Limits on resizing disk storage for an existing GitHub Codespace

Answer to the questions

1. Can the disk of an existing Codespace be resized without deleting it?

As of late 2026, GitHub Codespaces does not provide an in‑place resize operation for the persistent volume of an active Codespace. The only supported path is to delete the Codespace and create a new one with the desired disk size specified at creation time. No rebuild or restart is required beyond the recreation itself.

2. When recreating from the same commit, is there any supported way to retain data stored outside the repository working tree?

The persistent volume is bound to the Codespace’s lifecycle. Re‑creating a Codespace from the same commit drops all files that were not committed to the repository. To keep data across recreations you must store it outside the Codespace volume, for example by mounting an external persistent volume (GitHub Actions cache, cloud object store, or a network share) in devcontainer.json.

3. Besides df -h inside the Codespace, is there a reliable way to confirm actual disk, CPU, and memory before choosing a machine type?

• df -h shows the size of the persistent volume attached to the running container.

• cat /proc/meminfo | grep MemTotal displays the total RAM allocated to the container.

• lscpu | grep "CPU(s)" lists the number of virtual CPUs assigned.

• The GitHub UI (Codespaces page → Settings → Quotas) lists the maximum disk, CPU, and memory available for each machine type on your current plan.

• The REST API endpoint /machines (e.g., GET https://api.github.com/orgs/{org}/codespaces/machines) returns a JSON array of supported machine types, each including disk_size_gb, cpu_count, and memory_gb. This is the most reliable source for plan‑specific limits.

Practical steps if you need more space

1. Check your current plan’s quota via the UI or the /machines API.
2. Delete the existing Codespace (this does not delete the repository).
3. Create a new Codespace from the same commit, selecting a larger disk size in the “Create Codespace” dialog or via the --disk-size flag if you use the CLI.
4. Verify the new size with df -h inside the Codespace.
5. If you must keep uncommitted data, configure a mount to an external persistent volume in devcontainer.json before recreating.

Diagnostic question

Could you let me know which GitHub plan or organization Codespaces quota you’re currently on? Knowing the exact quota can refine the recommended maximum disk size and help verify that the UI’s suggested limits match the API response.