Fix "No Space Left on Device"

Understanding the Error

This error appears when writing files even when df -h shows available space. Common causes:

• Inode exhaustion
• Deleted files still held open by processes
• Disk quotas reached
• Filesystem corruption

Fix 1: Check Inodes

df -i

If IUse% is 100%, delete small files or increase inodes.

Fix 2: Find Deleted But Open Files

When a file is deleted but a process still has it open, space isn't freed:

sudo lsof | grep deleted

Restart the process holding each file, or:

sudo systemctl restart process-name
# Or reboot

Fix 3: Check Mount Points

Another partition might be full:

df -h
mount | grep "on / "  # Check root partition

Fix 4: Check for Hidden Sparse Files

sudo find / -type f -size +1G 2>/dev/null

Fix 5: Verify Disk Quotas

sudo quota -v username
sudo repquota -a

Fix 6: Filesystem Check

Schedule fsck on next boot:

sudo touch /forcefsck
sudo reboot