Data Domain: How to delete an mtree

Summary: This article explains how to delete Data Domain mtrees.

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Instructions

Data Domain mtrees can be deleted from either the command line (CLI) or the web interface (GUI). A user account with the "admin" role is required for this.
 

Deleting an mtree from the CLI:

  1. List the mtrees present on the Data Domain using the command 'mtree list': 
    sysadmin@datadomain# mtree list
Name                 Pre-Comp (GiB)   Status   Tenant-Unit
------------------   --------------   ------   -----------
/data/col1/backup               0.0   RW       -
/data/col1/Default              0.0   RW       -
/data/col1/test                 0.0   RW       -
------------------   --------------   ------   -----------
 D    : Deleted
 Q    : Quota Defined
 RO   : Read Only
 RW   : Read Write
 RD   : Replication Destination
 RLGE : Retention-Lock Governance Enabled
 RLGD : Retention-Lock Governance Disabled
 RLCE : Retention-Lock Compliance Enabled
  2. Delete the mtree using command 'mtree delete /data/col1/<mtree_name>': 
    sysadmin@datadomain# mtree delete /data/col1/test

Deleting an MTree will destroy all data in the MTree.
If there are any NFS exports, CIFS shares, VTL tapes, DDBOOST storage-units, Replication Contexts or Physical Capacity Measurements configured for this MTree, they need to be manually removed/edited. Do you wish to continue?
        Are you sure? (yes|no) [no]: yes

ok, proceeding.

MTree "/data/col1/test" deleted successfully.

Deleting an mtree from the GUI:

  1. Go to Data Management > MTree.
  2. Select the mtree to delete.
  3. Click the 'Delete' button.
    A screenshot of the Data Domain Data Management MTree page
 
Note: The below error may occur when trying to delete certain mtrees: 
**** MTree "/data/col1/stu_test" contains ddboost storage unit, cannot be deleted.
 
This error means that the mtree is associated with a DD Boost storage unit. If this occurs, delete the corresponding storage unit instead of the mtree.
 

Deleting a storage unit from the CLI:

  1. List DD Boost storage units using the command 'ddboost storage-unit show': 
    sysadmin@datadomain# ddboost storage-unit show
Name                         Pre-Comp (GiB)   Status   User            Report Physical   Tenant-Unit
                                                                          Size (MiB)
--------------------------   --------------   ------   -------------   ---------------   -----------
networker                               0.0   RW       ddboostxxxxxx                 -   -
stu_test                                0.0   RW       ddboostxxxxxx                 -   -
--------------------------   --------------   ------   -------------   ---------------   -----------
 D    : Deleted
 Q    : Quota Defined
 RO   : Read Only
 RW   : Read Write
 RD   : Replication Destination
  2. Delete the storage unit using the command 'ddboost storage-unit delete <storage-unit_name>': 
    sysadmin@datadomain# ddboost storage-unit delete stu_test

The 'ddboost storage-unit delete' command will delete all files in the storage-unit.
        Are you sure? (yes|no) [no]: yes

ok, proceeding.

Storage-unit "stu_test" deleted.
sysadmin@datadomain# mtree list
Name                                    Pre-Comp (GiB)   Status   Tenant-Unit
-------------------------------------   --------------   ------   -----------
/data/col1/backup                                  0.0   RW       -
/data/col1/Default                                 0.0   RW       -
/data/col1/networker                               0.0   RW       -
/data/col1/stu_test                                0.0   D        -
-------------------------------------   --------------   ------   -----------
 

Deleting a storage unit from the GUI:

  1. Go to Protocols > DD Boost > STORAGE UNITS.
  2. Select the storage unit to delete.
  3. Click Delete (the Trash icon).
    A screenshot of the Data Domain DD Boost Storage Unit page
 
This deletes a specified storage unit, its contents, and any DD Boost associations. The deleted storage unit retains its old name and is shown as deleted in the mtree list.
 
Note: Manually remove (expire) corresponding catalog entries from the backup application.
 
All mtrees marked for deletion remain on the Data Domain until a file system cleaning is run.

Additional Information

  • The 'mtree delete' command cannot be run on Retention Lock Governance or Retention Lock Compliance mtrees unless they are empty.
  • Mtrees can be reverted from a marked-for-deletion state by running the 'mtree undelete' command, but only if cleaning has not yet been run.
  • When an mtree is removed from the file system, snapshots associated with that mtree are also deleted from the /data/col1/<mtree-name>/.snapshot/ directory.
 

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Article Properties
Article Number: 000020666
Article Type: How To
Last Modified: 23 نيسان 2026
Version:  5
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