If systemd-tmpfiles is not removing old files, first confirm that the age-cleanup operation actually ran, then check for a matching age-based rule, sufficiently old timestamps, exclusions, locks, and permission or boot-time issues. --create is not a substitute for --clean, and a file’s age alone does not guarantee removal.
1. Confirm that age-based cleanup ran
The cleanup operation is systemd-tmpfiles --clean. The other operations have different purposes: --create creates or adjusts entries, while --remove removes entries according to removal rules. A successful --create run does not show that stale files were checked.
System and user mode use separate configuration scopes. If the files are governed by system configuration, run and diagnose cleanup in the system context; the system cleanup process does not read user configuration. Check the command’s exit status and, for more detail, run it with increased logging. The systemd-tmpfiles manual documents the operations, logging options, and distinct exit statuses for invalid configuration and operational failures.
After changing system configuration, the manual recommends restarting systemd-tmpfiles-clean.service to apply settings that can safely run at runtime.
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2. Verify a matching rule makes the path eligible
Inspect the installed tmpfiles.d files, including local administrator overrides, and find the rule that matches the path. The tmpfiles.d manual says age-based cleanup applies to rules beginning with d, D, e, v, q, Q, C, x, or X. A rule with no age field, or with - as its age, does not enable age-based cleanup for that line.
Pay particular attention to x and X: they exclude matching paths from aging cleanup. Check all applicable rules rather than assuming the first rule you find is the only one that affects the path.
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3. Compare the configured age with the timestamps
An age value is a threshold, not a promise that a file will be removed after exactly that much wall-clock time. The entry must be older than the threshold, based on the timestamps selected by the rule. By default, systemd considers access, modification, and status-change times for files; it ignores status-change time for directories. The age-by option can change which timestamps count. A recent access or modification can therefore keep an otherwise old file from qualifying.
The systemd project documents defaults of 10 days for files in /tmp/ and 30 days for files in /var/tmp. These are documented defaults, not universal settings: distribution rules and administrator overrides may differ. See the project’s temporary directories documentation.
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4. Check locks, permissions, and execution context
Look for a process holding a BSD lock
The aging algorithm skips entries held with a shared or exclusive BSD file lock. If a directory is locked, entries below it are skipped as well. This can be intentional: an application may lock a temporary directory to protect work it still needs. Identify the process and confirm the lock is safe to change before altering application behavior.
Check privileges and errors
The systemd-tmpfiles manual warns that cleanup run as a non-root user can update access times on directories it checks, which may in turn prevent cleanup. When diagnosing system paths, use the appropriate system service or privileges, then inspect the command’s exit status and logs for permission or execution errors.
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5. If manual cleanup works, inspect the automatic service
When systemd-tmpfiles --clean works manually but scheduled cleanup does not, inspect systemd-tmpfiles-clean.timer and systemd-tmpfiles-clean.service on the affected host, along with their journal entries. Confirm that the timer is active and that the service’s actual command and result match your expectations. Unit behavior can vary with systemd version and distribution overrides; the systemd-tmpfiles manual describes the general service arrangement.
Check boot-only rules separately
A tmpfiles.d rule marked with ! is considered only when systemd-tmpfiles is invoked with --boot. That does not by itself establish that a host’s boot service combines --boot with --clean.
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A July 4, 2022 report from an Arch Linux user running systemd 251 described cleanup occurring with a manual systemd-tmpfiles --clean --boot invocation while the listed boot units did not run that combination. The report is specific to that system and version, not proof of current behavior elsewhere. Check the local unit contents and logs before changing a service. See the upstream issue report and the tmpfiles.d manual.
Apply the smallest safe fix
- If cleanup never ran, correct the command, timer, or service for the relevant system or user context.
- If the path has no applicable age rule, correct the rule type, path, or age only after checking which timestamps govern eligibility.
- If an
xorXrule excludes the path, remove or narrow that exclusion only after confirming that cleanup is safe. - If a lock protects the path, determine why the application holds it before changing the application or removing the lock.
- If the rule is boot-only, verify that the installed unit invokes both the needed cleanup operation and
--bootbefore considering a unit override.
Do not use /tmp or /var/tmp for durable storage. The systemd project says /tmp is typically backed by tmpfs and flushed on reboot; it recommends /var/tmp for temporary data that must persist across reboot. Persistence still does not make either location suitable for important long-term data.
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