0

I am new to Ubuntu 20.04. As shown in the first image below, is this a healthy root partition on my SSD? As you can see, the root partition is almost full. I have encountered some booting issues on Ubuntu 20.04 these few weeks. Some of the problems are "Welcome to emergency mode!" Think it is a fsck problem and "dev/sda1: clean, ..." This message appears after I startup my laptop, then it won't continue booting. I was able to solve the first problem using the solutions in the link. However, I was unable to solve the second problem. I run the code sudo apt-get purge nvidia* successfully, but when I run sudo ubuntu-drivers autoinstall, it says that I don't have enough space for installation. After more than an hour of rebooting my laptop, thank god, I was able to boot Ubuntu. So, I considered the second problem as not solved yet (this has happened twice).

My main concerns are:

  1. Are these problems arise due to low space on my root partition?
  2. Should I invest on a new laptop to run dual-boot as I feel that 128GB SSD is not sufficient for both my Ubuntu and Windows 10?

I welcome any suggestions regarding this topic. I apologize in advance if I deliver my questions incorrectly. Please free to comment.

15GB root partition on 128GB SSD

Allocation of Space in 128GB SSD and 1000GB HDD

Detailed Allocation of Space/Partitions in 128GB SSD and 1000GB HDD

Redy
  • 1
  • If your root file system has no space, it won't work and can cause all sorts of problems. I am voting to close this question as opinion based. https://askubuntu.com/tour | https://askubuntu.com/help/dont-ask – Nmath Jan 11 '21 at 04:15
  • You can buy a new Hard Disk instead of a new computer, in case the other specs of your computer are not outdated. 15 GB Root Partition is not enough for recent versions of Ubuntu. I have a 60 GB root partition, but that depends on the user's preference. – Archisman Panigrahi Jan 11 '21 at 05:15
  • @ArchismanPanigrahi can I install Ubuntu (including root, swap, EFI and home partitions) on my HDD? Will the performance be the same as on SSD? – Redy Jan 11 '21 at 06:53
  • Of course you can. Create a new partition (let's say, 50-60 gb for root. You don't necessarily need to have a separate home partition) in your HDD and install Ubuntu on it once again. Performance won't be same as SSD. However, the performance will still be better than Windows. Alternatively, you can shrink the Windows partition in your SSD to 50 gb or so (using disk cleanup to remove previous Windows update files etc.) and install Ubuntu on a 50 gb partition. Also note that using .deb packages instead of snaps/flatpaks saves a lot of disc space. – Archisman Panigrahi Jan 11 '21 at 07:25
  • @ArchismanPanigrahi Thanks for the advice! I will still separate the home partition from root partition as I read there are advantages on doing so. By the way, I find it weird that a lot of websites suggesting 15GB is enough for a root partition, but why does mine used up so fast? I am curious – Redy Jan 11 '21 at 08:19
  • 15 GB space for root did work maybe 8 years back, but now it does not work. Also, if you don't have much disc space, you can install apt versions of software instead of snaps. The apt versions consume a lot less disc space (with the downside being that you won't have the very latest version of the apps). Also, nowadays Ubuntu uses a swapfile. You won't need a separate swap partition – Archisman Panigrahi Jan 11 '21 at 08:25
  • @ArchismanPanigrahi Thank you very much for your advices. I will keep in mind about .deb packages and apt versions of softwares. – Redy Jan 12 '21 at 03:02
  • Does this answer your question? How to resize partitions? – karel Mar 29 '22 at 06:14
  • Thanks for the suggestion but the question is not about resizing partitions. @ArchismanPanigrahi has answered my question well. For someone who stumbled across this question, 15GB is definitely not enough for root if you're planning to use Ubuntu for a long time. In the end, I bought a new laptop with 1TB SSD with other good specs to run ROS in Ubuntu, I have been using it for a year. I have already used up 200GB out of 600GB root for Ubuntu. In short, if you plan to use Ubuntu for a long period, you need a lot of space for root. Note that my root and home are sharing the same space. – Redy Apr 15 '22 at 05:10

0 Answers0