Adding space to my datastore

[VStar650]

Hello,

I have recently added about 275 GB of disc space to my VMHost server but noticed that my datastore does not reflect the added space.

How do I make the extra 275 GB available to my guest servers?

Thanks in advance.

[AntonVZhbankov]

There is only one way to extend datastore in VI3 - add another LUN as extent.

So, now you have wasted 275 GB. Create another Datastore, move all VMs form current datastore (DS1), delete DS1, create DS1 again on the same LUN, move VMs back.

This is the only way now.

---

VMware vExpert '2009

http://blog.vadmin.ru

[norregaard]

When the storage has been added/presented to the ESX host, then you need to add the storage from within ESX.

From the VI client, go to Configuration tab -> Storage adapters. Click on the "rescan" link to rescan your adapters.

From configuration, click on "storage" and then add another new LUN. Now you can add a new LUN of no more than 275 GB.

As mentioned in the post before me, you can add the noew storage space as an extent which will add the storage to the existing LUN. However, this is not best practice and should not be used for production.

In ESX 4.0, it is possible to do live extension of LUN's, nice!

/jakob

[VStar650]

I have done the rescan and see the added storage space but I am not sure how to add a LUN.

I get to the Storage Wizard and choose add Disk/LUN, click Next but do not see any options after that. Am I missing a step?

[norregaard]

After scan, where exactly do you see the extra storage?

The storage wizard is the right way to go. You should be able to see a disk af 275 GB, then click on it an choose to format it as VMFS format. If you have no disks to choose from, then do an extra rescan (there's a bug and sometimes you have to scan twice.). If you still don't havy any disks in the wizard, then the storage zoning probably hasn't been done properly...

[VStar650]

I see it under the Capacity column of SCSI Target 0 details.

I will try the scan again... by the way, I am doing this to add disc space to our email archive server.

Is this a bad idea... should I re-think this before I continue?

[TomHowarth · Accepted solution]

As Anton says with ESX 3.x the only way to extend the size of a Datastore is to add an extent.

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Tom Howarth VCP / vExpert

VMware Communities User Moderator

Blog: www.planetvm.net

Contributing author for the upcoming book "[VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure Security: Securing ESX and the Virtual Environment|http://my.safaribooksonline.com/9780136083214]”. Currently available on roughcuts

[azn2kew]

You can also try to present a larger LUN size you expected and use storage vmotion to migrate all the VMs to it and then destroy old LUN or use it for something else. But using extents are not a good practices but for temporary solution that would be doable.

If you found this information useful, please consider awarding points for "Correct" or "Helpful". Thanks!!!

Regards,

Stefan Nguyen

VMware vExpert 2009

iGeek Systems Inc.

VMware, Citrix, Microsoft Consultant