Database Size Exceeding Space Quota

critical

Resource ContentionUpdated Feb 21, 2026

When etcd database reaches its space quota (default 2GB), it stops accepting writes and sets a NOSPACE alarm, making the cluster read-only and blocking all write operations.

Sources

How to Troubleshoot etcd Issues in Kubernetesoneuptime.com

How to Manage and Troubleshoot etcd in Kubernetesoneuptime.com

Troubleshoot etcdcloud.google.com

Operating etcd in Production: Performance Tuning, Monitoring, and ...medium.com

Technologies:

etcdSymptoms of this issue are visible in etcd metrics and logs

How to detect:

Monitor etcd_mvcc_db_total_size_in_bytes approaching quota limit. Check for 'mvcc: database space exceeded' errors and NOSPACE alarms via etcdctl alarm list. Watch for sudden increases in database size.

Recommended action:

Compact old revisions using etcdctl compact, then defragment each member with etcdctl defrag to reclaim space. Disarm the NOSPACE alarm after freeing space. Enable auto-compaction (--auto-compaction-retention) and increase quota if needed (--quota-backend-bytes). Consider resizing the data disk if consistently near capacity.