Back to All Scenarios
PASSEDqueue / inode_exhaustion
Apache Kafka 3.7 Inode Exhaustion — Cannot Create New Files on Rocky Linux 9
The filesystem used by Apache Kafka 3.7 has run out of inodes. No new files can be created despite available disk space.
Pattern
DISK_FULL
Severity
CRITICAL
Confidence
72%
Remediation
Auto-Heal
Test Results
| Metric | Expected | Actual | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pattern Recognition | DISK_FULL | DISK_FULL | |
| Severity Assessment | HIGH | CRITICAL | |
| Incident Correlation | N/A | None | |
| Cascade Escalation | N/A | No | |
| Remediation | — | Auto-Heal — Corax resolves autonomously |
Scenario Conditions
Rocky Linux 9. Apache Kafka 3.7 data directory. Inode usage at 100%. Disk space available but inode full. Small file accumulation from Apache Kafka 3.7 temp files.
Injected Error Messages (1)
Apache Kafka 3.7 on Rocky Linux 9 — inode full, no space left on device (inodes exhausted), cannot create new files, kafka failing with ENOSPC, disk full condition despite available space
Neural Engine Root Cause Analysis
Disk space exhaustion detected — the filesystem has reached capacity, preventing applications from writing data, logs, or temporary files. This can cause databases to crash, services to fail, and logging to stop (masking further issues). Inode exhaustion can also present as 'no space left' even when disk space appears available.
Remediation Plan
1. Identify the fullest filesystems with 'df -h' and check inode usage with 'df -i'.
2. Find and remove large unnecessary files: 'find / -type f -size +100M -exec ls -lh {} \;'.
3. Clear old log files, compress rotated logs, and verify logrotate is configured correctly.
4. Check for runaway log growth from verbose application logging.
5. Expand the volume or add additional storage if the data growth is legitimate.
Improvements Applied
- Severity: CRITICAL (expected HIGH)
Tested: 2026-04-02Monitors: 1 | Incidents: 1Test ID: cmnhnvhsa01dblijg3fvf540z