How can I determine what process has a file open in Linux?

I'd like to determine what process has ownership of a lock-file. The lock-files are simply a file with a specific name that has been created.

So, how can I determine what process has a particular file open in Linux? Preferably a one-liner type or a particular Linux tool solution would be optimal.

Solution 1:

You can also use fuser for this:

~> less .vimrc
# put in background
~> fuser .vimrc
.vimrc:              28135
~> ps 28135
  PID TTY      STAT   TIME COMMAND
28135 pts/36   T      0:00 less .vimrc

Solution 2:

On most Linux systems lsof NAME does the job:

fin@r2d2:~$ lsof /home/fin
COMMAND   PID USER   FD   TYPE DEVICE SIZE    NODE NAME
bash    21310  fin  cwd    DIR    8,1 4096 5054467 /home/fin
lsof    21320  fin  cwd    DIR    8,1 4096 5054467 /home/fin
lsof    21321  fin  cwd    DIR    8,1 4096 5054467 /home/fin
fin@r2d2:~$