> I have no understanding of this. I've never seen a df output > that tells me I'm using 13GB more space than the drive is > capable of holding. > > I ask here because there's obviously potential for me to lose > data somewhere down the line. I'll be grateful if anyone can > explain where I've gone wrong. >
You can zero the disk device directly but use bs=2m to speed it up or use the file you've created as an encryption device with vnconfig. There are a few ways of encrypting though. Don't worry the -13G is perfectly normal. 275 * 0.05 = 13.75 ie 5% is reserved as root for stability and important work, had you written the file as a normal user you would have had 0 space left and be using 261Gs of 275. Lookup up the faq or previous mails at marc.info as I'm sure the answer is in both.
