ML350 G3 Raid5 Upgrade/Boot order

[Arlan Riehl]

Current configuration:
ML350 G3
Raid 5 Array of 3 18.2GB Hard Drives on Smart Array 641 controller.

Obviously 18.2GB in a RAID 5 is not a lot of storage space. I have 3 72.8GB Hard Drives I would like to replace the 18.2GBs with.

How do I migrate/transfer/copy the partitions/data from the old array/logical drive to the new array/logical drive and boot from the new array?

Thanks!

[Tom_458]

If you don't mind keeping the original array's partition size, the easy way is to replace one 18G drive at a time with a 72G. The array controller will think that you have a dead drive and it will rebuild the info from the remaining two drives on your array onto the 72G. Make sure it finished rebuidling before you swap out another one. Do that for all three and you will have replaced your three 18G with the three 72G. Then you can either expand your drive partitions or create a new partition or even a new array with the extra unallocated space.

You can put your three 18G's back in and create another array later if you want to.

No backup or restore, just sit back and let the array controller do its work.

[Arlan Riehl]

Thanks Tom. I've got all the 18GB hard drives replaced with the new 72GB hard drives, but I'm not able to resize partitions or anything....

The array controller says I have a 33GB logical drive (18GB in RAID5). It says I can't create another logical drive because there are no physical drives to create one on. And I can't resize any partitions Windows and Partition Commander only see the 33GB logical drive.

Any ideas?

[Arlan Riehl]

Never mind my previous post...

I was able to boot to SmartStart and in the ACU it gave me a place to extend the size of the 33GB logical drive to 138GB... Now all I gotta do is resize/expand the partitions and I'll be ready to go!!

Thanks again!

[Terence Tsao]

ACU can extend and migrate "logical disk" space but not "partition" space.
After extended logical disk size, you can see disk size enlarge in disk manager.
You can use Microsoft free tools --"diskpart.exe" to extend your partition size.
But if you have only one logicak disk to spile two partitions, you can only extend 2rd partition size not 1st.
BTW, "diskpart.exe" can't extend disk C.