The filesystem size remains the same after removing huge files...

[Max_4]

Hi all,
Thank you all for your time and help...
Something curious happens when deleting huge Oracle files on my system. After removing those files and doing a bdf right after that, the filesystem used space size appeared to be the same than before removing these huge files. It actually took a while to see some decrease in the 'used' filesystem column, when doing a bdf.
What I mean is that somehow it takes a time to update the 'used' space information of the filesystem.
Is this a typical behaviour? Does it have to do with the way bdf works?
What is the mechanism the system follows to update such filesystem information? Is LVM involved in it?

Thanks a lot for your help...

[Clemens van Everdingen]

Hi,

This has to do with the system needs the time for freeing up the inodes.

As far as I recall bdf looks at inode level to the file system.

Will take some time or maybe even a reboot.
Might be there is some lvm patch for this.

C.

[A. Clay Stephenson · Accepted solution]

The file is not actually removed until all the processes which have the file opened have either closed the file or terminated.

[Helen French]

Hi Manuel:

This behaviour of 'bdf' is normal. bdf takes some time to update the file system changes. At the same time, you can use 'du' command. du reports the change in size quickly:

# cd dir_name
# du -k ( disk usage in KBytes)

HTH,
Shiju

[Clemens van Everdingen]

Hi,

See also this threads:

http://forums.itrc.hp.com/cm/QuestionAnswer/1,,0x0086dfe5920fd5118fef0090279cd0f9,00.html

http://forums.itrc.hp.com/cm/QuestionAnswer/1,,0xc1e0f841489fd4118fef0090279cd0f9,00.html

C.

[Helen French]

Hi,

Check this thread to find out more about disk usage reports from bdf and du:

http://us-support.external.hp.com/cki/bin/doc.pl/sid=4101145d007bf7a634/screen=ckiDisplayDocument?docId=200000043425195

HTH,
Shiju

[MANOJ SRIVASTAVA]

Hi Manuel


Do a man sync . It takes sometime for the actuall change to take place and ofcourse bdf and du dont get here info from the same source .

Also I ahve sometime seen that even after removing old files the space is not regained back unless the filesystem in unmounted and mounted abck again.

You may have to try that too.


Manoj Srivastava

[John Bolene]

Did you do a fuser on them first to see if any process had them open?

If a process still has them open, the space cannot be reclaimed until the file is closed.

This may take a system boot if you pick on the wrong file.