Issue Filling up disk space in /var/lib/psa/dumps

[WilliamGm]

Server operating system version

AlmaLinux

Plesk version and microupdate number

18.0.81

Hi all,

I'm running into a disk space issue on one of my Plesk servers and would appreciate some guidance.

**What happened:**
My server's root partition (/) reached 99% disk usage. After investigating, I found that /var/lib/psa/dumps/domains is using ~93 GB, mostly due to a large number of files named like:

- backup_ext_dist_wp-toolkit_<date>_<date>.tzst
- backup_ext_dist_grafana_<date>_<date>.tzst
- backup_ext_dist_heavy-metal-skin_<date>_<date>.tzst
- backup_ext_dist_ssh-terminal_<date>_<date>.tzst
- backup_ext_dist_revisium-antivirus_<date>_<date>.tzst

These appear to be automatic backups of installed extensions, with roughly 6 copies per extension accumulated over about a week (dates from 2609030000 to 2609090000, i.e. Sep 3–9). They don't seem to be tied to any cron job I could find (checked /etc/cron*), so I assume Plesk's internal scheduler is generating them.

**Symptoms:**
- Root filesystem (/) at 99% usage
- /var/lib/psa/dumps/domains alone consuming ~93 GB
- Multiple redundant timestamped backups per extension, not being rotated/cleaned automatically
- Backup Manager settings show "Maximum number of full backup files to store" = 3, but this limit doesn't seem to apply to these extension backup files

**What I need help with:**
1. Is it safe to manually delete old backup_ext_dist_* files, or does Plesk track them in its internal database (risking inconsistencies)?
2. Is there a supported Plesk command or setting to control retention/cleanup of extension backups specifically (separate from the domain backup retention setting)?
3. Is this a known issue with a specific fix/patch, or expected behavior I should just manage manually?

**Server details:**
- OS: AlmaLinux (VM on VMware vSphere)
- Plesk installed with extensions: Advisor, Speed Kit, PHP Composer, Configurations Troubleshooter, Domain Connect, Google Authenticator, Grafana, Skins and Color Schemes, Imunify360, Joomla! Toolkit, Laravel Toolkit, Let's Encrypt, LiteSpeed Extension, Log Browser, Monitoring, Node.js Toolkit, Google PageSpeed Insights, Panel.ini Editor, Sitejet Builder, Repair Kit, ImunifyAV, Sectigo SSL, Site Import, SSH Terminal, SSL It!, WP Toolkit
- Affected path: /var/lib/psa/dumps/domains
- Disk usage of that path: ~93 GB
- Root partition usage before remediation: 99%

Any guidance on the correct/supported way to clean this up (and prevent it from recurring) would be greatly appreciated. Happy to provide `plesk version` output or logs if needed.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Sebahat.hadzhi]

Hi, @WilliamGm , by default Backup Manager backs up the var[/ICOE] directory of an extension. It is the extension's responsibility to "tell" Backup Manager what it should back up. I believe there shouldn't be an issue removing the backup files. However, I will further consult with our team on the matter. There's no way to exclude the data as far as I am aware, but I will also confirm that to be sure. Thank you for your patience in the meantime.