How to free up disk space on Ubuntu

Like any other operating system, Linux gradually accumulates unnecessary files and documents that take up space on the hard disk. It is for this reason that today we are going to teach you How to free up disk space in Ubuntu and Linux to have more capacity?

Do you see yourself with less and less space within Ubuntu or Linux? Very possibly applications or system tools have accumulated unnecessary files little by little. In any case, just as it is possible to free up space on the Windows hard drive , you can also free up storage within Ubuntu Linux.

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How to free up disk space on Ubuntu and Linux to have more capacity?

The Ubuntu operating system has multiple updates that are applied over time, these applications seek to greatly improve the operation and possibilities of the platform. In any case, they can also represent a problem, as we will point out below.

Unfortunately, the updates that we download will remain stored in the system even after being applied, this as you can imagine takes up valuable space on our computer , therefore, it would be best to eliminate them to free up storage.

To solve this problem we will install an application called “Bleach Bit”, you can download it and use it very easily and if you follow our guide, but remember that you can also access its Website – Bleach Bit :

The first thing you should do is open the terminal, now type the following command “sudo apt install bleachbit” after this press the “Enter” key and wait until the application download and installation process is finished.
Once the installation is complete, the program will appear in the list of system applications. To use it, you just have to run it and in this way all the traces of old updates will be properly cleaned.

Remember that there is always the option to delete temporary files from Windows, MacOS and Linux , which could help you release something more slowly on your computer.

Ubuntu Tweak, a tool to free up space in Linux

Another application that will be very useful to eliminate applications or residues that occupy the storage of our hard disk within Ubuntu, is Ubuntu Tweak . Ubuntu Tweak is a great cleaning application, with which you can surely free up a lot of space within your Ubuntu or Linux system.

On this occasion, it will be necessary to download the application from an external page, which you can access using the following Ubuntu Tweak link . It is a file that weighs very little, so the installation should be quite fast, in any case it will be necessary to install the App, a process that can be done as follows:

Open a terminal, later it must be located inside the folder in which you have downloaded the file for the installation of Ubuntu Tweak.
This can be done very easily using the following command “ls” this way all the basic Ubuntu folders will be displayed. Now type the command “cd Downloads /”, press Enter and type the following code “Downloads / ls” .
Now it is necessary to install the file, which is done with the command “sudo dpkg –t” followed by the name of the file, now press Enter.

Use the App

Now that you have the application installed, it is time to start using it to properly delete all those unnecessary files and thus free up space on your hard drive within Ubuntu.

After the previous process you will have Ubuntu Tweak installed, now you just have to run it.
As you will see, the application has multiple options, in any case what interests us this time is “Cleaner”, click on that option.
The screen will show all the possible options with the application, check all the boxes of what you want to delete.
Once you have done the previous process, you just have to click on the option “Clean”. The system may require you to provide your Ubuntu account credentials, just enter these details and continue.

Using the previous method, you can eliminate all the space occupied by applications or files that you do not use, freeing up storage within your Ubuntu or Linux system .

Also, keep in mind that there are other ways to clean up your Ubuntu Linux system and get better overall performance from your computer.

Compressing and Archiving Files

If deleting files is not an option, you can consider compressing or archiving large files to save disk space. Here are a couple of methods to achieve this:

Using Archive Managers: Ubuntu offers several archive managers that allow you to compress files and directories into commonly used formats such as ZIP or TAR. Applications like “File Roller” and “Ark” provide intuitive interfaces to compress and archive files, reducing their overall size and saving disk space.
Using Terminal Commands: If you prefer the command-line approach, you can use terminal commands like tar or zip to compress files and directories. For example, tar -cvzf archive.tar.gz /path/to/directory compresses the specified directory into a tarball with gzip compression.

Moving Data to External Storage

Another option to free up disk space is to offload large files or directories to external storage devices. This can include external hard drives, USB flash drives, or cloud storage services. By transferring less frequently accessed data to external storage, you can optimize your Ubuntu system’s disk space usage. Simply copy or move the files to the desired external storage location, ensuring that you have backups in place for important data.

Conclusion

Running out of disk space on your Ubuntu system can be frustrating, but by employing the methods outlined in this article, you can free up valuable disk space and improve your system’s performance. Remember to regularly analyze your disk usage, remove unnecessary files, compress or archive large files, and move data to external storage when necessary. By taking these steps, you can maintain a clutter-free and optimized Ubuntu system, ensuring a smooth and efficient computing experience.