# podman system prune: Reclaim Disk on Runners

> podman system prune removes stopped containers, unused images, networks, and build cache. Reference for -a, --volumes, -f, and safe CI cleanup.

Source: https://latchkey.dev/learn/command-reference/podman-system-prune  
Updated: 2026-06-30

podman system prune deletes unused containers, images, networks, and build cache to free disk space.

Self-hosted runners run out of disk from accumulated layers. podman system prune is the broad-brush cleanup; mind that -a and --volumes are aggressive.

## What it does

podman system prune removes stopped containers, dangling images, unused networks, and build cache. With -a it also removes all unused images (not just dangling); with --volumes it removes unused volumes too. It prompts unless you pass -f.

## Common usage

```Terminal
podman system prune -f
podman system prune -a -f
podman system prune -a --volumes -f
podman image prune -f   # images only
```

## Options

| Flag | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| -a, --all | Also remove all unused images, not just dangling |
| --volumes | Also remove unused volumes |
| -f, --force | Do not prompt for confirmation |
| --filter <f> | Restrict by filter, e.g. until=24h |

## In CI

On ephemeral runners prune is unnecessary. On persistent self-hosted runners, run podman system prune -f between jobs to reclaim space. Be careful with --volumes: it deletes data volumes that another job might still need.

## Common errors in CI

Prune may report it cannot remove an image "in use by a container" if a container still references it; remove containers first or use podman rm -a before pruning. Running prune as the wrong user only cleans that user store (the rootless-vs-root split), so disk may still look full under the other account. --volumes removing a needed volume shows up later as missing data, not as an error.

## FAQ

### podman system prune: Reclaim Disk on Runners?

Self-hosted runners run out of disk from accumulated layers. podman system prune is the broad-brush cleanup; mind that -a and --volumes are aggressive.

### What it does?

podman system prune removes stopped containers, dangling images, unused networks, and build cache. With -a it also removes all unused images (not just dangling); with --volumes it removes unused volumes too. It prompts unless you pass -f.

### In CI?

On ephemeral runners prune is unnecessary. On persistent self-hosted runners, run podman system prune -f between jobs to reclaim space. Be careful with --volumes: it deletes data volumes that another job might still need.

### Common errors in CI?

Prune may report it cannot remove an image "in use by a container" if a container still references it; remove containers first or use podman rm -a before pruning. Running prune as the wrong user only cleans that user store (the rootless-vs-root split), so disk may still look full under the other account.

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Latchkey runs CI/CD that repairs its own failures. Agent entry points: https://latchkey.dev/agent.txt, https://latchkey.dev/openapi.json, https://latchkey.dev/llms.txt