Tools
Inode capacity for ext4, XFS, ZFS and other filesystems.
mkfs options change reality — treat this as planning and watch with df -i.
| FS | Rough ratio | Note |
|---|---|---|
ext4 |
~16 KB per inode default | May run out with tiny files |
XFS |
Dynamic inodes | Flexible on large disks |
ZFS |
Different model | Dataset quotas separate |
Symptom |
df -i at 100% | Cannot write though bytes free |
An inode is metadata for each file and directory. Millions of small files can exhaust inodes before the disk is full. This tool estimates capacity from size and filesystem.
Real values depend on mkfs. Monitor with df -i. At 100%, delete files, move to a larger FS, or reformat with a denser ratio.
Examples
few inodes OKFew files, large media.many tiny filesPlan a high inode count up front.df -i. At 100%, delete files, move to a larger FS, or reformat with a different ratio.
XFS allocates inodes as needed; it is not ext4’s “all up front” model. The estimate is still rough.
ext4 mkfs -i. Lower for many small files (more inodes), higher for large files.
Layers and overlay create many files. Watch df -i on the container host.
No. mkfs options, snapshots and copies change reality.