples of what the output might look like for different models:

• For a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+, you might see: Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Plus Rev 1.3
• For a Raspberry Pi Zero W, you might see: Raspberry Pi Zero W Rev 1.1
• For a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B, you might see: Raspberry Pi 4 Model B Rev 1.2

Checking The Revision Number Of Your Raspberry Pi

If you just want to know the revision number of your device, you can use another command in the terminal:

cat /proc/cpuinfo | grep Revision

This will output a line that looks something like this: Revision : a020d3

The two-letter code at the end of this line (e.g., a0 in the example above) represents your Raspberry Pi’s revision number. You can use this to look up specific details about your device’s hardware and software compatibility on the Raspberry Pi documentation website.

Conclusion

Knowing the model and revision of your Raspberry Pi can be helpful when troubleshooting issues, ensuring compatibility with specific hardware, or installing software packages. By running a few simple commands in the terminal, you can easily determine this information and make informed decisions about how to use your device.