Files that are safe to remove in Jira
Platform Notice: Data Center Only - This article only applies to Atlassian products on the Data Center platform.
Note that this KB was created for the Data Center version of the product. Data Center KBs for non-Data-Center-specific features may also work for Server versions of the product, however they have not been tested. Support for Server* products ended on February 15th 2024. If you are running a Server product, you can visit the Atlassian Server end of support announcement to review your migration options.
*Except Fisheye and Crucible
Summary
Which files in Jira are safe to delete to free up space for the server.
Diagnosis
The admin of the Jira Instance notices that the Jira instance is taking up a lot of space. The Jira admin wants to know which files are safe to delete from the Jira instance.
Environment
Cause
The Jira instance accumulates non-volatile files over time during its operation and can takes up a lot of disk space
Solution
Here is a list of common Jira files and their relative safety for removal from the Jira instance:*
Non-volatile (safe to delete)
$jira-home/tmp
$jira-home/log
$jira-home/export
$jira-home/analytics-logs
$jira-home/import
There are typically two different types of files stored in the export folder:
Automated Jira backups format: YYYY-MM-DD--XXXX.zip
Support Zips format: Jira_support_YYYY-MM-DD-XX-XX-XX.zip
We recommend keeping the latest backup, but feel free to delete the rest of the files or make an external backup of older backups.
Semi Volatile (might cause pain but not break JIRA):
$jira-home/caches (specifically you'll need to re-index)
$jira-home/logos (you'll need to re-attach logos)
$jira-home/monitor (these likely get regenerated anyways)
ℹ️ Please shut down Jira before removing any files from these directories.
Volatile - do not delete as this will cause data loss and/or loss of functionality
$jira-home/data (contains attachments)
$jira-home/plugins (contains plugins, they'd need reinstalling if this was deleted)
$jira-home/dbconfig.xml (database connection information)
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