Check Disk Quota and Usage
Introduction
This guide shows you how to check the amount of disk space and number of files you are using in your /home and /scratch directories. You can also check your limit on your disk space and number of files (i.e., your “quota”). This guide will help you manage your disk space and give tips on what do when you’ve reached your quota.
Table of Contents
Default quotas
| Data location | /home |
/scratch |
|---|---|---|
| Default quota (disk) | 30 GB | 100 GB |
| Default quota (number of items) | 250,000 items | 250,000 items |
| Purpose | Repeatedly used files (templates, source code, software, reference data) |
Working data (inputs, outputs, logs, stderr, stdout) |
Need more quota?
Check your quota
For the most up-to-date information about your quota, use the get_quotas command.
get_quotas
This will print a table with your /home and /scratch quotas. An example output is shown below.
[user@spark-login ~]$ get_quotas
Path Disk_Used(GB) Disk_Limit(GB) Files_Used File_Limit
/home/user 6.08254 30 150372 250000
/scratch/user 2.33743 100 22 250000
To print the quota for a path in /home, /scratch, and /software that you have access to, (i.e., a group directory), use the -p option:
get_quotas -p <path to directory>
An example output of the get_quotas command with the -p option is shown below:
[user@spark-login ~]$ get_quotas -p /software/groups/example_group
Path Disk_Used(GB) Disk_Limit(GB) Files_Used File_Limit
/software/groups/example_group 0.000433144 100 3 1000
Check your Message of the Day (MOTD)
Your quota is also printed upon login. See below for an example:
_____________________________________________________________________
##### # # ####### ##### Issues? Email chtc@cs.wisc.edu
# # # # # # # Unauthorized use prohibited by:
# # # # # WI Statutes: s. 947.0125
# ####### # # U.S. Code: 18 USC 1030
# # # # # U.S. Code: 18 USC 2510-2522
# # # # # # # U.S. Code: 18 USC 2701-2712
##### # # # ##### U.S. Code: 18 USC § 1831
For off campus ssh access use https://www.doit.wisc.edu/network/vpn/
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== NOTICE: THIS NODE IS ON PUPPET ENVIRONMENT "puppet8" ==
Filesystem quota report (last updated 01:01 PM)
Storage Used (GB) Limit (GB) Files (#) File Cap (#) Quota (%)
-------------- ----------- ------------ ----------- -------------- -----------
/home/user 6.08 30 150372 250000 20.28
/scratch/user 2.34 100 22 250001 2.34
However, we recommend using the get_quotas command for the most up-to-date information.
Check the size of a directory and its contents
If you want to check the size of specific directories and their contents, you can do this with the ncdu utility.
[user@spark-login ~]$ ncdu /home/username
[user@spark-login ~]$ ncdu /scratch/username
When ncdu has finished running, the output will give you a total file count and allow you to navigate between subdirectories for even more details. Type q when you’re ready to exit the output viewer.
What to do when you’ve reached your quota
When you’ve reached your quota, you may encounter error messages such as Disk quota exceeded. When you encounter the error message, we recommend the following steps:
- Check your quota with
get_quotas. At which data location did you reach your quota? Did you reach your disk quota or your items quota? - If possible, remove any files you no longer need from the system.
- If you still need more disk space, request more quota.
⚠️ CHTC is not a storage service
CHTC data locations are intended for temporarily storing files used in active calculations only. Once you are done with the files, please remove them from the system to clear disk space.
We do not back up any of the data you place on our system. It is your responsibility to back up your own files.