TRUNCATE(1)

📦
version 9.10 · 5 versions
, in ubuntu stonking

✨ NAME ✨

truncate — shrink or extend the size of a file to the specified size 💅

So this is the manual page for truncate (that's truncate(1), bestie, the User Commands one) and yes it does exactly what it says on the tin: it changes how big a file is. Make it smaller, make it bigger, whatever. Let's get into it 🦋

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

truncate OPTION... FILE...

💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

Shrink or extend the size of each FILE to the specified size. That's the whole vibe.

A FILE argument that does not exist is created ✨ (unless you tell it not to be, see below).

If a FILE is larger than the specified size, the extra data is lost. Gone. Poof. 💀 No undo, no take-backs.

If a FILE is shorter, it is extended and the sparse extended part (hole) reads as zero bytes. So it's giving "I'm bigger now" but really it's just a hole full of nothing that reads as zeros 🕳️

Mandatory arguments to long options are mandatory for short options too. Like, if an option needs a value, the short version needs it too. No exceptions, periodt.

🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

  • -c, --no-create — do not create any files. If it's not there, we're not making it, no cap 🙈
  • -o, --io-blocks — treat SIZE as number of IO blocks instead of bytes. Block math hours 🔥
  • -r, --reference=RFILE — base size on RFILE. Copy her size, she's the blueprint 👑
  • -s, --size=SIZE — set or adjust the file size by SIZE bytes
  • --help — display this help and exit
  • --version — output version information and exit

🌈 SIZING, iykyk 🌈

The SIZE argument is an integer and optional unit (example: 10K is 10*1024). Units are K,M,G,T,P,E,Z,Y,R,Q (powers of 1024) or KB,MB,... (powers of 1000). Binary prefixes can be used, too: KiB=K, MiB=M, and so on. Slay, both systems are in the building 🫶

SIZE may also be prefixed by one of the following modifying characters:

  • '+' — extend by
  • '-' — reduce by
  • '<' — at most
  • '>' — at least
  • '/' — round down to multiple of
  • '%' — round up to multiple of
Lowkey be careful with these. Shrinking a file drops the extra data for real — it is not recoverable, bestie. The < and > ones are the cautious main character options.

💜 AUTHOR 💜

Written by Padraig Brady. Iconic, honestly 👑

🍓 REPORTING BUGS 🍓

Found a bug? Not me finding a bug 🙈 Tell the people:

🧚 SEE ALSO 🧚

Packaged by Ubuntu (9.10-1ubuntu2) 💖

Copyright © 2026 Free Software Foundation, Inc. License GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later <https://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html>. This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it. There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law. (Fr fr, read that one twice 💀)

And that's the page, bestie! 🎀 Coming at you from GNU coreutils 9.10, dated August 2026, filed under TRUNCATE(1) in the User Commands section. Go forth and resize responsibly ✨🦋

📦 where this page comes from