Linux Disk Management Commands Explained
Introduction
In Linux, managing disks and partitions is an important task for system administrators. Here we will learn about some useful commands: fdisk, mkfs, df, mount, e2fsck, stat, lsblk, and also about /etc/fstab file and Swap partition. These commands help us to check, create, and manage storage in Linux.
1. fdisk Command
- fdisk is used to create, delete, or modify disk partitions.
- Example:
fdisk /dev/sda - With fdisk, you can check the partition table and create new partitions.
2. mkfs Command
- mkfs means “make filesystem”.
- After creating a partition, we need to format it with a filesystem like ext4, xfs, etc.
- Example:
mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda1
3. df Command
- df means “disk free”.
- It shows how much disk space is used and available.
- Example:
df -h(h means human-readable, like GB and MB)
4. mount Command
- mount is used to attach a filesystem to a directory so we can access it.
- Example:
mount /dev/sda1 /mnt - After mounting, you can access files from /mnt directory.
5. e2fsck Command
- e2fsck is used to check and repair ext2/ext3/ext4 filesystems.
- It ensures that the filesystem is not corrupted.
- Example:
e2fsck /dev/sda1
6. stat Command
- stat shows detailed information about a file.
- Example:
stat file.txt - It displays size, permissions, and last modified time of the file.
7. lsblk Command
- lsblk means “list block devices”.
- It shows all disks and partitions in a tree structure.
- Example:
lsblk
8. /etc/fstab File
- The /etc/fstab file contains information about filesystems and their mount points.
- It is used for automatic mounting during system boot.
- Example line in fstab:
/dev/sda1 /mnt ext4 defaults 0 0
9. Swap Partition
- Swap space is like virtual memory used when RAM is full.
- It can be a separate partition or a file.
- Example to check swap:
swapon --show
Conclusion
These commands are very important for Linux administrators and students. Practice them to understand how Linux handles disks and partitions.