Increase Virtual Disk Capacity: Additional Instructions for Linux - ext2 and ext3 File Systems

Use the following procedure to ensure that an increase in  capacity for a  is recognized by a  running Linux Red Hat Advanced Server 2.1, Red Hat Professional 8.0, SuSE SLE 8.0, or SuSE Professional 8.1, using ext2 or ext3 file systems.

If an increase in capacity for a standard virtual disk is performed, the host does not immediately recognize the increase in virtual disk capacity. Using the ext2resize tool to perform the actual increase, either the  driver must be reloaded or a remove/add SCSI-level scan must be performed to ensure the increase is recognized.

Perform the following steps:

1

Start the storage management software.

2

Use one of the following three methods to perform a virtual disk expansion operation.

  • Method 1
  • Launch an  by double-clicking a storage array node in the Table view.

    Within the Logical View of the Array Management Window, select a standard virtual disk and increase its capacity by selecting theVirtual Disk >> Increase Capacity. Follow the prompts on the dialogs to complete the virtual disk expansion. For more information, see Increasing the Capacity of a Standard Virtual Disk.

  • Method 2
  • From the Enterprise Management Window, select the storage array that contains the virtual disk you want to expand. Then, select Tools >> Execute Script.

    Type the start increaseVolCapacity command statement in the Script View with the appropriate syntax, as follows:

    start increaseVolCapacity virtual disk =<"virtualDiskLabel"> incrementalCapacity=<capacity> physical disks=<(physical disk list)>;

    Then, execute the script, by selecting either Tools >> Verify and Execute or Tools >> Execute Only in the Script Editor.

    For more information on the syntax and required parameters for the start increaseVolCapacity command, refer to the Enterprise Management Window online help.

  • Method 3
  • Go to the command line shell of your operating system. At the command prompt, enter:

    SMcli arrayname -c "start increaseVolCapacity virtual disk =<"virtualDiskLabel"> incrementalCapacity=<capacity> physical disks=<(physical disk list)>;",

    For more information on the syntax and required parameters for SMcli, see "Using the Command Line Interface" in the Enterprise Management Window online help.

    For more information on the syntax and required parameters for the start increaseVolCapacity command, refer to the Enterprise Management Window online help.

3

Launch a terminal window. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

df

A list of all mounted partitions recognized by the host is displayed, including the available space, used space, and the directory to which the virtual disk is mounted.

4

Blink the storage array being resized in the list, and ensure that enough free space exists for an increase in capacity.

5

Determine the file system used on the expanded virtual disk. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

[root@<directoryname> root] # mount

A list of each partition and its respective file system type is displayed.

6

Unmount the virtual disk from its host. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

unmount /dev/sXY

where X is the disk and Y is the partition number of the virtual disk that you are resizing.

Important: Unmount all virtual disks recognized by the driver before you unload the driver.

7

Unload the driver from the host. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

modprobe -r qla2x00

If using a driver other than qla2x00, substitute its name instead.

If this command does not work, reboot the host to unmount the driver.

8

Reload the driver on the host. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

modprobe qla2x00

Note: If using a driver other than qla2x00, substitute its name instead.

9

Resize the file system, using the appropriate resizing tool supported by the file system.

To do this:

Follow these steps:

Resize an ext2 file system.

1

Start the ext2resize tool.

2

At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

resize2fs /dev/sdxx

where /dev/sdxx is the storage array being resized.

If the file system was successfully resized, a confirmation message is displayed.

Resize an ext3 filesystem.

1

Important: An ext3 file system cannot be resized unless it is first converted to ext2, resized using the ext2resize tool, and then converted back to an ext3 file system.

Start the ext2resize tool.

2

At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

#tune2fs -o^has_journal /dev/sdXY

where X is the disk and Y is the partition number.

3

Check the file system for errors. Type the following command, and press Enter:

#e2fsck -f /dev/sdXY

where X is the disk and Y is the partition number.

4

Resize the file system. Type the following command, and press Enter:

#resize2fs -p /dev/sdXY

where /dev/sdxx is the storage array being resized.

5

Re-create the journal. Type the following command, and press Enter:

#tune2fx -j /dev/sdXY

10

Remount the storage array to the host. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

mount /dev/sdxx

where /dev/sdxx is the storage array being remounted.

11

Exit all applications, and reboot the .

12

Launch a terminal window. At the host prompt, type the following command, and press Enter:

df

A list of all the mounted partitions recognized by the host is displayed. Ensure that the file system was successfully resized.

Related Topics

Increase Virtual Disk Capacity: Additional Instructions

Learn About Increasing the Capacity of a Virtual Disk

Increasing the Capacity of a Standard Virtual Disk