Import a disk which contains data into a new server

[Mikel_7]

Hi,

In case I have a server running Linux RedHat5, which has crashed, but the data which are stored in a data disk are good. I have installed a new server. Now I want to mount the data disk which was created in the previous machine.

Which steps I have to follow in order to accomplish this task? When I scan for new hardware, Linux does recognize the new disk, but it see it as an unpartitioned disk.

Thank you.

[Matti_Kurkela]

In Linux, there is no requirement to partition data disks: it is possible to use LVM instead of partitioning, or just use the entire disk as a single filesystem.

If LVM might have been used, you could run "vgscan", then "pvs": if the "pvs" command lists the data disk as a LVM PV, then you'll know LVM was used. It will also list the name of the VG. If it does not conflict with existing VGs on the system, the next step is activating the VG with "vgchange -a y <vgname>". The LVM device file(s) will be created automatically at the time of activation.

If "pvs" does not list the data disk, it has not been initialized as a LVM PV. Then you might try just mounting the device to a temporary mount point to see if it works. For example, if the data disk is /dev/sdc:

mkdir /mnt
mount /dev/sdc /mnt

 This form of mount command will automatically try to mount the disk as a filesystem, trying each filesystem driver the kernel has. If the mount is successful, the "mount" command will display the filesystem type.