diff --git a/weed/shell/volume_placement.go b/weed/shell/volume_placement.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e2a78aef4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/weed/shell/volume_placement.go
@@ -0,0 +1,147 @@
+package shell
+
+import (
+	"sort"
+
+	"github.com/seaweedfs/seaweedfs/weed/pb/master_pb"
+	"github.com/seaweedfs/seaweedfs/weed/storage/types"
+)
+
+// PlacementPreference describes where a volume that has to leave its current
+// node may land.
+type PlacementPreference struct {
+	// Source is the node the volume is leaving. It is never a candidate, and
+	// its rack and data center are what PreferLocality measures against.
+	Source string
+	// DiskType is the medium the volume must land on.
+	DiskType types.DiskType
+	// AnchorDataCenter restricts candidates to one data center when set.
+	AnchorDataCenter string
+	// Exclude names nodes already spoken for by the same plan, so a caller
+	// placing several copies does not stack them on one node.
+	Exclude map[string]bool
+	// VolumeBytes is what this move will actually consume on the destination.
+	// Zero falls back to the tier's average volume size, which is all a caller
+	// planning a not-yet-created volume can know.
+	VolumeBytes uint64
+}
+
+// PickTarget chooses where a volume that has to leave its node should land:
+// the emptiest node near it.
+//
+// Locality ranks first -- same rack as the source, then same data center, then
+// anywhere -- because moving a volume past a node that could have held it costs
+// cross-rack bandwidth for nothing. Within a locality tier the emptiest wins, so
+// a burst of moves still spreads instead of filling whichever node the topology
+// happens to list first. Free bytes decide when the cluster reports them and
+// free slots break the tie, which also leaves servers too old to report
+// filesystem bytes ordered sensibly.
+//
+// Locality is not optional. A caller that genuinely wants to scatter should
+// widen what it passes as Source, not ask placement to forget where the volume
+// came from.
+//
+// The chosen node's volume count is spent in topo before returning. Planning
+// several moves from one snapshot otherwise sends them all to the same node,
+// since each pick would see the capacity its predecessors already took. Callers
+// therefore pass a snapshot they own and may mutate.
+func PickTarget(topo *master_pb.TopologyInfo, pref PlacementPreference) *master_pb.DataNodeInfo {
+	nodes := collectVolumeServersByDcRackNode(topo, pref.AnchorDataCenter, "", "")
+
+	var srcDc, srcRack string
+	for _, n := range nodes {
+		if n.info.Id == pref.Source {
+			srcDc, srcRack = n.dc, n.rack
+			break
+		}
+	}
+
+	type candidate struct {
+		node     *Node
+		locality int // 0 same rack, 1 same dc, 2 elsewhere
+		bytes    uint64
+		hasBytes bool
+		slots    int64
+	}
+
+	var candidates []candidate
+	for _, n := range nodes {
+		if n.info.Id == pref.Source || pref.Exclude[n.info.Id] {
+			continue
+		}
+		if !n.hasFreeVolumeSlot(pref.DiskType) {
+			continue
+		}
+		c := candidate{node: n}
+		_, free, ok := n.diskBytes(pref.DiskType)
+		c.bytes, c.hasBytes = free, ok
+		if d, found := n.info.DiskInfos[string(pref.DiskType)]; found && d != nil {
+			c.slots = d.MaxVolumeCount - d.VolumeCount
+		}
+		switch {
+		case srcRack != "" && n.rack == srcRack && n.dc == srcDc:
+			c.locality = 0
+		case srcDc != "" && n.dc == srcDc:
+			c.locality = 1
+		default:
+			c.locality = 2
+		}
+		candidates = append(candidates, c)
+	}
+	if len(candidates) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	// One metric decides the whole ordering. Comparing some pairs on bytes and
+	// others on slots is intransitive -- with A,B reporting bytes and C not, the
+	// order of A and C depends on which the sort happens to compare first -- so a
+	// single node too old to report filesystem bytes puts every candidate on
+	// slots rather than silently mixing the two.
+	byBytes := true
+	for _, c := range candidates {
+		if !c.hasBytes {
+			byBytes = false
+			break
+		}
+	}
+
+	sort.SliceStable(candidates, func(i, j int) bool {
+		a, b := candidates[i], candidates[j]
+		if a.locality != b.locality {
+			return a.locality < b.locality
+		}
+		if byBytes && a.bytes != b.bytes {
+			return a.bytes > b.bytes
+		}
+		return a.slots > b.slots
+	})
+
+	chosen := candidates[0].node.info
+	if d, ok := chosen.DiskInfos[string(pref.DiskType)]; ok && d != nil {
+		d.VolumeCount++
+		if d.DiskTotalBytes != 0 && d.DiskFreeBytes != 0 {
+			// Spend the space this move actually takes, so the next pick from
+			// this snapshot sees the node as fuller by the right amount. A big
+			// volume charged the tier average would let a batch overcommit the
+			// destination; a small one would divert later moves off a node that
+			// still had room.
+			spend := pref.VolumeBytes
+			if spend == 0 {
+				spend = d.DiskTotalBytes / uint64(max64(d.MaxVolumeCount, 1))
+			}
+			if d.DiskFreeBytes > spend {
+				d.DiskFreeBytes -= spend
+			} else {
+				d.DiskFreeBytes = 0
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	return chosen
+}
+
+func max64(a, b int64) int64 {
+	if a > b {
+		return a
+	}
+	return b
+}
diff --git a/weed/shell/volume_placement_test.go b/weed/shell/volume_placement_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f831ca347
--- /dev/null
+++ b/weed/shell/volume_placement_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,226 @@
+package shell
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/seaweedfs/seaweedfs/weed/pb/master_pb"
+	"github.com/seaweedfs/seaweedfs/weed/storage/types"
+)
+
+func placementNode(id string, maxVolumes, used int64, totalBytes, freeBytes uint64) *master_pb.DataNodeInfo {
+	return &master_pb.DataNodeInfo{Id: id, DiskInfos: map[string]*master_pb.DiskInfo{
+		"ssd": {
+			MaxVolumeCount: maxVolumes, VolumeCount: used,
+			DiskTotalBytes: totalBytes, DiskFreeBytes: freeBytes,
+		},
+	}}
+}
+
+// placementTopo builds a one-datacenter topology, taking each node's first
+// character as its rack so the tests read compactly.
+func placementTopo(nodes ...*master_pb.DataNodeInfo) *master_pb.TopologyInfo {
+	byRack := map[string][]*master_pb.DataNodeInfo{}
+	var order []string
+	for _, n := range nodes {
+		rack := n.Id[:1]
+		if _, seen := byRack[rack]; !seen {
+			order = append(order, rack)
+		}
+		byRack[rack] = append(byRack[rack], n)
+	}
+	var racks []*master_pb.RackInfo
+	for _, r := range order {
+		racks = append(racks, &master_pb.RackInfo{Id: r, DataNodeInfos: byRack[r]})
+	}
+	return &master_pb.TopologyInfo{DataCenterInfos: []*master_pb.DataCenterInfo{{Id: "dc1", RackInfos: racks}}}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetPrefersTheEmptiestByFreeBytes(t *testing.T) {
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 200),
+		placementNode("a2", 10, 1, 1000, 900),
+		placementNode("a3", 10, 1, 1000, 500),
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "a2" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want the node with the most free bytes (a2)", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetFallsBackToSlotsWithoutReportedBytes(t *testing.T) {
+	// A volume server too old to report filesystem bytes must still be ordered
+	// sensibly rather than read as having zero free.
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 9, 0, 0),
+		placementNode("a2", 10, 2, 0, 0),
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "a2" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want the node with the most free slots (a2)", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetSkipsSourceExcludedAndFull(t *testing.T) {
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 900), // the source itself
+		placementNode("a2", 10, 1, 1000, 800), // already spoken for by the plan
+		placementNode("a3", 5, 5, 1000, 700),  // no free slot
+		placementNode("a4", 10, 1, 1000, 100),
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{
+		Source: "a1", DiskType: types.SsdType, Exclude: map[string]bool{"a2": true},
+	})
+	if got.GetId() != "a4" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want a4", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetReturnsNilWhenNothingFits(t *testing.T) {
+	topo := placementTopo(placementNode("a1", 5, 5, 1000, 900))
+	if got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType}); got != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want nil", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetHonoursAnchorDataCenter(t *testing.T) {
+	topo := &master_pb.TopologyInfo{DataCenterInfos: []*master_pb.DataCenterInfo{
+		{Id: "dc1", RackInfos: []*master_pb.RackInfo{{Id: "r1", DataNodeInfos: []*master_pb.DataNodeInfo{
+			placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 100),
+		}}}},
+		{Id: "dc2", RackInfos: []*master_pb.RackInfo{{Id: "r2", DataNodeInfos: []*master_pb.DataNodeInfo{
+			placementNode("b1", 10, 1, 1000, 900),
+		}}}},
+	}}
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{
+		Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType, AnchorDataCenter: "dc1",
+	})
+	if got.GetId() != "a1" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want a1 -- the anchor outranks an emptier node elsewhere", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetPrefersTheSourceRackOverAnEmptierStranger(t *testing.T) {
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 500), // source, rack a
+		placementNode("a2", 10, 1, 1000, 100), // same rack, tighter
+		placementNode("b1", 10, 1, 1000, 900), // other rack, emptiest
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "a1", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "a2" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want a2 -- same rack outranks emptier", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetLeavesTheRackWhenItCannotHoldTheVolume(t *testing.T) {
+	// Locality is a preference over candidates, never a reason to overfill.
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 500), // source
+		placementNode("a2", 5, 5, 1000, 900),  // same rack, no free slot
+		placementNode("b1", 10, 1, 1000, 100),
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "a1", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "b1" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want b1 -- a full same-rack node is not a candidate", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetPrefersSameDataCenterOverAnother(t *testing.T) {
+	topo := &master_pb.TopologyInfo{DataCenterInfos: []*master_pb.DataCenterInfo{
+		{Id: "dc1", RackInfos: []*master_pb.RackInfo{
+			{Id: "r1", DataNodeInfos: []*master_pb.DataNodeInfo{placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 500)}},
+			{Id: "r2", DataNodeInfos: []*master_pb.DataNodeInfo{placementNode("a2", 10, 1, 1000, 100)}},
+		}},
+		{Id: "dc2", RackInfos: []*master_pb.RackInfo{
+			{Id: "r3", DataNodeInfos: []*master_pb.DataNodeInfo{placementNode("b1", 10, 1, 1000, 900)}},
+		}},
+	}}
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "a1", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "a2" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want a2 -- another rack in the same dc beats another dc", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetFallsBackToCapacityForAnUnknownSource(t *testing.T) {
+	// A source that is not in the topology has no rack to be near, so ordering
+	// degrades to capacity rather than to topology order.
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 100),
+		placementNode("b1", 10, 1, 1000, 900),
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "gone:8080", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "b1" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want b1", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetSpendsCapacitySoABatchSpreads(t *testing.T) {
+	// The reservation this exists for: planning several moves from one snapshot
+	// must not stack them all on whichever node started emptiest.
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 4, 0, 4000, 4000),
+		placementNode("a2", 4, 0, 4000, 3000),
+	)
+	seen := map[string]int{}
+	for i := 0; i < 4; i++ {
+		got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+		if got == nil {
+			t.Fatalf("pick %d returned nil", i)
+		}
+		seen[got.GetId()]++
+	}
+	if seen["a1"] == 4 || seen["a2"] == 4 {
+		t.Fatalf("all four picks landed on one node: %v", seen)
+	}
+	if seen["a1"]+seen["a2"] != 4 {
+		t.Fatalf("unexpected spread: %v", seen)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetStopsWhenTheSnapshotIsSpent(t *testing.T) {
+	// Reservation has to make a node stop being a candidate, not merely rank it
+	// lower, or a batch could overcommit a tier.
+	topo := placementTopo(placementNode("a1", 2, 0, 2000, 2000))
+	for i := 0; i < 2; i++ {
+		if got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType}); got == nil {
+			t.Fatalf("pick %d returned nil while slots remained", i)
+		}
+	}
+	if got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType}); got != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want nil once the snapshot is spent", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetUsesOneMetricWhenReportingIsMixed(t *testing.T) {
+	// b1 has the most free bytes but the fewest slots; a2 the reverse. With a3
+	// reporting no bytes at all, every candidate must be ordered on slots, or
+	// the comparator is intransitive and the winner depends on sort order.
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 1, 1000, 500), // source
+		placementNode("a2", 10, 1, 1000, 100),
+		placementNode("a3", 10, 2, 0, 0), // too old to report bytes
+		placementNode("a4", 10, 8, 1000, 900),
+	)
+	got := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "a1", DiskType: types.SsdType})
+	if got.GetId() != "a2" {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want a2 -- the most free slots once bytes are unusable", got.GetId())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPickTargetReservesTheVolumeSize(t *testing.T) {
+	// A volume far bigger than the tier average must be charged at its real
+	// size, or a batch of them overcommits the destination.
+	topo := placementTopo(
+		placementNode("a1", 10, 0, 1000, 1000),
+		placementNode("a2", 10, 0, 1000, 900),
+	)
+	first := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType, VolumeBytes: 800})
+	if first.GetId() != "a1" {
+		t.Fatalf("first pick %q, want a1", first.GetId())
+	}
+	// a1 now reports 200 free against a2's 900, so the next move must go there
+	// rather than to the node that merely started emptiest.
+	second := PickTarget(topo, PlacementPreference{Source: "z9", DiskType: types.SsdType, VolumeBytes: 800})
+	if second.GetId() != "a2" {
+		t.Fatalf("second pick %q, want a2 after 800 bytes were spent on a1", second.GetId())
+	}
+}