Running out of disk space on a Linux server can slow your applications down. Databases stop writing, logs stop recording, and sometimes, you can’t even log in. That’s why knowing how to check disk space in Linux is a basic but critical skill for anyone managing servers.

In this guide, we’ll show you the exact commands to check disk usage, find what’s consuming space, and free up storage before it impacts your business.

Whether you’re running a SaaS platform, client websites, or internal infrastructure, this guide will help you stay ahead of downtime.

Linux Disk Space Commands at a Glance

Here are the most common commands to check disk space in Linux and what they do:

How to Check Disk Space in Linux with df

The simplest way to check disk space in Linux is with the df command. It shows free and used space across all mounted filesystems, making it the quickest way to see if you’re running out of storage.

While you can simply type df, the output shows space in 1-kilobyte blocks, which isn’t very easy to read. We’ll use the -h (human-readable) flag for a much clearer view. To use this tool, open your terminal and run the following command:

df -h

You will see an output similar to this:

Let’s break down what each column means:

• Filesystem: This is the name of the system for the storage partition. You often see names like /dev/sda1 or /dev/vda1. These refer to the first partition on your primary hard drive. (sda is common for physical drives, while vda is often used for virtual server disks).
• Size: The total size of the filesystem.
• Used: The amount of space currently in use.
• Avail: The amount of free space remaining.
• Use%: The percentage of the disk that is full. This is the most important column to watch! If this number gets close to 100%, you may start having problems.
• Mounted on: This is the directory in the file structure where the filesystem is accessible. The most important one is / (the “root” directory), as this is where your entire operating system and all its files are stored.

Useful df Options for Disk Space

The df command has several useful options that make it easier to narrow down problems, check filesystem types, and track inode usage.

How to Check a Specific Filesystem with df

You can specify the path if you only care about the space in a specific directory (like your home folder). For example:

df -h /home

How to Show Filesystem Type in Linux

You can use the -T flag to see the format of your filesystems (e.g., ext4, XFS). For example:

df -hT

How to Check Inode Usage in Linux

Sometimes, you can run out of “inodes” before you run out of disk space. An inode is a data structure that stores information about a file. Think of it like an entry in a library’s card catalog; every file needs one. If you have millions of tiny files, you might exhaust your inodes. To check this, use the -i flag. For Example:

df -i

How to Find What’s Using Disk Space in Linux

Once you know a disk is nearly full, the next step is finding what’s using the space. The du (disk usage) command helps by showing the size of files and directories so you can quickly spot what’s taking up the most room.

A simple du -h lists the size of every subdirectory, but that can be overwhelming. These options make du far more practical:

How to Use du to Check Disk Usage

The du command has several useful options depending on whether you need a quick summary or a detailed breakdown. Here are the most common ways to use it.

How to Get a Summary of Directory Size with du

The -s flag can be used to get a summary of disk usage. This command shows a single numerical value, which is the total size of the directory.

du -sh .

How to List Sizes of Top-Level Directories in Linux

This is perfect for quickly breaking down which folders are the largest without digging too deep. The –max-depth=1 flag tells du to only go one level down. For example, to check the folders in the current directory, you could run:

sudo du -h --max-depth=1

How to Find the Largest Directories in Linux

This is a favorite command of system administrators. It combines three tools to quickly pinpoint the biggest space hogs on your system. For example, if you want to check the ten biggest directories in the webapps directory, then you can run the following command:

du -h ./webapps/ | sort -rh | head -n 10

 Let’s break down how this one-liner works:

1. du -h <path>: Calculates the disk usage for every file and folder in the provided path.
2. |: This is the “pipe.” It takes the output of the first command and sends it as the input to the next command.
3. sort -rh: This sorts the list it receives from du. The -r flag reverses the sort to be descending (largest first), and the -h flag ensures it understands human-readable numbers (so “10G” is correctly sorted as larger than “2M”).
4. | head -n 10: This final pipe takes the sorted list and shows only the top 10 lines.

Visual and Interactive Ways to Check Disk Space in Linux

Commands like df and du work everywhere, but sometimes a visual tool makes it faster to understand disk usage.

How to Use ncdu for Interactive Disk Usage in Linux

This is a fantastic command-line tool that scans a directory and then provides an interactive, navigable list. You can use your arrow keys to drill down into folders and quickly see what’s using the most space. To install ncdu on Debian and Ubuntu-based systems, run the command sudo apt install ncdu. For CentOS and RHEL systems, you can install it using sudo yum install ncdu. Once the installation is complete, you can scan the current directory by running the command sudo ncdu .

GUI Tools to Check Disk Space in Linux (Baobab, Filelight)

If you are using Linux with a graphical desktop environment, you have even more intuitive options.

• Disk Usage Analyzer (Baobab): The default tool for GNOME-based desktops like Ubuntu. It provides a visual ring chart that makes it easy to see the largest directories.
• Filelight: A similar tool for the KDE Plasma desktop environment. This tool displays the disk usage using visual charts, which makes it easy to gather information about your filesystem at a glance.

How to Free Up Disk Space in Linux

Once you’ve confirmed that a disk is nearly full, the next step is cleanup. Start with safe methods like clearing package caches or truncating large logs. Be careful not to delete system files you don’t recognize – that can break your server.

Here are a few safe places to start cleaning to reclaim disk space.

How to Clean the Package Manager Cache in Linux

Package managers (like apt for Ubuntu/Debian or dnf/yum for Fedora/CentOS) download and store installation files in a cache. After installation, these files are often no longer needed. This is usually the safest and easiest way to free up a good amount of space.

For Debian and Ubuntu-based systems:
These two commands will remove old installation files and any unused dependency packages.

sudo apt clean
sudo apt autoremove

For Fedora, CentOS, and RHEL-based systems:
This command will clear out all cached package data.

sudo dnf clean all

Or for older systems using yum:

sudo yum clean all 

How to Manage Large Log Files Safely

By default, the system and application logs are stored in the /var/log directory. Over time, some of these files can grow to several gigabytes in size.

While you could delete a log file with rm, it’s not recommended. A running application may still be “holding” the file open, leading to issues. A safer method is to truncate the file, emptying its contents without deleting it.

To empty a large log file, use the truncate command. For example, to empty a file named large-app.log:

sudo truncate -s 0 /var/log/large-app.log 

This command instantly sets the file’s size to zero, freeing up the space.

How to Review User and Temporary Files

• /home Directory: Personal files, downloads, and documents are stored here. Use the du commands you learned earlier to navigate your home directory (/home/your-username) and find large files or directories that you no longer need.
• /tmp Directory: This directory is used for temporary files. While most systems clear it on reboot, sometimes files can be left behind. It’s worth checking this directory for any old, large files that can be removed.

Key Takeaways on Checking Disk Space in Linux

Knowing how to check disk space in Linux with tools like df, du, and ncdu gives you control over one of the most common server issues: a full disk. With these basics, you can spot problems early and act before they cause downtime.

Now that you understand the basics of checking and managing disk space, you can dive deeper into related commands and techniques. We recommend these guides for your next steps:

However, logging in to manually check your disk space isn’t always practical, and by the time you realize there’s a problem, it might already be too late. A modern server control panel is the answer for those who want to move from reactive troubleshooting to proactive management.

This is where RunCloud shines.

RunCloud is designed to simplify every aspect of your server management workflow, including health monitoring. Instead of manually running commands, you get a clean, visual dashboard that displays your disk usage, CPU load, and memory at a glance. More importantly, you can configure alerts to be notified automatically when your disk space reaches a critical threshold, giving you plenty of time to act before it impacts your applications.

If you’re ready to spend less time managing and more time building, take the next step.

Sign up for RunCloud today and discover how effortless server management can be!

Linux Disk Space FAQs

The post How To Check Disk Space in Linux appeared first on MASSIVE News.

It works as an overlay for Vulkan and OpenGL applications, displaying important information like FPS (frames per second), CPU and GPU usage, temperatures, and more.

In this article, we’ll explore what MangoHud is, how it works, and how you can use it to monitor your system’s performance. We’ll also provide step-by-step instructions for installing and configuring MangoHud on your system.

What is MangoHud?

MangoHud is an open-source project available on GitHub, which was created to provide a simple and customizable way to monitor system performance while running Vulkan and OpenGL applications. The overlay is designed to be lightweight, meaning it doesn’t use much of your system’s resources, so it won’t interfere with your gaming or other tasks.

Key Features of MangoHud:

• FPS Counter – Displays the current frames per second, which is useful for understanding how smoothly a game or application is running.
• CPU and GPU Usage – Shows how much of your processor and graphics card is being used.
• Temperature Monitoring – Tracks the temperature of your CPU and GPU to help you avoid overheating.
• Frame Timing – Provides information about the time it takes to render each frame.
• Customization – Allows you to change the position, size, and color of the overlay to suit your preferences.
• Support for Multiple APIs – Works with both Vulkan and OpenGL applications.

How to Install MangoHud on Linux

MangoHud is available in the official repositories of many Linux distributions and can be installed using the default package managers.

sudo apt install mangohud         [On Debian, Ubuntu and Mint]
sudo dnf install mangohud         [On RHEL/CentOS/Fedora and Rocky/AlmaLinux]
sudo pacman -S mangohud           [On Arch Linux]
sudo zypper install mangohud      [On OpenSUSE]    

After installation, you can verify that MangoHud is installed using:

mangohud --version

How to Use MangoHud in Linux

Once installed, MangoHud can be enabled for games and applications with simple commands.

Enable MangoHud for OpenGL Applications

To run an OpenGL game or application with MangoHud, use:

mangohud application_name

Enable MangoHud for Vulkan Applications

For Vulkan-based applications, simply prepend mangohud to the command:

mangohud vulkan_application

The overlay will appear in the top-left corner by default, showing FPS, CPU/GPU usage, and other metrics.

Enable MangoHud for Steam Games

To use MangoHud with Steam games, go to Library, right-click on a game, select Properties, and in the Launch Options, add.

MANGOHUD=1 %command%

Now, MangoHud will appear when launching the game.

Enable MangoHud for Proton Games

For Windows games running through Proton, use the following command in Steam’s launch options:

MANGOHUD=1 PROTON_ENABLE_NVAPI=1 PROTON_NO_ESYNC=1 %command%

Configuring MangoHud in Linux

MangoHud allows users to customize the overlay using a configuration file.

~/.config/MangoHud/MangoHud.conf

You can modify the config file to change the display settings.

fps_limit=60
no_display=0
position=top-left
background_alpha=0.4
font_size=24
cpu_temp=1
gpu_temp=1
ram=1

You can also change settings while running a game using the following keyboard shortcuts:

• Shift + F12 → Toggle MangoHud on/off.
• Shift + F11 → Toggle logging mode.

Conclusion

MangoHud is an excellent tool for Linux users who want to monitor system performance while running games or graphical applications. It provides real-time insights into FPS, CPU/GPU usage, temperatures, and memory consumption, helping users optimize their gaming experience.

The post MangoHud – Monitor FPS, CPU & GPU Load in Linux Games appeared first on MASSIVE News.

And knowing your Linux OS version precisely is essential when troubleshooting a software installation, planning a system upgrade, or ensuring security patch compatibility.

This straightforward guide will demystify the process of checking your Linux operating system version and provide multiple command-line techniques that work across various distributions, such as Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, and more.

How to Check OS Version in Linux Command Line

There are six ways to check your Linux version via the command line. Here’s our guide to all six methods.

1. Using the lsb_release Command

The lsb_release -a command provides comprehensive information about your Linux distribution, including version details and codename. This command works across most Linux distributions and offers a quick, standardized way to retrieve system information.

Suggested read: How to Check Linux CPU Usage or Utilization? (5 Ways)

2. Using the /etc/os-release File

The /etc/os-release file contains detailed distribution-specific information that can be viewed using the cat command. It provides the operating system name, version, and other identification details. This method offers a reliable and consistent approach to checking the OS version across different Linux distributions.

Suggested read: How to Kill a Process in Linux From the Command Line

3. Using the uname Command

The uname -a command displays system information, including kernel version and system architecture, which helps identify the core operating system details. If you want to check the kernel version, you can use uname -r to view the kernel release information.

Suggested read: How to Find Most Used Disk Space Directories and Files in Linux

4. Using the hostnamectl Command

The hostnamectl command offers a modern, systemd based approach to retrieving system information. It displays detailed operating system and hardware details in a clean, readable format. This command is particularly useful for systems using systemd as their init system.

Suggested read: Mastering the Echo Command in Linux (with Practical Examples)

5. Using the /etc/issue File

The /etc/issue file briefly describes the operating system and can be viewed using the cat command. It provides a quick glimpse of the system’s distribution and version. This method offers a simple, straightforward way to check basic system identification information.

Suggested read: How to List Linux Users and Groups in Ubuntu with Command Line

6. Using the cat /proc/version Command

The cat /proc/version command reads the Linux kernel version directly from the virtual /proc filesystem, offering a quick and direct method to view kernel information. This command provides raw kernel details and is particularly useful for technical users seeking precise system information.

Wrapping Up: When and Why to Check Your Linux OS Version

Understanding your Linux OS version becomes particularly important when deploying web applications, and this is where platforms such as RunCloud shine for developers and website owners.

RunCloud simplifies the complex process of Linux server management, enabling users without deep technical expertise to deploy, manage, and scale web applications effortlessly.

Whether you’re a seasoned developer or a beginner looking to launch your first web application, RunCloud eliminates the traditional barriers associated with Linux server management.

RunCloud provides an intuitive interface that abstracts the technical complexities, allowing you to focus on your application rather than server configuration intricacies.

Ready to simplify your web application deployment and management? Transform your web hosting experience now with RunCloud.

FAQs on Checking OS Version in Linux

The post How to Check OS Version in Linux via Command Line appeared first on MASSIVE News.