Howto Benchmark Linux System - HardInfo

Benchmarking means measuring the speed with which a computer system will execute a computing task, in a way that will allow comparison between different hard/software combinations. It does not involve user-friendliness, aesthetic or ergonomic considerations or any other subjective judgment.

HardInfo is a system profiler and benchmark for Linux systems. It can gather information about your computer and operating system, perform a variety of benchmarks, and export the data to HTML.

Installation:
OpenSuSe 11.1 users can use "1-click" installer - here
Ubuntu users can install Hardinfo via the terminal using: sudo apt-get install hardinfo

The easiest way to browse the reports is to run them all by generating an HTML page. Click the Generate Report button on the toolbar, and select the information you want included. Generating a report including the benchmarks could take a few minutes depending on how fast your computer is.

If you are unsure about how to interpret the results, Hardinfo displays a line towards the bottom – giving you some additional information about the test results.