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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsStart with df -h to see which mounted filesystem is running out of space, then use du or ncdu to find the large directories on that filesystem. Identify what a file is before removing it; deleting an unfamiliar system file can break software or the operating system.
Find the filesystem that is low on space
Run:
df -hThis reports capacity and available space for mounted filesystems in human-readable units. To check the filesystem containing a particular location, such as your home directory, pass that path:
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df -h /homedf reports mounted filesystems; it cannot show the capacity of a filesystem that is not mounted. Its job is to tell you where space is scarce, not which individual files are responsible. See the GNU Coreutils df manual.
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Once you know which filesystem is full, scan its mount point or a directory on it. On GNU/Linux systems with the documented GNU options, use:
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sudo du -xhd1 /pathReplace /path with the relevant mount point or directory. The options limit the scan to one directory level and keep it from crossing into other filesystems. du recursively estimates space used by the files and directories it can scan. Using sudo can help include directories your account cannot read, but do not treat elevated access as a reason to delete unfamiliar files. Option availability can differ on non-GNU systems. See the GNU Coreutils du manual.
Repeat the command on a large subdirectory to narrow the search. For example, if /home is large, scan /home/yourname, then its relevant subdirectories. Focus on the filesystem df identified: a scan that crosses a mount boundary may include data that belongs to another filesystem.
Browse usage interactively with ncdu
If you prefer navigating a directory tree in a terminal, ncdu provides an interactive, curses-based view. Run:
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ncdu -x /pathUse the path for the filesystem or directory you are investigating. The -x option keeps the scan on one filesystem. Ubuntu Noble’s manual documents ncdu version 1.19-0.1 and includes a read-only mode, -r, which disables deletion and shell-spawning features:
ncdu -r -x /pathAvailability and options depend on the distribution’s ncdu version. Consult the Ubuntu Noble ncdu manual for the documented behavior.
Use Ubuntu’s desktop storage tools
On Ubuntu desktops, the documentation lists Disk Usage Analyzer, System Monitor, and Usage for checking storage capacity and folder usage. Which applications and labels are available can vary by Ubuntu release and desktop environment. See Ubuntu’s Disks & storage help.
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Choose cleanup actions based on what you found
Large does not automatically mean safe to remove. Check what the content is and whether you still need it. Common places worth inspecting include Downloads, media collections, virtual-machine images, container data, and project or build files. Ubuntu’s guidance is to understand what is taking space before deciding what to remove, and to leave system-side content alone unless you understand the cleanup operation.
For important personal files, make a separate backup before deleting the originals. Ubuntu recommends keeping a copy somewhere separate, preferably on another device such as an external disk; confirm the backup is complete and usable before removing local copies. See Ubuntu’s disk-usage guidance.
On Debian or Ubuntu, clear APT’s package cache
These commands apply to systems that use APT, not every Linux distribution:
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sudo apt cleanclears retrieved package files from APT’s cache.sudo apt autocleanremoves cached package files that can no longer be downloaded.
They address cached package files; they do not identify or clean unrelated personal data.
Review automatically installed packages before removing them
On an APT-based system, sudo apt autoremove proposes removing automatically installed dependencies that are no longer needed. Read the proposed removal list before confirming. If it includes software or components you expect to keep, cancel and investigate rather than accepting the list blindly. The Ubuntu Noble APT manual documents these cleanup operations.
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If your system uses the systemd journal, first check its current disk use:
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journalctl --disk-usageYou can request size- or time-based cleanup of archived journal files with commands such as:
sudo journalctl --vacuum-size=500Msudo journalctl --vacuum-time=30daysThese examples set a size target of 500 MB or retain archived logs from the last 30 days, respectively. Vacuuming removes archived journal files, not active ones, so the reported total may remain above the requested size. This applies only where systemd journaling is in use. See the systemd version 255 journalctl manual.
Check the result and investigate mismatched totals
After cleaning, run df -h again and check the same filesystem you inspected. If the du totals do not account for the space reported by df, consider whether the scan crossed a filesystem boundary, whether permissions prevented it from seeing some files, or whether sparse files make apparent size differ from allocated disk usage. These tools measure at different levels, so their numbers need not match exactly.
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