Disk & Filesystem Management (Du/Df/Lsblk/Fstrim)

Stop your filesystems from lying to you about deleted space

🧩 The Challenge

Ever deleted a massive log file but df still insists the partition is totally full? It’s enough to make you want to throw your keyboard out the window when you know you just cleared fifty gigs.

💡 The Fix

You need to track down the hidden processes that are still holding those file handles open. Even if you unlink the file, the space stays locked until the process finally lets go.

lsof +L1

⚙️ Why It Works

This lists all open files that have a link count of zero. Once you identify the process holding onto the descriptor, just restart the service or send it a HUP signal to release the space.

🚀 Pro-Tip: If the process is something critical you can’t restart, try truncating the file to zero bytes from inside /proc instead.

Linux Tips & Tricks | © ngelinux.com | 8/5/2026