Proxmox VE Storage Cheatsheet

1. Check All Storage

Command	What it does
`pvesm status`	Summary of all storage: type, status, total/used/available/%
`pvesm status --enabled`	Only active storage
`pvesm status --content iso`	Filter storage that accepts a content type (`iso`, `images`, `backup`, `vztmpl`, `rootdir`)
`cat /etc/pve/storage.cfg`	Detailed config per storage (type, content types, node access)
`lsblk`	Physical disks and partitions at the OS level
`df -h`	Mounted filesystem capacity

GUI: Datacenter → Storage (full list) · click a storage → Summary tab for usage graphs.

2. The Concept: `local` vs `local-lvm`

	`local` (dir)	`local-lvm` (lvmthin)
Holds	ISOs, CT templates, backups, snippets	VM/CT disks only
Basis	Files on a regular filesystem	LVM thin block storage
Physical location	Root partition (`/`)	Separate Logical Volume (`pve/data`)
Resize with	`lvextend` + `resize2fs`	`lvextend` only (no `resize2fs`)

When installing a VM: the installer ISO is read from local → the resulting OS disk lands in local-lvm.

3. Diagnosing a Full Disk/Storage

# Find the folders eating the most space
du -xh / --max-depth=1 | sort -rh
du -xh /var --max-depth=1 | sort -rh

# Check systemd journal size
journalctl --disk-usage
journalctl --vacuum-time=3d        # drop logs older than 3 days
journalctl --vacuum-size=200M      # or cap by size

# Check and clean the apt cache
du -sh /var/cache/apt/archives
apt clean

# Check for piled-up old kernels
dpkg -l | grep pve-kernel
apt autoremove

# Check for failed-upload leftovers (often the culprit behind a full /var/tmp)
ls -lah /var/tmp/
rm /var/tmp/pveupload-xxxxxxxx     # delete manually if a big file is stuck

4. Extend `local` (dir) — via the Root Partition

local lives on the root partition, so extending local means extending the root partition through LVM.

Flow: Physical disk → Partition → Physical Volume → Volume Group → Logical Volume (root) → Filesystem

Step 1 — Is there free space left in the VG?

lsblk
vgs

If the VFree column in vgs already has a value → jump to Step 3. If the partition does not yet use the full physical disk → continue to Step 2.

Step 2 — Extend the partition (using `fdisk`, no extra tools)

fdisk -l /dev/sda

Note the Start sector of the LVM partition (example: 1050624) — it must be retyped exactly later.

fdisk /dev/sda

Inside the interactive prompt:

d              # delete partition
<number>       # pick the number of the partition to resize

n              # new partition
<same number>  # same partition number as before
<start sector> # retype the recorded start sector — MUST match exactly
<Enter>        # last sector: accept the default (to end of disk)
N              # if asked "remove signature?" → ANSWER N, NOT Y

p              # print, double-check the partition before committing
w              # write — flush changes to disk

⚠️ d then n is safe — nothing changes on disk until w is pressed. Verify with p first.

partprobe /dev/sda
lsblk           # confirm the partition has grown

Step 3 — Extend the Physical Volume

pvresize /dev/sda3
vgs             # check the VFree that is now usable

Step 4 — Extend the `root` Logical Volume

lvextend -L +20G /dev/pve/root       # add a specific amount
# OR
lvextend -l +100%FREE /dev/pve/root  # use all remaining VFree

Step 5 — Resize the filesystem (REQUIRED!)

resize2fs /dev/mapper/pve-root

Without this step, the LV is bigger but the filesystem does not know it, so the space stays unusable.

Verify

df -h /
pvesm status

5. Extend `local-lvm` (lvmthin)

Simpler, no resize2fs needed:

pvresize /dev/sda3        # if not already done above
lvextend -l +100%FREE /dev/pve/data

Verify:

pvesm status
lvs

6. Critical Points

resize2fs is required after lvextend for root (ext4). Not needed for data (lvmthin).
The fdisk start sector must match the previous one exactly.
When fdisk asks “remove signature?” → always answer N if the partition holds the LVM you want to keep.
local-lvm cannot hold ISOs/templates/backups — only VM/CT disks.
Large /var/tmp/pveupload-* files are usually failed uploads — safe to delete when no upload process is running (ps aux | grep pveupload).