lsblk Command - Comprehensive Guide with Examples

Overview

The lsblk command lists information about all available or specified block devices in a tree-like format. It reads the sysfs filesystem and udev database to gather information about block devices. This command is invaluable for understanding disk layouts, partition schemes, mount points, and the relationships between physical devices, partitions, and logical volumes.

Key Features

Tree Structure: Shows parent-child relationships between devices and partitions
Comprehensive Information: Displays size, type, mount points, filesystem types, and more
Customizable Output: Select specific columns and output formats
Works with All Device Types: Physical disks, partitions, LVM, RAID, loopback devices
Non-destructive: Read-only operation, safe to run anytime

When to Use lsblk

Quick overview of disk layout and partitions
Identifying device names (especially for NVMe, which uses different naming)
Checking mount points and filesystem types
Verifying LVM logical volume structure
Finding which partition is mounted where
Troubleshooting storage issues
Scripting and automation (JSON/pairs output)

Related Commands

fdisk -l - More detailed partition table information
blkid - Display block device attributes (UUID, LABEL, TYPE)
df - Show filesystem disk space usage
mount - Show currently mounted filesystems
parted -l - List partition tables
lsscsi - List SCSI devices
lvdisplay - Display LVM logical volumes

Common Options

Option	Description
`-a, --all`	Print all devices including empty ones
`-b, --bytes`	Print sizes in bytes rather than human-readable format
`-d, --nodeps`	Don't print slave/holder devices (only show top-level devices)
`-e, --exclude`	Exclude devices by major number (e.g., RAM disks)
`-f, --fs`	Output filesystem information
`-i, --ascii`	Use ASCII characters for tree formatting
`-J, --json`	Output in JSON format
`-l, --list`	Produce output in list format (no tree)
`-m, --perms`	Output information about permissions
`-n, --noheadings`	Don't print column headings
`-o, --output`	Specify which columns to output (comma-separated)
`-O, --output-all`	Output all available columns
`-p, --paths`	Print full device paths
`-P, --pairs`	Produce output in key="value" pairs format
`-r, --raw`	Produce output in raw format
`-S, --scsi`	Output information about SCSI devices
`-t, --topology`	Output information about topology

Available Columns

Use lsblk --help to see all available columns. Common ones include:

Column	Description
`NAME`	Device name
`KNAME`	Internal kernel device name
`MAJ:MIN`	Major:minor device numbers
`FSTYPE`	Filesystem type
`MOUNTPOINT`	Where the device is mounted
`LABEL`	Filesystem label
`UUID`	Filesystem UUID
`SIZE`	Size of the device
`TYPE`	Device type (disk, part, lvm, etc.)
`RO`	Read-only device (0=rw, 1=ro)
`RM`	Removable device (0=no, 1=yes)
`MODEL`	Device model
`SERIAL`	Device serial number
`VENDOR`	Device vendor
`STATE`	State of the device
`OWNER`	User name of the device owner
`GROUP`	Group name of the device owner
`MODE`	Device node permissions

Detailed Examples

Example 1: Basic lsblk Output - Understanding the Tree Structure

The most common usage shows the hierarchical relationship between devices.

$ lsblk

NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT sda 8:0 0 465.8G 0 disk ├─sda1 8:1 0 512M 0 part /boot/efi ├─sda2 8:2 0 1G 0 part /boot └─sda3 8:3 0 464.3G 0 part ├─ol-root 253:0 0 50G 0 lvm / ├─ol-swap 253:1 0 15.7G 0 lvm [SWAP] └─ol-home 253:2 0 398.6G 0 lvm /home sdb 8:16 0 1.8T 0 disk └─sdb1 8:17 0 1.8T 0 part /data nvme0n1 259:0 0 1.8T 0 disk ├─nvme0n1p1 259:1 0 500G 0 part /mnt/nvme1 └─nvme0n1p2 259:2 0 1.3T 0 part /mnt/nvme2 sr0 11:0 1 1024M 0 rom

Explanation:

NAME: Shows device hierarchy with tree characters (├─, └─)
MAJ:MIN: Major:minor device numbers used by the kernel
RM: Removable device indicator (0=fixed, 1=removable)
SIZE: Human-readable size of the device/partition
RO: Read-only status (0=read-write, 1=read-only)
TYPE: Device type (disk, part, lvm, rom, etc.)
MOUNTPOINT: Where the device is currently mounted (if anywhere)

In this example, you can see:

sda is a 465.8GB disk with three partitions, where sda3 contains LVM volumes
sdb is a 1.8TB disk with one large partition mounted at /data
nvme0n1 is an NVMe drive with two partitions
sr0 is an optical drive (rom type)

Example 2: Filesystem Information Display

Show detailed filesystem information including types, labels, and UUIDs.

$ lsblk -f

NAME FSTYPE LABEL UUID MOUNTPOINT sda ├─sda1 vfat EFI A1B2-C3D4 /boot/efi ├─sda2 xfs BOOT 12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789abc /boot └─sda3 LVM2_member 98765432-4321-4321-4321-cba987654321 ├─ol-root xfs abcdef01-2345-6789-abcd-ef0123456789 / ├─ol-swap swap fedcba98-7654-3210-fedc-ba9876543210 [SWAP] └─ol-home xfs 11111111-2222-3333-4444-555555555555 /home sdb └─sdb1 xfs DATA 66666666-7777-8888-9999-000000000000 /data nvme0n1 ├─nvme0n1p1 ext4 NVME1 aaaaaaaa-bbbb-cccc-dddd-eeeeeeeeeeee /mnt/nvme1 └─nvme0n1p2 ext4 NVME2 ffffffff-eeee-dddd-cccc-bbbbbbbbbbbb /mnt/nvme2 sr0

Explanation: The -f option shows filesystem-specific information:

FSTYPE: Filesystem type (xfs, ext4, vfat, swap, LVM2_member)
LABEL: Filesystem label (useful for identifying purpose)
UUID: Unique identifier for the filesystem (used in /etc/fstab)

This is particularly useful when:

Setting up /etc/fstab entries (use UUID for stability)
Identifying filesystems after hardware changes
Verifying filesystem types before mounting
Finding LVM physical volumes (LVM2_member type)

Example 3: Custom Column Selection

Display only the columns you need for specific troubleshooting or documentation.

$ lsblk -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT,MODEL

NAME SIZE TYPE FSTYPE MOUNTPOINT MODEL sda 465.8G disk Samsung SSD 860 ├─sda1 512M part vfat /boot/efi ├─sda2 1G part xfs /boot └─sda3 464.3G part LVM2_member ├─ol-root 50G lvm xfs / ├─ol-swap 15.7G lvm swap [SWAP] └─ol-home 398.6G lvm xfs /home sdb 1.8T disk WDC WD20EFRX-68 └─sdb1 1.8T part xfs /data nvme0n1 1.8T disk Samsung SSD 980 ├─nvme0n1p1 500G part ext4 /mnt/nvme1 └─nvme0n1p2 1.3T part ext4 /mnt/nvme2

Explanation: The -o option lets you specify exactly which columns to display. This example adds MODEL information, which helps identify:

Specific drive models for warranty tracking
Drive performance characteristics
Which physical drive is which device name

Common column combinations:

-o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,MOUNTPOINT - Quick overview
-o NAME,UUID,LABEL,FSTYPE - For fstab work
-o NAME,SIZE,VENDOR,MODEL,SERIAL - Hardware inventory
-o NAME,MAJ:MIN,RM,RO,STATE - Device status check

Example 4: List Format Without Tree Structure

Display devices in a flat list format, easier for parsing or when tree structure isn't needed.

$ lsblk -l

NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT sda 8:0 0 465.8G 0 disk sda1 8:1 0 512M 0 part /boot/efi sda2 8:2 0 1G 0 part /boot sda3 8:3 0 464.3G 0 part ol-root 253:0 0 50G 0 lvm / ol-swap 253:1 0 15.7G 0 lvm [SWAP] ol-home 253:2 0 398.6G 0 lvm /home sdb 8:16 0 1.8T 0 disk sdb1 8:17 0 1.8T 0 part /data nvme0n1 259:0 0 1.8T 0 disk nvme0n1p1 259:1 0 500G 0 part /mnt/nvme1 nvme0n1p2 259:2 0 1.3T 0 part /mnt/nvme2 sr0 11:0 1 1024M 0 rom

Explanation: The -l (list) option removes the tree structure and displays all devices in a flat list. This is useful for:

Scripting and parsing output with grep/awk
Counting devices: lsblk -l | wc -l
Finding specific devices: lsblk -l | grep nvme
Simplifying output when you don't need hierarchy

                        # Practical example: Find all mounted ext4 filesystems

$ lsblk -l -o NAME,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT | grep ext4

nvme0n1p1 ext4        /mnt/nvme1

nvme0n1p2 ext4        /mnt/nvme2

Example 5: Show Only Top-Level Block Devices

Display only the physical devices without partitions or holders.

$ lsblk -d

NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT sda 8:0 0 465.8G 0 disk sdb 8:16 0 1.8T 0 disk nvme0n1 259:0 0 1.8T 0 disk sr0 11:0 1 1024M 0 rom

Explanation: The -d (nodeps) option shows only the top-level devices without their dependencies (partitions, LVM volumes, etc.). This is useful for:

Getting a quick count of physical disks
Identifying which physical disks are in the system
Hardware inventory
Determining disk sizes before partitioning

                        # Add more detail about the physical disks

$ lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,MODEL,VENDOR,SERIAL

NAME      SIZE TYPE MODEL            VENDOR   SERIAL

sda     465.8G disk Samsung SSD 860  ATA      S3Z9NB0K123456

sdb       1.8T disk WDC WD20EFRX-68  ATA      WD-WCC4M123456

nvme0n1   1.8T disk Samsung SSD 980  Samsung  S5GXNX0R123456

sr0      1024M rom  DVD+-RW GH24NSC5 HL-DT-ST ABCD1234

Example 6: Show Specific Devices Only

Target specific block devices for detailed examination.

                        # Show only NVMe devices

$ lsblk /dev/nvme0n1

NAME        MAJ:MIN RM  SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT

nvme0n1     259:0    0  1.8T  0 disk 

├─nvme0n1p1 259:1    0  500G  0 part /mnt/nvme1

└─nvme0n1p2 259:2    0  1.3T  0 part /mnt/nvme2

                        # Show specific disk with filesystem info

$ lsblk -f /dev/sda

NAME        FSTYPE      LABEL UUID                                   MOUNTPOINT

sda                                                                    

├─sda1      vfat        EFI   A1B2-C3D4                              /boot/efi

├─sda2      xfs         BOOT  12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789abc   /boot

└─sda3      LVM2_member       98765432-4321-4321-4321-cba987654321   

  ├─ol-root xfs               abcdef01-2345-6789-abcd-ef0123456789   /

  ├─ol-swap swap              fedcba98-7654-3210-fedc-ba9876543210   [SWAP]

  └─ol-home xfs               11111111-2222-3333-4444-555555555555   /home

                        # Show multiple specific devices

$ lsblk /dev/sda /dev/sdb

NAME        MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT

sda           8:0    0 465.8G  0 disk 

├─sda1        8:1    0   512M  0 part /boot/efi

├─sda2        8:2    0     1G  0 part /boot

└─sda3        8:3    0 464.3G  0 part 

  ├─ol-root 253:0    0    50G  0 lvm  /

  ├─ol-swap 253:1    0  15.7G  0 lvm  [SWAP]

  └─ol-home 253:2    0 398.6G  0 lvm  /home

sdb           8:16   0   1.8T  0 disk 

└─sdb1        8:17   0   1.8T  0 part /data

Explanation: You can specify one or more device paths to examine only those devices. This is useful when:

Troubleshooting a specific disk
Documenting configuration of particular storage
Verifying changes to a specific device
Reducing output clutter in systems with many disks

Example 7: JSON Output for Scripting and Automation

Generate machine-readable JSON output for integration with scripts and tools.

$ lsblk -J

{ "blockdevices": [ {"name": "sda", "maj:min": "8:0", "rm": false, "size": "465.8G", "ro": false, "type": "disk", "mountpoint": null, "children": [ {"name": "sda1", "maj:min": "8:1", "rm": false, "size": "512M", "ro": false, "type": "part", "mountpoint": "/boot/efi"}, {"name": "sda2", "maj:min": "8:2", "rm": false, "size": "1G", "ro": false, "type": "part", "mountpoint": "/boot"}, {"name": "sda3", "maj:min": "8:3", "rm": false, "size": "464.3G", "ro": false, "type": "part", "mountpoint": null, "children": [ {"name": "ol-root", "maj:min": "253:0", "rm": false, "size": "50G", "ro": false, "type": "lvm", "mountpoint": "/"}, {"name": "ol-swap", "maj:min": "253:1", "rm": false, "size": "15.7G", "ro": false, "type": "lvm", "mountpoint": "[SWAP]"}, {"name": "ol-home", "maj:min": "253:2", "rm": false, "size": "398.6G", "ro": false, "type": "lvm", "mountpoint": "/home"} ] } ] }, {"name": "sdb", "maj:min": "8:16", "rm": false, "size": "1.8T", "ro": false, "type": "disk", "mountpoint": null, "children": [ {"name": "sdb1", "maj:min": "8:17", "rm": false, "size": "1.8T", "ro": false, "type": "part", "mountpoint": "/data"} ] } ]

Explanation: The -J option outputs data in JSON format, which is ideal for:

Parsing with jq or Python scripts
Integration with configuration management tools
Building automated inventory systems
Web API responses

                        # Example: Extract all mounted partitions using jq

$ lsblk -J | jq -r '.blockdevices[].children[]? | select(.mountpoint != null) | "\(.name): \(.mountpoint)"'

sda1: /boot/efi

sda2: /boot

ol-root: /

ol-swap: [SWAP]

ol-home: /home

sdb1: /data

# Get total disk space

$ lsblk -J -b | jq '[.blockdevices[] | select(.type=="disk") | .size | tonumber] | add / 1073741824 | floor'

3902  # Total GB across all disks

Example 8: Pairs Format for Shell Scripting

Output in key="value" format that's easy to source in shell scripts.

$ lsblk -P -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT

NAME="sda" SIZE="465.8G" TYPE="disk" FSTYPE="" MOUNTPOINT="" NAME="sda1" SIZE="512M" TYPE="part" FSTYPE="vfat" MOUNTPOINT="/boot/efi" NAME="sda2" SIZE="1G" TYPE="part" FSTYPE="xfs" MOUNTPOINT="/boot" NAME="sda3" SIZE="464.3G" TYPE="part" FSTYPE="LVM2_member" MOUNTPOINT="" NAME="ol-root" SIZE="50G" TYPE="lvm" FSTYPE="xfs" MOUNTPOINT="/" NAME="ol-swap" SIZE="15.7G" TYPE="lvm" FSTYPE="swap" MOUNTPOINT="[SWAP]" NAME="ol-home" SIZE="398.6G" TYPE="lvm" FSTYPE="xfs" MOUNTPOINT="/home" NAME="sdb" SIZE="1.8T" TYPE="disk" FSTYPE="" MOUNTPOINT="" NAME="sdb1" SIZE="1.8T" TYPE="part" FSTYPE="xfs" MOUNTPOINT="/data"

Explanation: The -P (pairs) option outputs data in a format that can be directly sourced in shell scripts. Each line contains all the requested fields for one device.

                        #!/bin/bash

# Example script using lsblk pairs output

lsblk -P -o NAME,SIZE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT | while read line; do

    eval "$line"

    # Process only mounted xfs filesystems

    if [[ "$FSTYPE" == "xfs" && -n "$MOUNTPOINT" && "$MOUNTPOINT" != "[SWAP]" ]]; then

        echo "XFS filesystem $NAME ($SIZE) mounted at $MOUNTPOINT"

    fi

done

# Output:

# XFS filesystem sda2 (1G) mounted at /boot

# XFS filesystem ol-root (50G) mounted at /

# XFS filesystem ol-home (398.6G) mounted at /home

# XFS filesystem sdb1 (1.8T) mounted at /data

Example 9: Display Topology Information

Show device topology details including alignment and minimum I/O size.

$ lsblk -t

NAME ALIGNMENT MIN-IO OPT-IO PHY-SEC LOG-SEC ROTA SCHED RQ-SIZE RA WSAME sda 0 512 0 512 512 0 mq-deadline 1024 128 0B ├─sda1 0 512 0 512 512 0 mq-deadline 1024 128 0B ├─sda2 0 512 0 512 512 0 mq-deadline 1024 128 0B └─sda3 0 512 0 512 512 0 mq-deadline 1024 128 0B ├─ol-root 0 512 0 512 512 0 128 128 0B ├─ol-swap 0 512 0 512 512 0 128 128 0B └─ol-home 0 512 0 512 512 0 128 128 0B sdb 0 4096 0 4096 512 0 mq-deadline 1024 128 0B └─sdb1 0 4096 0 4096 512 0 mq-deadline 1024 128 0B nvme0n1 0 512 0 512 512 0 none 256 128 128M ├─nvme0n1p1 0 512 0 512 512 0 none 256 128 128M └─nvme0n1p2 0 512 0 512 512 0 none 256 128 128M

Explanation: The -t (topology) option displays low-level device characteristics:

ALIGNMENT: Alignment offset (bytes)
MIN-IO: Minimum I/O size
OPT-IO: Optimal I/O size (0 means not specified)
PHY-SEC: Physical sector size
LOG-SEC: Logical sector size
ROTA: Rotational device (0=SSD, 1=spinning disk)
SCHED: I/O scheduler in use
RQ-SIZE: Request queue size
RA: Read-ahead in KB
WSAME: Write same max bytes

This information is crucial for:

Identifying SSD vs HDD (ROTA field)
Verifying proper 4K alignment
Checking I/O scheduler configuration
Performance tuning and troubleshooting
Understanding sector size for advanced formatting

Note on NVMe I/O Schedulers: NVMe devices often use "none" scheduler because the NVMe protocol handles queuing efficiently at the hardware level, making traditional I/O scheduling less beneficial.

Example 10: Comprehensive System Storage Report

Combine multiple options to create a detailed storage inventory report.

                        # Detailed report with all relevant information

$ lsblk -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT,LABEL,UUID,MODEL,SERIAL,VENDOR,RO,RM,ROTA

NAME SIZE TYPE FSTYPE MOUNTPOINT LABEL UUID MODEL SERIAL VENDOR RO RM ROTA sda 465.8G disk Samsung SSD 860 S3Z9NB0K123456 ATA 0 0 0 ├─sda1 512M part vfat /boot/efi EFI A1B2-C3D4 0 0 0 ├─sda2 1G part xfs /boot BOOT 12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789abc 0 0 0 └─sda3 464.3G part LVM2_member 98765432-4321-4321-4321-cba987654321 0 0 0 ├─ol-root 50G lvm xfs / abcdef01-2345-6789-abcd-ef0123456789 0 0 0 ├─ol-swap 15.7G lvm swap [SWAP] fedcba98-7654-3210-fedc-ba9876543210 0 0 0 └─ol-home 398.6G lvm xfs /home 11111111-2222-3333-4444-555555555555 0 0 0 sdb 1.8T disk WDC WD20EFRX-68 WD-WCC4M123456 ATA 0 0 0 └─sdb1 1.8T part xfs /data DATA 66666666-7777-8888-9999-000000000000 0 0 0 nvme0n1 1.8T disk Samsung SSD 980 S5GXNX0R123456 Samsung 0 0 0 ├─nvme0n1p1 500G part ext4 /mnt/nvme1 NVME1 aaaaaaaa-bbbb-cccc-dddd-eeeeeeeeeeee 0 0 0 └─nvme0n1p2 1.3T part ext4 /mnt/nvme2 NVME2 ffffffff-eeee-dddd-cccc-bbbbbbbbbbbb 0 0 0

                        # Alternative: Create a formatted report script

#!/bin/bash

echo "=================================="

echo "System Storage Report"

echo "Generated: $(date)"

echo "Hostname: $(hostname)"

echo "=================================="

echo ""

echo "Physical Disks:"

lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,MODEL,VENDOR,SERIAL,ROTA | grep disk

echo ""

echo "Mounted Filesystems:"

lsblk -l -o NAME,SIZE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT,LABEL,UUID | grep -v "^$" | grep -v "MOUNTPOINT$" | awk '$4 != ""'

echo ""

echo "Storage by Type:"

echo "  SSDs (ROTA=0):"

lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,MODEL | grep -B100 "ROTA" | awk 'NR>1'

echo ""

echo "Total Disk Space:"

lsblk -d -b -o SIZE | awk 'NR>1 {sum+=$1} END {print "  " sum/1024/1024/1024 " GB"}'

echo ""

echo "LVM Volumes:"

lsblk -l | grep lvm

echo ""

Explanation: This comprehensive example demonstrates how to combine lsblk with other tools to create detailed storage reports. Such reports are invaluable for:

System documentation
Capacity planning
Hardware inventory
Audit compliance
Troubleshooting reference

The custom columns provide everything needed to understand the storage configuration at a glance, including hardware details (MODEL, SERIAL, VENDOR) and software configuration (FSTYPE, LABEL, UUID, MOUNTPOINT).

Practical Use Cases

1. Finding a Device for Mounting

                    # You just inserted a USB drive - find it

$ lsblk -p | tail -5

│ └─/dev/sda3                      464.3G part LVM2_member

│   ├─/dev/mapper/ol-root             50G lvm  xfs         /

│   ├─/dev/mapper/ol-swap           15.7G lvm  swap        [SWAP]

│   └─/dev/mapper/ol-home          398.6G lvm  xfs         /home

/dev/sdc                              14.9G disk                    

└─/dev/sdc1                          14.9G part vfat

# Mount it

$ sudo mount /dev/sdc1 /mnt/usb

2. Verifying Partition Layout Before Installation

                    # Check target disk before OS installation

$ lsblk -f /dev/sda

# Verify it's the right disk and empty

$ lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,MODEL /dev/sda

3. Finding UUID for /etc/fstab

                    # Get UUID of a specific partition

$ lsblk -no UUID /dev/sdb1

66666666-7777-8888-9999-000000000000

# Or with more context

$ lsblk -f /dev/sdb1

NAME FSTYPE LABEL UUID                                   MOUNTPOINT

sdb1 xfs    DATA  66666666-7777-8888-9999-000000000000   /data

4. Checking LVM Structure

                    # See LVM layout clearly

$ lsblk | grep -E "disk|lvm|LVM"

sda         465.8G disk

└─sda3      464.3G part LVM2_member

  ├─ol-root    50G lvm  xfs         /

  ├─ol-swap  15.7G lvm  swap        [SWAP]

  └─ol-home 398.6G lvm  xfs         /home

5. Identifying NVMe Devices and Namespaces

                    # List all NVMe devices

$ lsblk | grep nvme

nvme0n1     259:0    0   1.8T  0 disk

├─nvme0n1p1 259:1    0   500G  0 part /mnt/nvme1

└─nvme0n1p2 259:2    0   1.3T  0 part /mnt/nvme2

# Get detailed info on NVMe devices

$ lsblk -o NAME,SIZE,MODEL,SERIAL /dev/nvme*

NAME        SIZE MODEL           SERIAL

nvme0n1     1.8T Samsung SSD 980 S5GXNX0R123456

├─nvme0n1p1 500G

└─nvme0n1p2 1.3T

Tips and Best Practices

Performance Considerations

lsblk is very fast - it reads from sysfs, not directly from devices
Safe to run anytime without impacting system performance
Does not require root privileges for basic information
Some detailed info (SERIAL, etc.) may require root access

Common Pitfalls

Device Names Can Change: Use UUID or LABEL in /etc/fstab, not device names
Tree Structure Can Be Misleading: Physical relationships don't always match logical hierarchy
Empty Mountpoint Doesn't Mean Unused: Swap and LVM PVs show no mountpoint
Size May Not Match Exactly: Filesystem overhead means usable space is less than shown

Combining with Other Commands

                    # Get block device info with filesystem usage

$ lsblk && df -h

# Show devices and their SMART status

$ lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,MODEL | while read name size model; do

    if [[ $name != "NAME" ]]; then

        echo "$name: $model"

        sudo smartctl -H /dev/$name | grep overall

    fi

done

# Find all unmounted partitions

$ lsblk -ln -o NAME,MOUNTPOINT | awk '$2 == "" {print $1}'

# List all devices with their I/O schedulers

$ for dev in $(lsblk -d -n -o NAME); do

    echo "$dev: $(cat /sys/block/$dev/queue/scheduler | grep -o '\[.*\]' | tr -d '[]')"

done

Aliases for Common Tasks

                    # Add to ~/.bashrc or ~/.bash_aliases

# Quick block device overview

alias lsb='lsblk -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT'

# Show all disk details

alias lsbd='lsblk -d -o NAME,SIZE,MODEL,VENDOR,SERIAL'

# Filesystem info

alias lsbf='lsblk -f'

# List unmounted partitions

alias lsbu='lsblk -ln -o NAME,SIZE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINT | grep -v swap | awk "\$4 == \"\" && \$3 != \"\""'

Troubleshooting Scenarios

Problem: Can't Find Newly Added Disk

                    # Rescan SCSI bus

$ echo "- - -" | sudo tee /sys/class/scsi_host/host*/scan

# Check if it appears now

$ lsblk

# If still missing, check dmesg

$ dmesg | tail -50 | grep -i "sd[a-z]"

Problem: Device Shows Wrong Size

                    # Check partition table type (MBR limited to 2TB)

$ sudo parted /dev/sdb print

# Verify actual disk size

$ sudo blockdev --getsize64 /dev/sdb

# Compare with lsblk

$ lsblk -b -d -o NAME,SIZE /dev/sdb

Problem: Mountpoint Not Showing in lsblk

                    # Check if actually mounted

$ mount | grep sdb1

# Try full path

$ lsblk /dev/sdb1

# Check if it's a bind mount

$ findmnt /mnt/point

Summary

The lsblk command is an essential tool for Linux system administrators, providing a clear, hierarchical view of all block devices. Unlike older tools like fdisk -l, lsblk presents information in an intuitive tree format that makes understanding device relationships straightforward.

Key Takeaways

Use lsblk without options for a quick storage overview
Add -f to see filesystem information including UUIDs
Use -d to see only top-level physical devices
Customize output with -o to show exactly what you need
Use -J or -P for scriptable output formats
Specify device paths to focus on specific disks
Combine with other tools for comprehensive storage analysis
Create aliases for frequently used combinations