Though we were instructed not to, a colleague of mine used vi to view a large text file (server.log 3.5 GB).This filled up /var/tmp and caused some problems on the server.What caused this? Why shouldn't we use vi for large files?
What happens if I use vi on large files?
vim;vi
The default directory (/var/tmp) for the vi editing buffer needs space equal to roughly twice the size of the file with which you are working, because vi uses the extra lines for buffer manipulation.If the /var/tmp directory does not have enough space for the editing buffer (e.g., you are working with a large file, or the system is running out of spacesome times you may get ,you will receive the following error message like this alsoNot enough space in /var/tmp.You can read about how to fix this here:http://kb.iu.edu/data/akqv.html