InfluxDB file system layout
This page documents an earlier version of InfluxDB OSS. InfluxDB OSS v2 is the latest stable version.
The InfluxDB file system layout depends on the operating system, installation method, or containerization platform used to install InfluxDB.
InfluxDB file structure
The InfluxDB file structure includes of the following:
Data directory
Directory path where InfluxDB stores time series data (TSM files).
To customize this path, use the [data].dir
configuration option.
WAL directory
Directory path where InfluxDB stores Write Ahead Log (WAL) files.
To customize this path, use the [data].wal-dir
configuration option.
Metastore directory
Directory path of the InfluxDB metastore, which stores information about users,
databases, retention policies, shards, and continuous queries.
To customize this path, use the [meta].dir
configuration option.
InfluxDB configuration files
Some operating systems and package managers store a default InfluxDB configuration file on disk. For more information about using InfluxDB configuration files, see Configure InfluxDB.
File system layout
macOS default directories
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | ~/.influxdb/data/ |
| WAL directory | ~/.influxdb/wal/ |
| Metastore directory | ~/.influxdb/meta/ |
Homebrew default directories
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | /opt/homebrew/var/influxdb/data/ |
| WAL directory | /opt/homebrew/var/influxdb/wal/ |
| Metastore directory | /opt/homebrew/var/meta/ |
macOS file system overview
- ~/.influxdb/
- data/
- TSM directories and files
- wal/
- WAL directories and files
- meta/
- meta.db
- data/
When installing InfluxDB on Linux, you can download and install the influxd binary,
or you can use a package manager.
Which installation method you use determines the file system layout.
Installed as a standalone binary
Linux default directories (standalone binary)
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | ~/.influxdb/data/ |
| WAL directory | ~/.influxdb/wal/ |
| Metastore directory | ~/.influxdb/meta/ |
Linux file system overview (standalone binary)
- ~/.influxdb/
- data/
- TSM directories and files
- wal/
- WAL directories and files
- meta/
- meta.db
- data/
Installed as a package
InfluxDB 2.0 supports .deb- and .rpm-based Linux package managers. The file system layout is the same with each.
Linux default directories (package)
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | /var/lib/influxdb/data/ |
| WAL directory | /var/lib/influxdb/wal/ |
| Metastore directory | /var/lib/influxdb/meta/ |
| Default config file path | /etc/influxdb/influxdb.conf |
Linux file system overview (package)
- /var/lib/influxdb/
- data/
- TSM directories and files
- wal/
- WAL directories and files
- meta/
- meta.db
- data/
- /etc/influxdb/
- influxdb.conf (influxd configuration file)
Windows default paths
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | %USERPROFILE%\.influxdb\data\ |
| WAL directory | %USERPROFILE%\.influxdb\wal\ |
| Metastore directory | %USERPROFILE%\.influxdb\meta\ |
Windows file system overview
- %USERPROFILE%\.influxdb\
- data/
- TSM directories and files
- wal/
- WAL directories and files
- meta/
- meta.db
- data/
Docker default directories
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | /var/lib/influxdb/data/ |
| WAL directory | /var/lib/influxdb/wal/ |
| Metastore directory | /var/lib/influxdb/meta/ |
Docker Hub file system overview
- /var/lib/influxdb/
- data/
- TSM directories and files
- wal/
- WAL directories and files
- meta/
- meta.db
- data/
Kubernetes default paths
| Path | Default |
|---|---|
| Data directory | /var/lib/influxdb/data/ |
| WAL directory | /var/lib/influxdb/wal/ |
| Metastore directory | /var/lib/influxdb/meta/ |
Kubernetes file system overview
- /var/lib/influxdb/
- data/
- TSM directories and files
- wal/
- WAL directories and files
- meta/
- meta.db
- data/
Directory permissions
The user running the influxd process should have the following permissions for
directories in the InfluxDB file system:
| Directory path | Permission |
|---|---|
.../influxdb/ | 755 |
.../influxdb/data/ | 755 |
.../influxdb/meta/ | 755 |
.../influxdb/wal/ | 700 |
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Support and feedback
Thank you for being part of our community! We welcome and encourage your feedback and bug reports for InfluxDB and this documentation. To find support, use the following resources:
Customers with an annual or support contract can contact InfluxData Support.