A VPS running several sites
One site’s error log grows by gigabytes a day. The warning comes at 90%, and LayerAssist finds the log long before the other sites are affected.
Know your disk is filling up before your site stops.
A full disk takes down websites, databases and email at once. LayerAssist warns you before it happens, shows what uses the space and removes only what you approve.
At a glance
- Built-in monitorA built-in monitor checks over SSH that no disk on your server passes the level you set (90% unless you choose otherwise), and alerts you when one is full.
- In chatIn chat, it finds what’s filling the disk — logs, backups, caches, old files — and removes only what you approve.
- Not available yetThe monitor needs SSH access. On hosting without SSH, LayerAssist can still look for what’s using your space in chat, through your hosting panel or FTP.
A full disk breaks everything at once
When a server runs out of disk space, the website can’t save uploads or sessions, the database stops writing, emails bounce and backups fail. The symptoms look unrelated, so people chase the wrong problem.
Disks rarely fill overnight. Logs grow, backups pile up, caches never get cleared, until one day there’s no room left. Watching the level is far cheaper than recovering from a full disk.
Signs your disk is running out
- Uploads fail, or the site shows a database error
- Emails stop arriving or bounce back
- Backups fail with “No space left on device”
- Your hosting panel shows the disk at or near 100%
What usually fills a server disk
Log files that never rotate
Web server, PHP and application logs keep growing when rotation is missing or broken. One error repeating all day can write gigabytes.
Old backups kept on the same server
Backup plugins and scripts often keep every copy locally, and each one is the size of your site.
Caches and temporary files
Page caches, image thumbnails, session files and update leftovers build up and are rarely cleaned.
Mail and database growth
A mailbox nobody empties, a mail queue full of undelivered messages, or database tables that grow without limit.
How LayerAssist keeps your disk healthy
It warns you early, then does the tedious part: finding what actually takes the space.
Warns before it’s urgent
The monitor checks every disk on the server and warns you when one passes your threshold, 90% unless you choose another.
Finds what uses the space
It looks through the folders that grow — logs, backups, caches, mail — and shows you what takes the most, in plain words.
Frees space safely
It proposes what’s safe to remove, like old logs and caches, and deletes only what you approve.
Stops it coming back
When the cause is a missing log rotation or a backup that keeps every copy, it sets up rotation or cleanup so the disk stays healthy.
Example: a server at 97%
What it checks
- Disk /: 97% used
- Website files: 4 GB, normal
- Backups folder: 31 nightly copies, 38 GB in total
- Error log: 6 GB, one warning repeated every second
What it changes
Deleted the 28 old backups you approved, kept the latest three, fixed the warning and set up log rotation
What you get
- A warning days before a full disk, not after the outage
- A plain answer to “what is taking all the space?”
- Nothing deleted without your approval
- Fixes that stop the disk filling up again
Real situations
A WordPress site with a backup plugin
The plugin stores every backup next to the site. LayerAssist explains it, keeps the recent copies and suggests storing backups somewhere else.
A mail server
A stuck mail queue fills the disk with undelivered messages. LayerAssist finds the queue and the reason messages aren’t leaving.
How to set up disk space monitoring
Connect the server over SSH
Add the server in Sites & servers with its SSH login. SSH is what lets LayerAssist read disk usage.
Add the disk usage monitor
In Automations, choose New automation, pick the server and select “Disk usage”.
Set your threshold
Keep 90% or choose another level. A disk that fills quickly deserves an earlier warning.
Ask when it warns
When the warning arrives, write “What’s taking the space?” in chat and decide what goes.
Questions about disk space monitoring
Over SSH, on the schedule you choose. It reads the usage of every disk on the server and warns you when the fullest one passes your threshold. The check uses no AI.
No. It shows what takes the space and proposes what’s safe to remove; each deletion needs your OK.
90% suits most servers. If your disk fills quickly, for example with large backups, choose a lower level so you have more time.
The monitor needs SSH. Without it, ask in chat: LayerAssist can look for large files through your hosting panel or FTP and tell you what could go.
Related guides
- Built-in monitorServer servicesAlerts you when a service like your database stops.
- AutomationDatabase healthChecks your database is running, reachable and free of errors.
- AutomationApplication errorsReads your error logs on a schedule and explains what matters.
All monitoring guidesSee what each plan includesHow LayerAssist works
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