diff --git a/app/vminsert/main.go b/app/vminsert/main.go
index d412911e38..0ed86956d8 100644
--- a/app/vminsert/main.go
+++ b/app/vminsert/main.go
@@ -16,7 +16,6 @@ import (
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/auth"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/buildinfo"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/flagutil"
-	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/fs"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/httpserver"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/logger"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/procutil"
@@ -89,8 +88,6 @@ func main() {
 	netstorage.Stop()
 	logger.Infof("successfully stopped netstorage in %s", time.Since(startTime))
 
-	fs.MustStopDirRemover()
-
 	logger.Infof("the vminsert has been stopped")
 }
 
diff --git a/app/vmselect/main.go b/app/vmselect/main.go
index a1fc24ba12..47db6099ef 100644
--- a/app/vmselect/main.go
+++ b/app/vmselect/main.go
@@ -76,8 +76,6 @@ func main() {
 	}
 	logger.Infof("successfully stopped netstorage in %s", time.Since(startTime))
 
-	fs.MustStopDirRemover()
-
 	logger.Infof("the vmselect has been stopped")
 }
 
diff --git a/app/vmstorage/main.go b/app/vmstorage/main.go
index 0dbbf70696..72b2914812 100644
--- a/app/vmstorage/main.go
+++ b/app/vmstorage/main.go
@@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/app/vmstorage/transport"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/buildinfo"
-	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/fs"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/httpserver"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/logger"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/procutil"
@@ -83,8 +82,6 @@ func main() {
 	strg.MustClose()
 	logger.Infof("successfully closed the storage in %s", time.Since(startTime))
 
-	fs.MustStopDirRemover()
-
 	logger.Infof("the vmstorage has been stopped")
 }
 
diff --git a/lib/fs/dir_remover.go b/lib/fs/dir_remover.go
deleted file mode 100644
index 15a9daab8b..0000000000
--- a/lib/fs/dir_remover.go
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,111 +0,0 @@
-package fs
-
-import (
-	"os"
-	"strings"
-	"sync"
-	"sync/atomic"
-	"time"
-
-	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/logger"
-	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/metrics"
-)
-
-func mustRemoveAll(path string) bool {
-	err := os.RemoveAll(path)
-	if err == nil {
-		// Make sure the parent directory doesn't contain references
-		// to the current directory.
-		mustSyncParentDirIfExists(path)
-		return true
-	}
-	if !isTemporaryNFSError(err) {
-		logger.Panicf("FATAL: cannot remove %q: %s", path, err)
-	}
-	// NFS prevents from removing directories with open files.
-	// See https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/61 .
-	// Schedule for later directory removal.
-	nfsDirRemoveFailedAttempts.Inc()
-	select {
-	case removeDirCh <- path:
-	default:
-		logger.Panicf("FATAL: cannot schedule %s for removal, since the removal queue is full (%d entries)", path, cap(removeDirCh))
-	}
-	return false
-}
-
-var nfsDirRemoveFailedAttempts = metrics.NewCounter(`vm_nfs_dir_remove_failed_attempts_total`)
-
-var removeDirCh = make(chan string, 1024)
-
-func dirRemover() {
-	const minSleepTime = 100 * time.Millisecond
-	const maxSleepTime = time.Second
-	sleepTime := minSleepTime
-	for {
-		var path string
-		select {
-		case path = <-removeDirCh:
-		default:
-			if atomic.LoadUint64(&stopDirRemover) != 0 {
-				return
-			}
-			time.Sleep(minSleepTime)
-			continue
-		}
-		if mustRemoveAll(path) {
-			sleepTime = minSleepTime
-			continue
-		}
-
-		// Couldn't remove the directory at the path because of NFS lock.
-		// Sleep for a while and try again.
-		// Do not limit the amount of time required for deleting the directory,
-		// since this may break on laggy NFS.
-		// See https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/162 .
-		time.Sleep(sleepTime)
-		if sleepTime < maxSleepTime {
-			sleepTime *= 2
-		} else {
-			logger.Errorf("failed to remove directory %q due to NFS lock; retrying later", path)
-		}
-	}
-}
-
-func isTemporaryNFSError(err error) bool {
-	// See https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/61 for details.
-	errStr := err.Error()
-	return strings.Contains(errStr, "directory not empty") || strings.Contains(errStr, "device or resource busy")
-}
-
-var dirRemoverWG sync.WaitGroup
-var stopDirRemover uint64
-
-func init() {
-	dirRemoverWG.Add(1)
-	go func() {
-		defer dirRemoverWG.Done()
-		dirRemover()
-	}()
-}
-
-// MustStopDirRemover must be called in the end of graceful shutdown
-// in order to wait for removing the remaining directories from removeDirCh.
-//
-// It is expected that nobody calls MustRemoveAll when MustStopDirRemover
-// is called.
-func MustStopDirRemover() {
-	atomic.StoreUint64(&stopDirRemover, 1)
-	doneCh := make(chan struct{})
-	go func() {
-		dirRemoverWG.Wait()
-		close(doneCh)
-	}()
-	const maxWaitTime = 5 * time.Second
-	select {
-	case <-doneCh:
-		return
-	case <-time.After(maxWaitTime):
-		logger.Panicf("FATAL: cannot stop dirRemover in %s", maxWaitTime)
-	}
-}
diff --git a/lib/fs/fs.go b/lib/fs/fs.go
index 4b0cd36197..eeb5cb7dbf 100644
--- a/lib/fs/fs.go
+++ b/lib/fs/fs.go
@@ -6,7 +6,9 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"regexp"
+	"strings"
 	"sync/atomic"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/filestream"
 	"github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/lib/logger"
@@ -246,7 +248,46 @@ func mustSyncParentDirIfExists(path string) {
 //
 // It properly handles NFS issue https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/61 .
 func MustRemoveAll(path string) {
-	_ = mustRemoveAll(path)
+	startTime := time.Now()
+	sleepTime := 100 * time.Millisecond
+again:
+	err := os.RemoveAll(path)
+	if err == nil {
+		// Make sure the parent directory doesn't contain references
+		// to the current directory.
+		mustSyncParentDirIfExists(path)
+		return
+	}
+	if !isTemporaryNFSError(err) {
+		logger.Panicf("FATAL: cannot remove %q: %s", path, err)
+	}
+	// NFS prevents from removing directories with open files.
+	// See https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/61 .
+	// Continuously try removing the directory for up to a minute before giving up.
+	//
+	// Do not postpone directory removal, since it breaks in the following case:
+	// - Remove the directory (the removal is postponed)
+	// - Scan for exsiting directories and open them. The scan finds
+	//   the `removed` directory, but its contents may be already broken.
+	// See https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/162 .
+	nfsDirRemoveFailedAttempts.Inc()
+	if time.Since(startTime) > time.Minute {
+		logger.Panicf("FATAL: couldn't remove NFS directory %q in %s", path, time.Minute)
+	}
+	time.Sleep(sleepTime)
+	sleepTime *= 2
+	if sleepTime > time.Second {
+		sleepTime = time.Second
+	}
+	goto again
+}
+
+var nfsDirRemoveFailedAttempts = metrics.NewCounter(`vm_nfs_dir_remove_failed_attempts_total`)
+
+func isTemporaryNFSError(err error) bool {
+	// See https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/61 for details.
+	errStr := err.Error()
+	return strings.Contains(errStr, "directory not empty") || strings.Contains(errStr, "device or resource busy")
 }
 
 // HardLinkFiles makes hard links for all the files from srcDir in dstDir.