Each departmental GNU/Linux account has a quota limiting how much space you are allowed to use on the disk storage system. This quota can vary depending on account type and research group, but is normally set to 300MB.
If you exceed your “soft” quota (a threshhold that is set to be slightly below your “hard” quota limit), you will receive a stern warning message via email and will need to look into how to eliminate some of your files. If you ignore the email and continue to use up more and more space, you will soon encounter the hard limit, and will then be unable to create any more files unless you delete something first. This can cause problems with email and even your ability to log in, so this is serious business!
How much space am I using?
To find out the amount of disk space that you are currently using, log in (via SSH) and run the command: quota
To determine which files or directories are taking up the most space, try the following: /usr/local/bin/DU
You might find that a lot of space is being taken up by web browser caches, especially if you sometimes use different browsers (each of which has its own cache directory). Many users find that periodically emptying their browser cache(s) is all that it takes to stay under quota.
What do I do now?!
Assuming that emptying your browser cache (see above) didn’t work, you need to either compress your files, move them elsewhere (out of your account), or just delete them outright.
To compress (or decompress) a file, use the gzip and gunzip utilities. This is a good way to reduce file size for files that you need to keep around, but don’t have to access all the time. Note that it is much better at compressing things like text and documents than it is at compressing images or other binary data.
To compress a file, use the command:
gzip -9 filename
(Note that filename will be renamed to
filename.gz, to indicate its
gzipped status.)
To decompress the file, use the command:
gunzip filename.gz
(This will also restore the filename to its original, pre-gzipped form.)
Note that during compression, gzip might require up to twice the original file’s space to be present, for use as scratch space during the operation. If this will cause you to exceed your hard quota limit, you will need to first move the files to a different area, such as /temp/ (which does not count against your quota).
Do not try to make /temp/ into a general repository for your files. While it is acceptable to use it for short-term storage without it counting against your disk quota, files are periodically and automatically deleted from this space after a few days. Don’t risk it! Also, even /temp/ has a quota (though it is a generous 1GB).
No way around it, I need more space!
If you really, truly need more space—and can make a compelling case for it before a jaded and skeptical Administrator—then send us a politely worded request via email (help@physics.utexas.edu), or come by our office (RLM 7.126) to request additional space in person.
Try to be as conservative as possible in your request. Also, be sure that you have already thoroughly cleaned out any old or unneeded files before you ask for more space. The primary goal for these systems is to help support people in their research; anything else (personal home pages, other documents, etc.) is secondary and probably won’t warrant an increase of your quota.
Further assistance
If you have any questions, or if you need additional help with quota issues, please contact us for further assistance.