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How to Check Disk Space on Linux?

Published in Linux System Administration 3 mins read

There are several ways to check disk space on a Linux system. Here are a few common methods:

1. Using the df Command

The df command (disk free) provides a concise overview of the mounted file systems and their available space.

Example:

df -h

This command displays the disk usage in a human-readable format (with units like 'K', 'M', 'G').

Output:

Filesystem      Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda1       49G   28G   21G  58% /
devtmpfs        3.9G     0  3.9G   0% /dev
tmpfs           3.9G     0  3.9G   0% /dev/shm
tmpfs           3.9G   16M  3.9G   1% /run
tmpfs           3.9G     0  3.9G   0% /sys/fs/cgroup
/dev/sdb1       99G   13G   86G  14% /mnt/data

The output shows the file system, total size, used space, available space, percentage used, and mount point.

2. Using the du Command

The du command (disk usage) calculates the disk space used by files and directories.

Example:

du -sh /home/user/

This command displays the total disk space used by the /home/user/ directory in a human-readable format.

Output:

2.1G    /home/user/

3. Using Graphical Disk Usage Analyzers

Several graphical tools are available for visualizing disk usage. Some popular options include:

  • Disk Usage Analyzer (DUA): A simple and intuitive tool that offers a graphical representation of disk usage.
  • KDE Partition Manager: A powerful tool that allows you to manage partitions, format disks, and analyze disk usage.
  • GNOME Disks: A user-friendly tool for managing disks, partitions, and filesystems.

These tools provide a more visual and interactive way to understand disk space utilization.

4. Checking Specific Files or Directories

You can also use the ls command with the -l option to check the size of specific files or directories:

ls -l /path/to/file

This command displays detailed information about the file, including its size.

5. Using the stat Command

The stat command provides detailed information about files and directories, including their size.

stat -c %s /path/to/file

This command displays the size of the file in bytes.

By using these methods, you can efficiently check disk space usage on your Linux system and identify areas where you might need to free up space.

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