![\"\"](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/11\/Linux-cheat-sheet.png\/public\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p>
Prerequisites<\/h2>
Before learning different methods to check disk space in Linux, you should have the following:<\/p>
- \n
- Linux CLI knowledge<\/strong>. A basic understanding of the Linux command-line interface will help you navigate through the commands and interpret their outputs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Permission to run commands<\/strong>. Having administrative or root access is often required to execute some of the disk space management commands.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Terminal or SSH client applications<\/strong>. If you manage a remote or virtual server, make sure to use a terminal or an SSH client like PuTTY<\/a> to access the server.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
How to Check Disk Space in Linux<\/h2>
Here are some Linux commands<\/a>, their basic syntax, and use cases to check your system’s disk space. We’ll also go over a dedicated method to monitor disk space for Hostinger VPS<\/a> customers.<\/p>
How to Check Disk Space in Linux Using the df Command<\/h3>
The df<\/strong> command, short for disk free, is a standard Unix command used to display the amount of available disk space on file systems. The basic syntax of the df<\/strong> command is as follows:<\/p>
df [OPTIONS] [FILE]<\/pre>
Some useful options include:<\/p>
- \n
- -h<\/strong>. Prints sizes in a human-readable format, such as KB, MB, and GB.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -a<\/strong>. Includes dummy file systems.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -T<\/strong>. Displays the file system type.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
As an example, let’s use:<\/p>
df -h<\/pre>
This will output something like:<\/p>
Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on\n\/dev\/sda1 100G 50G 45G 60% \/\ntmpfs 1.9G 1.2M 1.9G 1% \/dev\/shm\n\/dev\/sda2 200G 100G 90G 53% \/home<\/pre>
Here is an explanation of each field:<\/p>
- \n
- Filesystem<\/strong>. The file system’s name.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Size<\/strong>. The file system’s total size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Used<\/strong>. The amount of space used.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Avail<\/strong>. The amount of available space.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Use%<\/strong>. The percentage of space used.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Mounted on<\/strong>. The mount point of the file system.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
How to Check File Space Usage in Linux Using the du Command<\/h3>
The du<\/strong>, or disk usage command, estimates file space usage in Linux. It provides detailed information about the disk space used by files and directories.<\/p>
The basic syntax of the du<\/strong> command is:<\/p>
du [OPTIONS] [FILE\/DIR]<\/pre>
Here are some useful options you can apply:<\/p>
- \n
- -h<\/strong>. Shows sizes in a human-readable format.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -s<\/strong>. Summarizes the total for each argument.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -a<\/strong>. Includes files as well as directories.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
To check the disk usage of a specific directory, use:<\/p>
du -h \/path\/to\/directory<\/pre>
This command will list the sizes of all files and subdirectories within the specified directory.<\/p>
For instance, if you run:<\/p>
du -h \/home\/user<\/pre>
You should see the following output:<\/p>
4.0K \/home\/user\/Documents\n2.0M \/home\/user\/Downloads\n500K \/home\/user\/Pictures\n2.5M \/home\/user<\/pre>
If you only want to summarize the total disk usage of a directory, execute the following:<\/p>
du -sh \/path\/to\/directory<\/pre>
This command provides a single total size for the specified directory.<\/p>
Here’s an example of its usage:<\/p>
du -sh \/home\/user<\/pre>
The output should resemble the following:<\/p>
2.5M \/home\/user<\/pre>
How to Check Disk Usage in Linux Using the pydf Command<\/h3>
The Python-based pydf<\/strong> command displays the amount of disk space used and is available on all mounted file systems. Compared to the traditional df<\/strong> command, it provides a colorful and more readable output.<\/p>
To install pydf<\/strong>, you can use your Linux distribution’s package manager. For example, on Debian or Ubuntu-based systems, run:<\/p>
sudo apt-get install pydf<\/pre>
For Red Hat or CentOS-based systems, you might need to enable the EPEL repository beforehand:<\/p>
sudo yum install epel-release\nsudo yum install pydf<\/pre>
Once installed, familiarize yourself with its basic syntax:<\/p>
pydf [OPTIONS]<\/pre>
Some common options to use include:<\/p>
- \n
- -h<\/strong>. Prints sizes in KB, MB, or GB.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -v<\/strong>. Displays the version information.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
To check disk usage with pydf<\/strong>, you can execute:<\/p>
pydf -h<\/pre>
This will produce an output similar to:<\/p>
\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/06\/terminal-pydf-command-output.png\/public\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>Meanwhile, the df <\/strong>command produces:<\/p>
\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/06\/terminal-df-command-output.png\/public\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>The pydf <\/strong>command’s output is more colorful, which can be more user-friendly for those who prefer a visual representation of disk usage.<\/p>
How to Check Disk Usage in Linux Using the ncdu Command<\/h3>
The NCurses Disk Usage (ncdu<\/strong>) command is a disk usage analyzer with an ncurses interface. It provides an interactive way to view and manage disk usage, suitable for identifying large files and directories.<\/p>
To install ncdu<\/strong> on Debian or Ubuntu, run:<\/p>
sudo apt-get install ncdu<\/pre>
If you use a Red Hat or CentOS-based distribution, use:<\/p>
sudo yum install ncdu<\/pre>
The basic syntax of the ncdu<\/strong> command is:<\/p>
ncdu [OPTIONS] [DIRECTORY]<\/pre>
To start ncdu<\/strong> and analyze the current directory, you can run:<\/p>
ncdu<\/pre>
This will launch ncdu<\/strong> in interactive mode, where you can access directories and view disk usage with the following keys:<\/p>
- \n
- Up\/down arrows<\/strong>. Navigate through the list of files and directories.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Enter<\/strong>. Open a directory to view its contents.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- D<\/strong>. Delete the selected file or directory.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Q<\/strong>. Quit ncdu<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
For instance, if you run:<\/p>
ncdu \/home\/user<\/pre>
It will produce:<\/p>
--- \/home\/user --------------------\n. 2.5 GiB [##########] \/Downloads\n. 1.5 GiB [######....] \/Documents\n. 500 MiB [##........] \/Pictures\n. 100 MiB [..........] \/Music<\/pre>
How to List Block Devices in Linux Using the lsblk Command<\/h3>
The lsblk<\/strong> command displays information about all available or specified block devices. While its primary purpose is to show your system’s storage configuration, lsblk<\/strong> can also provide details about disk space and partition sizes.<\/p>
Here’s the basic syntax of the lsblk<\/strong> command:<\/p>
lsblk [OPTIONS]<\/pre>
Some options you can add include:<\/p>
- \n
- -a<\/strong>. Lists all devices, including empty ones.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -f<\/strong>. Displays file system information.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -l<\/strong>. Uses list format output.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -o<\/strong>. Specifies which columns to display.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
For instance, running lsblk -f<\/strong> will produce an output similar to:<\/p>
NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT\nsda 8:0 0 100G 0 disk \n├─sda1 8:1 0 50G 0 part \/\n└─sda2 8:2 0 50G 0 part \/home\nsdb 8:16 0 200G 0 disk \n└─sdb1 8:17 0 200G 0 part \/data<\/pre>
Here’s an explanation of each field:<\/p>
- \n
- NAME<\/strong>. The device’s name.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- MAJ:MIN<\/strong>. The major and minor device numbers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- RM<\/strong>. Indicates if the device is removable (1) or not (0).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- SIZE<\/strong>. The device’s size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- RO<\/strong>. Indicates if the device is read-only (1) or not (0).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- TYPE<\/strong>. The device’s type, such as disk or part.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- MOUNTPOINT<\/strong>. Where the device is mounted in the file system.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
How to Get Detailed File Information in Linux Using the stat Command<\/h3>
The stat<\/strong> command presents detailed information about specific files and file systems. It provides various metadata, such as file size, access permissions, and modification time, making it a powerful tool for analyzing files.<\/p>
Its basic syntax is as follows:<\/p>
stat [OPTIONS] [FILE]<\/pre>
There are some options you can append to stat<\/strong>, such as:<\/p>
- \n
- -c<\/strong>. Allows custom formatting of the output.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -f<\/strong>. Displays information about the file system instead of the file.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
To get detailed information about a file system, execute the following:<\/p>
stat -f \/path\/to\/mountpoint<\/pre>
For example:<\/p>
stat -f \/<\/pre>
It will display details about the file system where the root directory is mounted:<\/p>
File: \"\/\"\nID: 1234abcd5678ef90 Namelen: 255 Type: ext4\nBlock size: 4096 Fundamental block size: 4096\nBlocks: Total: 5242880 Free: 1024000 Available: 1000000\nInodes: Total: 2621440 Free: 2000000<\/pre>
Here are the fields and their explanations:<\/p>
- \n
- File<\/strong>. The file system’s name.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- ID<\/strong>. The file system ID in the hexadecimal format.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Namelen<\/strong>. The maximum length of file names.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Type<\/strong>. The file system’s type, such as ext4 or xfs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Block size<\/strong>. Each block’s size in bytes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Blocks: Total<\/strong>. The file system’s total number of blocks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Free<\/strong>. The number of free blocks in the file system in KB or MB.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Available<\/strong>. The number of available blocks for non-superusers in KB or MB.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Inodes: Total<\/strong>. The total number of inodes in the file system.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Free<\/strong>. The number of free inodes in the file system.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
Alternatively, use Kodee<\/strong> AI assistant to check your file’s stats. To access the tool, open hPanel<\/a> and click Manage<\/strong> on your VPS. Navigate to the sidebar and select Kodee<\/strong>. In the prompt field, simply ask a question like “Can you check the stats of file1.zip?”<\/p>
\n![\"Kodee](\"\/tutorials\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/11\/hpanel-vps-kodee-stat-1024x602.png\")
- ID<\/strong>. The file system ID in the hexadecimal format.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -f<\/strong>. Displays information about the file system instead of the file.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
- MAJ:MIN<\/strong>. The major and minor device numbers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -f<\/strong>. Displays file system information.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Enter<\/strong>. Open a directory to view its contents.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -v<\/strong>. Displays the version information.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
- -s<\/strong>. Summarizes the total for each argument.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Size<\/strong>. The file system’s total size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- -a<\/strong>. Includes dummy file systems.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Permission to run commands<\/strong>. Having administrative or root access is often required to execute some of the disk space management commands.<\/li>\n\n\n\n