UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

Code:

qmmm1#df -k /users
Filesystem           kbytes   used                 avail    capacity          Mounted on
/dev/dsk/c0t0d0s0    4032654  18446744073708757319 4786625  462054822993220%  /

What's with the 'used' and 'capacity' figures here? (I should mention that this is a business-critical box and may be somewhat customised for it's purpose... which is alarming & logging a lot of data for a telco)

Code:

qmmm1#df -i /users
df: unknown option: i

qmmm1#df -o i /users
Filesystem             iused   ifree  %iused  Mounted on
/dev/dsk/c0t0d0s0       3169  496031     1%   /

Code:

Yep, by the looks of it:
qmmm1#cat /etc/auto_master
# Master map for automounter
#
+auto_master
/net            -hosts          -nosuid,nobrowse
/home           auto_home       -nobrowse
/xfn            -xfn

Thanks for your help Anni, I am learning things from you! Also, some more testing seems to indicate that the more files I create in $HOME (regardless of size) seems to increase the maximum size I can make the files - there is some kind of relationship at least. It's sounds a bit 'block allocation' type thing, but still doesn't make sense according to the way blocks & iNodes are normally allocated in this os.

From your initial post I was beginning to suspect some kind of filesystem corruption, but after seeing those df output figures that feeling is getting stronger.

I really think you'd be best booting from CD-ROM or network and doing a full fsck of the root filesystem.

Do you run regular backups? Do check that you have a successful one before you do the filesystem check.

Your right Anni - apparently this machine is dying and sysadmin is currently building a replacement! (Of course there is no need to inform the users of this, nor that their data is as good as kaput...)

I don't think I would have figured this out on my own so thanks for your help

I tried the fsck and it was progressing very slowly, I was told that this is basically a bad sign, and followed up with the sysadmin for this machine. That alone took 2 days to find out who; but now I'm back in business.