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Asked: 2024-09-25T22:23:11+05:30 In:

I’m experiencing an issue with low disk space on my root filesystem in Ubuntu. Despite having deleted some files and cleaned up using tools like BleachBit, the available space does not seem to increase significantly. I would like to know how to identify what is consuming disk space and what steps I can take to resolve this issue effectively. Any advice on commands or methods to diagnose and free up space would be greatly appreciated.

I’ve been running into a really frustrating issue with my Ubuntu machine – I keep getting low disk space warnings on my root filesystem, and it’s driving me a bit nuts. I’ve already deleted a bunch of files and even used BleachBit to clean up unnecessary stuff, but it seems like the available space isn’t really budging much, which is super puzzling. I’m not sure if I’m missing something or if there’s something else eating away at my disk space.

I tried checking the standard places like the Downloads folder, the trash, and even a few other directories where I thought I might have left some large files, but most of what I found was pretty small stuff. It’s like I’m playing hide and seek with my disk space, and whatever’s hiding is really good at evading me!

I’ve heard about some commands that might help me dig deeper into what’s actually consuming disk space, but I’m not exactly a terminal wizard. If I could just get a clearer picture of what’s taking up space, that would be a great start. I could use some help figuring out how to visualize my disk usage. Are there any specific commands I should be using besides the usual ‘df -h’ and ‘du’? I’ve heard people mention tools like ncdu or even some graphical options, but I’m not sure how to get those set up or if they’re worth it.

Also, are there common culprits that I should be on the lookout for? I mean, I’ve read that sometimes logs can balloon out of control or hidden files can take up a lot of space. Is there a way to see if I have any rogue backups or something similar that’s eating into my storage?

I’d love any advice or step-by-step guidance on how to tackle this problem. It would be great to not only figure out where my space is going but to finally gain some breathing room on my system again. Thanks in advance for any tips!

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    2 Answers

    1. To effectively diagnose your low disk space issue, you can employ several commands and tools that will help you uncover what is consuming your storage. Aside from the standard `df -h` and `du` commands, which provide basic information about disk usage, a more in-depth tool like `ncdu` can give you a clearer view of your directories and their sizes. To install `ncdu`, simply run: sudo apt install ncdu. Once installed, you can navigate to any directory and run ncdu to visualize space usage interactively. Additionally, you might want to check log files, especially in /var/log as they can accumulate and consume significant space over time. Use sudo du -sh /var/log/* to see which log files are the largest.

      If you are looking for graphical options, the `baobab` tool (Disk Usage Analyzer) is available and can be installed with sudo apt install baobab. This will allow you to navigate through files and folders visually. Common culprits for excessive disk usage include backup directories (such as ~/backup), old kernels (which can be cleaned up using sudo apt autoremove --purge), and media files that might be stored in hidden directories. To check for hidden files, use du -sh .[!.]* in your home directory. By following these steps, you should be able to identify the sources of your disk space consumption and clean up unnecessary data effectively.



    2. Help with Low Disk Space on Ubuntu


      Dealing with Low Disk Space in Ubuntu

      Sounds like you’re having a tough time figuring out where all your disk space is going! It can be super frustrating when you’ve cleaned up files but still see low disk space warnings. Here are some steps and commands that might help you find those sneaky space thieves:

      Useful Commands to Check Disk Usage

      • df -h – This shows you the available disk space on your file systems in a human-readable format.
      • du -sh /* – This will give you a summary of disk usage for each folder in your root directory. Replace / with any specific directory you want to check.

      More Tools You Can Try

      If you want a better look at your disk usage, you can try installing ncdu. It’s a nice terminal tool that makes it easier to navigate through what’s taking up space:

      sudo apt install ncdu
ncdu /

      For graphical options, you can use Gnome Disks or Baobab (Disk Usage Analyzer). You can usually find Baobab by searching for “Disk Usage Analyzer” in your application menu.

      Common Culprits to Look For

      Here are some places to check that might be hogging space:

      • Log files: They can grow really large! Check in /var/log and see if there are big files there.
      • Hidden files: Files starting with a dot (.) aren’t always visible. Use ls -lah to see if any of those are taking up space.
      • Old kernels: If you’ve upgraded your kernel a lot, old ones might still be hanging around. You can check this with dpkg --list | grep linux-image.
      • Backups: Sometimes, backup tools save multiple versions. Check if you have any large backup files lurking around.

      Last Thoughts

      Keep running those commands and checking the common spots. You’ll probably find what’s eating up your space. Remember, it’s all about getting to know your system a bit better– it can be a bit of a puzzle at first, but you’ll get there!


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