no space for downloads

papahonk · 10-12-2009, 04:02 PM

just got ubuntu loaded side by side with mint. hooked up to net so it can get updates. when i hit the install updates button i get a warning

"The upgrade needs a total of 482M free space on disk '/'. Please free at least an additional 356M of disk space on '/'. Empty your trash and remove temporary packages of former installations using 'sudo apt-get clean'."
it has 50+ gig of hard drive on its partion how do i get it to use it instead of Disk'/" where is disk'/"

Thanks for any advice

Mike Honaker

zogness · 10-12-2009, 04:10 PM

Type,

df -h

and paste it here.

repo · 10-12-2009, 04:12 PM

type

Code:

apt-get clean

to delete all downloaded deb files in /var/apt/cache

papahonk · 10-12-2009, 06:00 PM

ok, Where do i type df -h ? sorry for the stupid question.

The apt-get clean. would there be something to clean on a fresh install?

i cant do it till later. we have cub scouts and i have to rehook monitor, mouse, and keyboard. man i wish i had a KVM switch. It might be tomorrow before i get it back up

Thanks
Mike Honaker

tommcd · 10-13-2009, 06:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by papahonk

ok, Where do i type df -h ? sorry for the stupid question.

The df -h is a command you type in the terminal. To open a terminal in Ubuntu go to:
applications > accessories > terminal. In the terminal type df -h. You will get an output similar (but not identical) to this:

Code:

Filesystem            Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda6              13G  5.4G  6.9G  44% /
/dev/sdb5             200G   91G   99G  48% /data
tmpfs                1006M     0 1006M   0% /dev/shm
bash-3.1$

On my system /dev/sda6 is my Slackware root partition. The root partition is what the "disk /" is referring to in the errors you are getting when trying to update Ubuntu.
How much hard drive space did you allocate for Ubuntu when you installed it? The df-h command will tell us the size of your partitions and how much used and free space there is.

Quote:

Originally Posted by papahonk

The apt-get clean. would there be something to clean on a fresh install?

When Ubuntu downloads updates and installs programs it stores backups of the packages as .deb files in /var/apt/cache. The "apt-get clean" command will delete them and free up some space.

papahonk · 10-13-2009, 07:06 AM

Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda8 2.3G 2.1G 120M 95% /
tmpfs 502M 0 502M 0% /lib/init/rw
varrun 502M 100K 502M 1% /var/run
varlock 502M 0 502M 0% /var/lock
udev 502M 156K 502M 1% /dev
tmpfs 502M 120K 502M 1% /dev/shm
lrm 502M 2.4M 499M 1% /lib/modules/2.6.28-11-generic/volatile
So when i loaded ubuntu and it asked me where to partition the drive for it i split it in half. did i screw up and only give it 2.3 gig of HD? I'll run the apt-get clean and repost

papahonk · 10-13-2009, 07:10 AM

tried apt-get clean this is what i got

E: Could not open lock file /var/cache/apt/archives/lock - open (13 Permission denied)
E: Unable to lock the download directory

It didnt ask for my password, do i need to go click on something to unlock this file?

tredegar · 10-13-2009, 07:11 AM

Quote:

/dev/sda8 2.3G 2.1G 120M 95% /

/dev/sda8 is your "/" disk
It is only 2.3G in size (which is, well, small), and it is 95% full. That's why you are having problems.
It might be easiest for you just to do a reinstall, and make the root partition larger.

tredegar · 10-13-2009, 07:14 AM

Quote:

tried apt-get clean this is what i got

That command needs to be run as root. Either try sudo apt-get clean or, better, reinstall for the reason in my post #8

papahonk · 10-13-2009, 07:15 AM

how do you get the drive list to come out nice arg im such a noob

papahonk · 10-13-2009, 07:58 AM

ah the joy of learning something new, screwing up and having to do it over and over till you get it right. LoL I'm reinstalling to see if i can get it right this time

tredegar · 10-13-2009, 08:07 AM

Quote:

how do you get the drive list to come out nice

Not at all sure what you mean by this, but to see a list of your drives and partitions, the command is
sudo fdisk -l
Note that that is "sudo fdisk minus-ELL" not "minus-ONE".

papahonk · 10-13-2009, 08:18 AM

went to reinstall and it looks like the failed attempt 2days ago was on there as well. so im reinstalling ubuntu on the whole HD.
I'm not sure how much i like Mint anyway. its very pleasing on the eye ( my favorite color is green) but there is something about how it flows that im not sure about.

tommcd · 10-13-2009, 11:05 PM

Here is a good tutorial on installing Ubuntu:
http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/installing
If you are installing Ubuntu to the whole hard drive it would be a good idea to create a seperate home partition:
http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/installseparatehome
This way all of your data is stored on a separate partition, so if you reinstall Ubuntu your data is safe since it is on a different partition.
If you have already installed Ubuntu and did not create a separate home partition, it is possible to create a separate home partition after installing. It is a bit more complicated though:
http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/separatehome
I would say the minimum size for a root partition in Ubuntu would be about 6GB. Ubuntu Karmic beta is currently occupying 3.5GB on my laptop, so you could get by with a root partition of about 6GB if you are tight on space.
I would recommend a root partition of 10-12GB if you have the space. This will allow plenty of room for extra software and updates, so you never have this problem again.
Write back if you need more help.