ubuntu:swap:increase_swap_size
Table of Contents
Ubuntu - Swap - Increase Swap Size
Recent releases of Ubuntu use swap file instead of the traditional swap partition.
- The swap file is simply a file under the root which is used as swap to share the burden on the RAM.
- The biggest advantage of using a swap file is that it is easy to resize.
- That’s not always the case when a dedicated swap partition is used.
IMPORTANT:
- If you are using a swap partition and want to increase the swap size, you can still go ahead and create a swap file.
- Linux can use multiple swap spaces as needed; and this way, there is no need to touch the partition.
Check if there is a swap file in the system
swapon --show
returns:
NAME TYPE SIZE USED PRIO /swapfile file 4G 2.1G -2
NOTE: This shows that there is a swapfile.
- TYPE: If this shows file, it indicates that a swap file is being used.
Take the swap file offline
Before resizing the swap file, turn the swap off.
sudo swapoff /swapfile
NOTE: The command does not produce any output and it may take a few minutes to complete.
Make sure that there is enough free RAM available to take the data from swap file.
- Otherwise, create a temporary swap file.
Resize the swap file
sudo fallocate -l 4G /swapfile
Mark this file as a swap file
sudo mkswap /swapfile
NOTE: There should be some output where it warns you that the old swap signature is being wiped.
Enable the swap file
sudo swapon /swapfile
NOTE: All done!
- The new swap file is created with the increased swap size.
Check the swap size
swapon --show
free -h
returns:
total used free shared buff/cache available Mem: 62Gi 10Gi 886Mi 364Mi 50Gi 50Gi Swap: 4.0Gi 2.1Gi 1.9Gi
ubuntu/swap/increase_swap_size.txt · Last modified: 2024/07/30 16:02 by peter