Docker No Space Left on Device

The Docker daemon or a container operation failed because the underlying filesystem has run out of available storage space or inodes.

Common Causes

The host machine's disk or partition is full.
Docker's dedicated storage area (e.g., /var/lib/docker) has reached its capacity limit.
The filesystem has exhausted its available inodes, even if free disk space remains.
The container's writable layer or a mounted volume has no free space.

How to Fix

1 Check Overall Disk Usage

Use the df command to inspect disk space and inode usage across all filesystems.

BASH

$ df -h && df -i

2 Clean Up Docker System

Remove unused Docker data: stopped containers, unused networks, dangling images, and build cache.

BASH

$ docker system prune -a --volumes

3 Check Docker Storage Usage

If using the devicemapper, overlay2, or btrfs storage driver, check Docker's specific storage consumption.

BASH

$ docker system df

4 Remove Specific Large Images/Containers

Identify and remove large, unused images or volumes contributing to the problem.

BASH

 $ docker images --format "table {{.Size}}\t{{.Repository}}\t{{.Tag}}" | sort -h -r
docker volume ls --format "table {{.Name}}"

5 Increase Disk Space or Move Docker Root

For a persistent issue, add storage to the host or relocate Docker's data directory (/var/lib/docker) to a larger partition.

BASH

 $ # 1. Stop Docker: sudo systemctl stop docker
# 2. Move data: sudo mv /var/lib/docker /path/to/new/location
# 3. Create symlink: sudo ln -s /path/to/new/location/docker /var/lib/docker
# 4. Restart Docker: sudo systemctl start docker