Issue with lightsail server that is stuck at 100% storage capacity (getting permission issues in ssh to clear space)

Since your disk is full, many basic operations, like logging into the Plesk UI or deleting files, can fail due toa lack of space or permissions issues.

Here’s how to fix it:

1. Gain Root Access Even if you're logged in via SSH, ensure you are root:

   sudo -i

2. Check Disk Usage Confirm your disk is full:

   df -h

   Check which directories are using the most space:

   du -sh /var/lib/psa/*

3. Free Some Space Temporarily You need a little free space to delete larger files. Clear logs first:

   rm -rf /var/log/*gz
   rm -rf /var/log/*.1
   journalctl --vacuum-size=100M

4. Remove the Plesk Dump Files Try removing the dumps:

   rm -rf /var/lib/psa/dumps/*

   If you're still seeing “Permission denied,” proceed to the next step.

5. Check for Read-Only Filesystem If the system is under stress, the root filesystem might have switched to read-only:

   mount | grep 'on / '
   dmesg | tail

   If that’s the case, reboot the instance:

   reboot

6. Check for Immutable Files Sometimes files are set to be immutable:

   lsattr /var/lib/psa/dumps/

   If you see an i in the attribute list, run:

   chattr -i /var/lib/psa/dumps/*
   rm -rf /var/lib/psa/dumps/*

7. Prevent Future Problems

   • Schedule a cron job to delete old backups
   • Configure Plesk to store backups off-instance (e.g., to S3 or FTP)
   • Use Lightsail's snapshot feature instead of relying on local dumps

If you still can't delete the files after trying all this, it may help to stop Plesk services temporarily to release any locks.