Safe to delete System.map-* files in /boot?
The System.map file is mainly used to debug kernel crashes. It's not actually necessary, but it's best to keep it around if you're going to use that kernel. If you've decided you don't need that kernel, then it's safe to delete the corresponding map file.
If you're really low on disk space, you could compress the map files. They aren't that big, so this won't save much space, but bzip2 will squeeze them down to about 25% of the original size. Then you can uncompress one if you discover that you need it.
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helpmelearn
I call myself an IT Optimizer, always looking for ways to optimally use whatever IT Infrastructure I have available. Currently, I work as a Senior DevOps Engineer with KMK Online. Previously, I've worked as: Head of DevOps & Security of HaloDoc. Head of IT of Zalora Indonesia. Here I oversaw the whole IT Department and be the Project Manager for Country IT Infra. IT Infrastructure & Service Delivery Manager of Sophie Paris. Here I oversaw the teams in charge of all production-level infrastructure, and also the team in charge of doing Tech Support / Help Desk. System Administrators Manager of PT Carrefour Indonesia, Indonesia's largest hyper-retailer. Here I oversaw the management of Windows- and Linux-based infrastructure throughout the country. IT Manager of Infrastructure at PT Panin Sekuritas Tbk, one of Indonesia's leading securities companies. Here I design, deploy, and maintain 'next-generation IT Infrastructure' (secure, highly-available, and performant). Senior instructor for the CCNA, CCNP, MCSE, and CEH certifications. If you want to communicate with me, feel free to circle me on Google+. Also, ALL original source snippets I post on the Stack Exchange Network (including, but not limited to, Stack Overflow and ServerFault) are dedicated to the public domain. Do with them as you see fit. If your jurisdiction does not honor, or does not have the concept of, public domain, then alternatively (at your discretion) you may consider my codes as being released under the CC0 License. My PGP Key Fingerprint is: 535A 7B4A 1E03 818B 415B D639 E3C3 F0C4 ABF8 B8D7
Updated on September 17, 2022Comments
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helpmelearn over 1 year
I'm experimenting with generating some custom kernels using
genkernel.However, each iteration leaves a file in
/bootcalledSystem.map-genkernel-<arch>-<version>.Is it safe to rename and/or delete the
System.map-*files? -
helpmelearn about 13 years@cjm what if, after a certain time of continuous use (let's say, 2 weeks), I felt the kernel is stable and in no need of debugging. Is it safe to delete the
System.mapthen? -
J. Taylor about 13 yearsWhy do you want to delete it? -
Mikel about 13 yearsWhy not delete it at the same time as deleting the kernel?
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helpmelearn about 13 years@jrtayloriv /boot is getting full
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helpmelearn about 13 years@Mikel I'm in a kernel 'paring down' loop, and I'd like to keep some prior revisions, just-in-case
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Mikel about 13 yearsI'm not saying don't keep one or two known good kernels, in fact I would suggest you do. What I am suggesting is that when you delete a kernel, delete the map file for that kernel. The map files are only about 1.8 MB. Delete them if you have to, but if you've got more than two or three kernels, it might be time to delete a kernel and a System.map together.
