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Adding Raid 5 disk in Poweredge T420
Hello, I have a Poweredge T420 with a Perc H310 controller, running Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2011, Standard x64 Edition, Operating System Version Version 6.1 (Build 7601 : Service Pack 1) (x64)
The current virtual drive consists of 3 x 1-TB drives for a total size of 1862 GB.There is a C-partition of 362 GB and a D-partition of 1500 GB.
I would like to add a 4th 1-TB drive to increase the total size to 2793. I understand how to Reconfigure the virtual drive in the Dell Open Manage Server Administrator.
Will my operating system recognize a virtual drive of this size? Will I then be able to expand my D partition to be 2431 GB?
DELL-Josh Cr
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November 12th, 2018 13:00
Hi,
Yes, you should be able to use Windows Disk Manager to expand the partition. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/storage/disk-management/extend-a-basic-volume
theflash1932
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November 12th, 2018 22:00
That depends … in order for this to work, you MUST have Windows already installed in UEFI mode (not BIOS).
If you have it installed in UEFI mode, then you CAN extend the D: drive.
If you have it installed in BIOS mode (not UEFI), then you CANNOT extend the D: drive. Reason: BIOS is limited to 2TB boot disks, and each VD is presented to the OS as a "disk", so by extending the VD beyond 2TB, you essentially introduce a drive too large for it to boot from in its current configuration. You are looking at a reinstall of the OS in this case to add more than 2TB of space.
siriusbs
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November 13th, 2018 09:00
Thanks, I'll have to check. Is there any utility that will tell me this information without me rebooting the server (such as the Dell Open Manage Server Admin)?
theflash1932
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November 13th, 2018 11:00
One way is to open diskpart then the command: LIST DISK
If it shows an * under GPT, then it is in UEFI mode (GPT cannot be booted in BIOS mode).
You should have OMSA installed on any server you manage. You can check this in OMSA as well ... go to System, Main System Chassis, BIOS, Setup tab, Boot Settings, and check Boot Mode ... if BIOS, your boot disk will not be GPT and you can't extend your disk past 2TB; if UEFI, your boot disk will be GPT and you can extend it past 2TB.