Critical: /tmp partition mounted as Read-Only on CentOS 7 - ValueError: Path cannot be empty

Eugenio Telles

• January 05, 2026 20:10

Hello,

I'm experiencing a critical issue on one of my VPS servers (CentOS 7 / WHM v110+). Several OJS (Open Journal Systems) installations started failing with the error: PHP Fatal error: Uncaught ValueError: Path cannot be empty.

After investigation, I've confirmed that the issue is related to the /tmp partition. Although the permissions are set to 1777, the system is unable to write any files.

Diagnostic steps taken:

1. PHP Test: A simple tempnam() call via web returns an empty string.

2. CLI Check: Running touch /tmp/test.txt as root returns: touch: cannot touch ‘/tmp/test.txt’: Read-only file system.

3. SecureTmp Script: I tried running /scripts/securetmp, but it failed with: Cpanel::Exception::TempFileCreateError ... Read-only file system.

It seems the loopback device for /tmp is corrupted or locked. Since this is a VPS environment, I'm concerned about filesystem integrity.

What is the recommended procedure to safely rebuild the /tmp partition and the /usr/testDSK file without a full OS reboot, or is a reboot mandatory in this case?

Best regards, Eugênio Telles

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  cPRex Jurassic Moderator

  • January 06, 2026 16:19

  Hey there!  This question would be better directed at your hosting provider as cPanel doesn't control the disk partitions or cause a partition to lock.  Since this is a VPS machine your host has likely also dealt with this before on your particular platform so they should be able to provider you with the proper fix.

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  Eugenio Telles

  • January 06, 2026 16:40

  Hi cPRex!

  Thank you for your reply.

  Unfortunately, my hosting provider (Brazil HostGator) was unable to assist me with this issue. Even though I explained the full context and mentioned that AI-based support tools recommended restarting /scripts/securetmp, they did not provide me with a solution and only sent me a link to the script documentation.

  Fortunately, I rebooted the VPS before making any changes via the terminal, and everything started working properly again.

  Best regards,

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  cPRex Jurassic Moderator

  • January 06, 2026 16:41

  I'm glad to hear that's all it took!  Usually that's what needs to happen in these situations, but it's always good to get confirmation from the host that a reboot won't harm any data when the server is in that state.

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  Eugenio Telles

  • January 06, 2026 16:55

  Indeed... they gave me no instruction, just suggest to hire a developer --'

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  cPRex Jurassic Moderator

  • January 06, 2026 16:56

  Sorry to hear that!

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