Macintosh Terminal Pocket Guide

Name

du — stdin  stdout  - file  -- opt  --help  --version

Synopsis

du [options] [files| directories]

The du (disk usage) command measures the disk space occupied by files or directories. By default, it measures the current directory and all its subdirectories, printing totals in blocks for each, with a grand total at the bottom:

➜ du
6213880      ./Desktop
6440952      ./Documents
14237024     ./Downloads
430300       ./Library
11408        ./Library/Application Support
0            ./Library/Assistants
...
77797648     .

It can also measure the size of files:

➜ du myfile myfile2
4    myfile
16   myfile2

Useful options

-k	Measure usage in kilobytes.
-m	Measure usage in megabytes.
-g	Measure usage in gigabytes.
-h	Print in human-readable units. For example, if two directories are of size 1 gigabyte or 25 kilobytes, respectively, du -h prints 1G and 25K.
-c	Print a total in the last line. This is the default behavior when measuring a directory, but for measuring individual files, provide -c if you want a total.
-L	Follow symbolic links and measure the files they point to.
-s	Print only the total size.