Claude Code
storage
Temporary Files Accumulating and Filling Disk Space
Your application creates temporary files for processing (image transforms, PDF generation, CSV exports, file uploads) but never deletes them afterward. Over days or weeks, these orphaned files accumulate and eventually fill the disk, causing the application to crash or become unresponsive.
This is a silent issue that doesn't appear during development or testing because the files accumulate slowly. In production, you first notice it when the server runs out of disk space, uploads start failing, or the database can't write its WAL files.
The root cause is that Claude Code generated the file creation logic but didn't include cleanup logic, error handling that cleans up on failure, or a scheduled cleanup job.
Error Messages You Might See
Error: ENOSPC: no space left on device
OSError: [Errno 28] No space left on device
Disk quota exceeded
write ENOSPC
Failed to write WAL: disk full
Common Causes
- No cleanup after processing — Files are created in /tmp but fs.unlink() or os.remove() is never called after use
- Error paths skip cleanup — When processing fails with an exception, the temp file is never deleted because cleanup is in the success path only
- No try/finally block — File cleanup isn't in a finally block, so any thrown error leaves the file behind
- Missing cron job — No scheduled task to clean up files older than a certain age
- Unique filenames every request — Using UUID-based filenames means no overwriting of old files, just endless accumulation
How to Fix It
- Always clean up in a finally block — Wrap file operations in try/finally (or use Python's tempfile.NamedTemporaryFile with delete=True)
- Use streaming instead of temp files — Pipe data between transforms without writing intermediate files to disk
- Implement a cleanup cron job — Schedule a task to delete files in /tmp older than 1 hour
- Set tmpwatch or systemd-tmpfiles — Configure OS-level cleanup of temp directories on a schedule
- Monitor disk usage — Set up alerts for disk usage above 80% to catch accumulation before it causes outages
Real developers can help you.
Omar Faruk
As a Product Engineer at Klasio, I contributed to end-to-end product development, focusing on scalability, performance, and user experience.
My work spanned building and refining core features, developing dynamic website templates, integrating secure and reliable payment gateways, and optimizing the overall system architecture.
I played a key role in creating a scalable and maintainable platform to support educators and learners globally.
I'm enthusiastic about embracing new challenges and making meaningful contributions.
prajwalfullstack
Hi Im a full stack developer, a vibe coded MVP to Market ready product, I'm here to help
Pratik
SWE with 15+ years of experience building and maintaining web apps and extensive BE infrastructure
Milan Surelia
Milan Surelia is a Mobile App Developer with 5+ years of experience crafting scalable, cross-platform apps at 7Span and Meticha. At 7Span, he engineers feature-rich Flutter apps with smooth performance and modern UI. As the Co-Founder of Meticha, he builds open-source tools and developer-focused products that solve real-world problems.
Expertise:
💡 Developing cross-platform apps using Flutter, Dart, and Jetpack Compose for Android, iOS, and Web.
🖋️ Sharing insights through technical writing, blogging, and open-source contributions.
🤝 Collaborating closely with designers, PMs, and developers to build seamless mobile experiences.
Notable Achievements:
🎯 Revamped the Vepaar app into Vepaar Store & CRM with a 2x performance boost and smoother UX.
🚀 Launched Compose101 — a Jetpack Compose starter kit to speed up Android development.
🌟 Open source contributions on Github & StackOverflow for Flutter & Dart
🎖️ Worked on improving app performance and user experience with smart solutions.
Milan is always happy to connect, work on new ideas, and explore the latest in technology.
Sage Fulcher
Hey I'm Sage! Im a Boston area software engineer who grew up in South Florida. Ive worked at a ton of cool places like a telehealth kidney care startup that took part in a billion dollar merger (Cricket health/Interwell health), a boutique design agency where I got to work on a ton of exciting startups including a photography education app, a collegiate Esports league and more (Philosophie), a data analytics as a service startup in Cambridge (MA) as well as at Phillips and MIT Lincoln Lab where I designed and developed novel network security visualizations and analytics. I've been writing code and furiously devoted to using computers to make people’s lives easier for about 17 years. My degree is in making computers make pretty lights and sounds. Outside of work I love hip hop, the Celtics, professional wrestling, magic the gathering, photography, drumming, and guitars (both making and playing them)
Taufan
I’m a product-focused engineer and tech leader who builds scalable systems and turns ideas into production-ready platforms.
Over the past years, I’ve worked across startups and fast-moving teams, leading backend architecture, improving system reliability, and shipping products used by thousands of users. My strength is not just writing code — but connecting product vision, technical execution, and business impact.
Yovel Cohen
I got a lot of experience in building Long-horizon AI Agents in production, Backend apps that scale to millions of users and frontend knowledge as well.
zipking
I am a technologist and product builder dedicated to creating high-impact solutions at the intersection of AI and specialized markets. Currently, I am focused on PropScan (EstateGuard), an AI-driven SaaS platform tailored for the Japanese real estate industry, and exploring the potential of Archify.
As an INFJ-T, I approach development with a "systems-thinking" mindset—balancing technical precision with a deep understanding of user needs. I particularly enjoy the challenge of architecting Vertical AI SaaS and optimizing Small Language Models (SLMs) to solve specific, real-world business problems. Whether I'm in a CTO-level leadership role or hands-on with the code, I thrive on building tools that turn complex data into actionable value.
Anthony Akpan
Developer with 8 years of experience building softwares fro startups
Alvin Voo
I’ve watched the tech landscape evolve over the last decade—from the structured days of Java Server Pages to the current "wild west" of Agentic-driven development. While AI can "vibe" a frontend into existence, I specialize in the architecture that keeps it from collapsing.
My expertise lies in the critical backend infrastructure: the parts that must be fast, secure, and scalable. I thrive on high-pressure environments, such as when I had only three weeks to architect and launch an Ethereum redemption system with minimal prior crypto knowledge, turning it into a major revenue stream.
What I bring to your project:
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You don't need to be technical. Just describe what's wrong and a verified developer will handle the rest.
Get HelpFrequently Asked Questions
How do I find what's filling my disk?
Run 'du -sh /tmp/* | sort -rh | head -20' to find the largest items in /tmp. Use 'df -h' to see overall disk usage. Check your app's upload and cache directories too.
How do I prevent temp file accumulation?
Use language-specific temp file APIs that auto-delete (Python's tempfile, Node's tmp library with cleanup option). Always delete in a finally block and add a cron job as a safety net.