nodetool getsstables

Lists SSTables containing a partition key.

Synopsis

nodetool [connection_options] getsstables [--hex-format] <keyspace> <table> <key>

See connection options for connection options.

Description

nodetool getsstables identifies which SSTable files contain data for a specific partition key. This is useful for debugging, investigating data distribution, or understanding where specific data resides on disk.

Arguments

Argument	Description
`keyspace`	Target keyspace name
`table`	Target table name
`key`	Partition key value

Options

Option	Description
`-hf, --hex-format`	Interpret key as hex-encoded bytes
`-l, --show-levels`	Include SSTable level information (for LCS)

Examples

Basic Usage

nodetool getsstables my_keyspace my_table user123

Hex-Encoded Key

nodetool getsstables --hex-format my_keyspace my_table 0x1234567890abcdef

Sample Output

/var/lib/cassandra/data/my_keyspace/my_table-12345678901234567890/mc-1-big-Data.db
/var/lib/cassandra/data/my_keyspace/my_table-12345678901234567890/mc-5-big-Data.db

Use Cases

Debug Data Location

# Find which SSTables contain specific partition
nodetool getsstables my_keyspace users user_12345

Investigate Hot Partitions

# Check if hot key spans multiple SSTables
nodetool getsstables my_keyspace events hot_partition_key | wc -l

Verify Compaction

# Before and after compaction, check key distribution
nodetool getsstables my_keyspace my_table test_key

Best Practices

Usage Guidelines

Know key format - Ensure correct key encoding
Multiple SSTables normal - Data may span multiple files
Post-compaction - Fewer SSTables after compaction

Command	Relationship
tablestats	Table SSTable counts
compact	Force compaction
getendpoints	Find replicas for key