[SOLVED] About root and home Storage

Quick to answer questions about finding your way around Linux Mint as a new user.
Forum rules
There are no such things as "stupid" questions. However if you think your question is a bit stupid, then this is the right place for you to post it. Stick to easy to-the-point questions that you feel people can answer fast. For long and complicated questions use the other forums in the support section.
Before you post read how to get help. Topics in this forum are automatically closed 6 months after creation.
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

[SOLVED] About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

I have sda(window10 I use) and sdb(window7 I don't use).
deleted sda window part and install Linux Mint.
/ root is 20GB (sda4)
/home is 180GB (sda1)
swap is 8GB

Problem :
I useing linux 3 days and now / root is almost full . The notification appear to clean.
So I think Os don't use /home storage to store my data .
My data and some system files are storing together in /root .
How to solve this.
Btw in /home storage there is only username folder and timeshift folder.

Important Drive:
sda3 , sdb3

sda4 20GB is root
sda1 180GB is home
Image here:
https://ibb.co/dMscTHx
Last edited by LockBot on Tue Feb 14, 2023 11:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
User avatar
BwingBob
Level 3
Level 3
Posts: 182
Joined: Fri Sep 03, 2021 1:43 am
Location: Texas, USA.

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by BwingBob »

MintThanHtutZaw wrote: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:51 am I have sda(window10 I use) and sdb(window7 I don't use).
deleted sda window part and install Linux Mint.
/ root is 20GB (sda4)
/home is 180GB (sda1)
swap is 8GB

Problem :
I useing linux 3 days and now / root is almost full . The notification appear to clean.
So I think Os don't use /home storage to store my data .
My data and some system files are storing together in /root .
How to solve this.
Btw in /home storage there is only username folder and timeshift folder.

Important Drive:
sda3 , sdb3

sda4 20GB is root
sda1 180GB is home
Image here:
https://ibb.co/dMscTHx
Take a look at Disk Usage Analyzer, it should point you in the right direction.

Bob
Attachments
Screenshot from 2022-08-14 11-05-39.png
Pop_OS! 22.04 {Dell Inspiron 15 5510}
Linux Mint Cinnamon 21 {Minisforum UM700}
Pop_OS! Thelio Mira ;-)
We have met the enemy and he is us. - Pogo
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

I checked all.
Do you think 29GB is enough for root ?
I do it by following from Google
They say root should be 20GB and home must be larger.

My problem is I have storage in home but root is becomes low space and showing notifications.
User avatar
AndyMH
Level 21
Level 21
Posts: 13569
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2016 5:23 pm
Location: Wiltshire

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by AndyMH »

They lied!

I've run with a 30GiB / partition for years, typically 20GiB used, so 20GiB is not enough.

Note - I don't use flatpaks or snaps, don't hibernate and have a separate swap partition.

To increase the size of the / partition you will need to boot from your mint install stick and typically shrink and move your home partition so that you have the unallocated space to the right of / before you can increase its size. You cannot un-mount / and /home booting normally and you cannot change a partition unless it is un-mounted.
Thinkcentre M720Q - LM21.3 cinnamon, 4 x T430 - LM21.3 cinnamon, Homebrew desktop i5-8400+GTX1080 Cinnamon 19.0
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

We are the Same.

I use timesnap but it is saved to home (largest storage)

I shrink storage but cannot add it.
I will try again tomorrow
User avatar
AndyMH
Level 21
Level 21
Posts: 13569
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2016 5:23 pm
Location: Wiltshire

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by AndyMH »

I have never had a problem resizing/moving / or /home, but you never know. Make sure you have a backup before you start.
Thinkcentre M720Q - LM21.3 cinnamon, 4 x T430 - LM21.3 cinnamon, Homebrew desktop i5-8400+GTX1080 Cinnamon 19.0
User avatar
Pjotr
Level 23
Level 23
Posts: 19878
Joined: Mon Mar 07, 2011 10:18 am
Location: The Netherlands (Holland) 🇳🇱
Contact:

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by Pjotr »

I discourage the creation of more than one partition for your Linux, and this is why:
https://easylinuxtipsproject.blogspot.c ... 2.html#ID2
(item 2)

Been there, done that. From 2007 to 2009, or thereabouts. Then I realized that my life was already complicated enough without the useless extra layer of complications brought about by having a separate home partition. :mrgreen:
Tip: 10 things to do after installing Linux Mint 21.3 Virginia
Keep your Linux Mint healthy: Avoid these 10 fatal mistakes
Twitter: twitter.com/easylinuxtips
All in all, horse sense simply makes sense.
Cosmo.
Level 24
Level 24
Posts: 22968
Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2014 7:34 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by Cosmo. »

The trouble will be your partition layout. There are 11 GB unused space, but for getting able to use them for your Linux system, you would have to move the extended partition at first. This extended partition exists mainly of a senseless 8 GB swap partition and two very small partitions, which seem to be needed for Windows. These 2 small partitions are together less an 1 GB. They would perfectly fit into the unused space at the end of the layout, but there is currently no way, because more than 1 extended partition is not possible.
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

I think Swap and other small part are not for Window.
Swap , EFI and boot (for Linux)
Window is sdb.And I don't use that sdb window, I use as external HDD.
So
I have to reinstall Linux to fix that issues?
I don't want to reinstall because
I don't want this still happen.
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

My data are storing in /root instead of /home

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

When I install Linux Mint
I give root for 29GB and
180 GB for /home
I also have data D drive in sda ( I deleted window sda and install linux in sda)

The problem is /root is filling after 3days use

Now the largest storage I gave is empty and useless

What should I do

I also want to know /home and /root/home are same ?
Attachments
/home  ,  /root and  home
/home , /root and home
Last edited by xenopeek on Mon Aug 15, 2022 1:40 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: same topic, merged here; please don't cross post
User avatar
zcot
Level 9
Level 9
Posts: 2795
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2016 6:08 pm

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by zcot »

Do you have snaps? remove them temporarily.

Do you have flatpaks? remove them temporarily.

BOTH of those type of software will store in /. Also, they will take up more space than the normal type of default software.

When you clear enough room you are fine.


Also, you can reconfigure the 2 important existing partitions.

You have to boot with live session, usb, dvd. You can not make adjustment to partition when you are using the system. You have to boot usb/dvd installer instead.

Use gparted, you can shrink /home. Next you can increase /.


For me, the easy solution is start again(this is terrible partition layout, horrible partition status). Reinstall and let Mint use the entire drive, sda. But, you do not want easy. You want the hard way. So, I tell you the information above, and then you can struggle with this and get a solution.
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

When I just shrink and increase successfully to root , The Os don't need to reinstall right?

In my situation , I have to delete all linux partitions. because of layout extended . Cannot shrink and increase anymore.

When I install Linux thers is also 11GB unallocated storage. My stupid :(

When I look in google before Linux installation , They told me /home is largest part and /root is for system.
Now in my computer, /home is free space useless and /root become all data storage and full .
/root 28GB
/root 28GB
User avatar
trytip
Level 14
Level 14
Posts: 5371
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2016 1:20 pm

Re: My data are storing in /root instead of /home

Post by trytip »

you most likely have your timeshift folder full or boot folder full of kernels. in update manager > view > linux lernels > remove kernels and open timeshift to delete the old you don't need
Image
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

timeshift is in /home (280GB) so I don't worry about timeshift . But My 250GB /home is now only use by timeshift .
I have also home folder inside /root (20GB)
Notiffication still showing ( low space in root ....)
Attachments
this is root disk usuage
this is root disk usuage
what file need to delete?
what file need to delete?
Cosmo.
Level 24
Level 24
Posts: 22968
Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2014 7:34 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by Cosmo. »

With the existing partition layout a new install will be the best and most easy way to go.

No swap, 40 GB for the system (if Timeshift snapshots get stored in another partition), no separate /boot partition.
MintThanHtutZaw
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:33 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by MintThanHtutZaw »

Now I reinstalling with
root 120Gb
home 100Gb
swap 8Gb
Cosmo.
Level 24
Level 24
Posts: 22968
Joined: Sat Dec 06, 2014 7:34 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by Cosmo. »

Strange values.

And: Leave the swap partition. Your picture in viewtopic.php?p=2216893#p2216893 shows, what I said already: Mint creates a swap file.
User avatar
trytip
Level 14
Level 14
Posts: 5371
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2016 1:20 pm

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by trytip »

MintThanHtutZaw wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 4:46 am Now I reinstalling with
root 120Gb
home 100Gb
swap 8Gb
i would reinstall giving /root about 60GB even though you may not use that many programs maybe even less like 40GB. the rest for home and store your timeshift there.
Image
Geoff_P
Level 1
Level 1
Posts: 42
Joined: Wed Oct 10, 2012 4:42 am

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by Geoff_P »

Ditto what Pjotr said.
Image
User avatar
Burkhardt
Level 2
Level 2
Posts: 75
Joined: Mon Aug 15, 2022 3:26 am
Location: South Africa

Re: About root and home Storage

Post by Burkhardt »

trytip wrote: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:43 pm you most likely have your timeshift folder full or boot folder full of kernels. in update manager > view > linux lernels > remove kernels and open timeshift to delete the old you don't need

Hi everyone.

I struggled on 2 separate systems with both of the 2 scenarios as stated by "trytip" and can attest to one or the other to be true.
Deleting the extra Timeshift data is simple enough with the Graphical User Interface but removing the extra Kernels with GUI is a mystery to me.
-------
UPDATE - Not a mystery to me anymore - members of the forum kindly pointed out how to do this...via Mint's "Update Manager" Under "Edit"
-------

My root was also showing low on space messages. After further searching, it became apparent that the older/redundant Kernels took up too much space on root due to my choosing to "Encrypt home folder" upon installation...and it was A STANDARD INSTALLATION - No custom partitioning...

I'm quite sure that I am not the only one that ever struggled with this...
Here's a tutorial for REMOVING EXTRA KERNELS VIA THE TERMINAL
Last edited by Burkhardt on Tue Dec 06, 2022 6:12 am, edited 6 times in total.
"Please be not greedy.
Share some of thy knowledge freely.
Truly thee might well receive
a trove of help when needy!"
- Burkhardt
Locked

Return to “Beginner Questions”