Quickly list and interpret LVM physical volumes to manage storage with confidence. 25.06.2026 | reading time: 2 min What holds your LVM storage together? Use `pvs` to get a compact, readable overview of physical volumes and their free space so you can plan growth or troubleshooting fast. Hands-on: pvs in action Try this lab sequence to see `pvs` produce a quick summary: ```bash $ sudo pvcreate /dev/sdb Physical volume /dev/sdb successfully created. $ sudo pvs PV VG Fmt Attr PSize PFree /dev/sdb vg_test lvm2 a-- 100.00g 100.00g ``` This shows the physical volume, its volume group, format, size and free space at a glance. Options worth knowing Read and tailor output: use `pvs -o` to pick columns, `--units` to change size units, `-v` for verbose checks and `-s` for separators in scripts; combine `pvs --segments` to inspect how extents are allocated across devices when you suspect fragmentation. Where pvs fits `pvs` is the quick summary view in the LVM toolkit: it complements detailed commands like `pvdisplay` for per-device metadata and pairs with `vgs` and `lvs` to understand how physical capacity maps to volume groups and logical volumes. Next steps Practice reading `pvs` outputs on spare disks or in VMs, then use creation and inspection commands together to build confidence; when ready, deepen your skillset with formal training and consider exam goals like CompTIA Linux+ or LPIC-1, with bitsandbytes.academy offering intensive exam preparation. Join Bits & Bytes Academy First class LINUX exam preparation. storage filesystem utilities infrastructure
