Maximum number of files

[AndyB]

Assuming I have a fairly normal, reasonably current, set up on a *nix server and it's shared hosting - approximately what's the maximum number of files I can have in any single directory?  What's the maximum number of sub-directories I can have in any single directory? 

[neylitalo]

Well, technically, there is a limit, but it's rather unlikely that you reach that limit. According to the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ext3#_note-0]Wikipedia article[/url] on the Ext3 filesystem, which is likely what your host uses, the limit is V/2^13 inodes, where V is the size of the volume in bytes.

So, assuming you have 2GB of storage space, you can have a maximum of 262,144 inodes. (files and/or directories) This number is a grand total - there isn't a set restriction on files in a directory, or directories in a directory.