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DiskPart failed to extend the volume. Basic Disk, Primary Partition

I have a Windows 2000 Sp4 Server, HP Hardware and RAID controller. The server is in Terminal Services Application Mode. The server runs Citrix and its drives have been remapped to M and N from C and D. The server has a hardware Raid 5 array, which I have extended the space on using HP Array Management. In Windows Disk Management I now see the Unallocated Space to the right of the N Partition. The disk I want to extend is a basic disk and the partition to be extended, N, is primary and not system.

This seems seems like the text book situation for diskpart, but I am erroring out. The transcript of my interface with diskpart is below. Note I also tried it with Volume instead of Partition and got the same result. Any ideas?

DISKPART> List disk

Disk ### Status Size Free Dyn Gpt
-------- ---------- ------- ------- --- ---
Disk 0 Online 136 GB 68 GB

DISKPART> select disk 0

Disk 0 is now the selected disk.

DISKPART> list part

Partition ### Type Size Offset
------------- ---------------- ------- -------
Partition 1 OEM 36 MB 16 KB
Partition 2 Primary 8029 MB 36 MB
Partition 3 Primary 60 GB 8064 MB

DISKPART> SELECT PART 3

Partition 3 is now the selected partition.

DISKPART> EXTEND

DiskPart failed to extend the volume.
Please make sure the volume is valid for extending.

dooleydog

Here is a link with the usage of diskpart

i believe you need to give a size when you use the extend command. Alternatly, you can use disk management to extend the partition, and this is graphical in nature, which can simplify this process.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/300415

Good Luck,

sdyckman

ASKER

Thanks Dooeldaog, but you do not have to use the size switch from the link you sent me:

"If you do not specify a size, the volume can occupy all of the free space on the specified disk."

This is what I want it to do. I did note see the option to extend in the GUI for W2K. Perhaps this GUI extend option is for dynamic disks only?

Thanks

ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION

Duncan Meyers

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sdyckman

ASKER

Thanks meyersd, but this is a lights out support scenairo. I need to be able to do this via an ICA or RDP session. I think you are confirming what I feared, that I have done nothing wrong and the utility just is not working.

Member_2_231077

I think you have to use a later version of diskpart, early versions will not allow extending a partition if it is on the same disk as the boot partition if I remember correctly.

Pity (assuming your HP is a Proliant) that you did not create D: as a seperate logical disk; then Windows would treat it as a single disk with one partition rather than part of a disk with multiple partitions. (Of course you would be doing Select Disk 1 rather than 0 in that instance.

sdyckman

ASKER

Thanks andyalder, Yes it is a Proliant. Good best practice point about creating multiple logical disks.
At any rate, the version of diskpart I am using came from MS today. The version is 2001, are you suggesting I grab the executable off of a 2003 server box?
Diskpart Download
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=0FD9788A-5D64-4F57-949F-EF62DE7AB1AE&displaylang=en

Member_2_231077

There is more functionality on the 2003 version but I'm not 100% sure it runs on 2000, nevertheless I would try it since if it isn't supported I would expect MS to have built in a OS version test in the new version before allowing it to run.

sdyckman

ASKER

You cannot run to the 2003 version on 2000

Microsoft DiskPart version 5.2.3790
Copyright (C) 1999-2001 Microsoft Corporation.
On computer: DRSPACSIM2
This version of diskpart is not supported on this platform.

Member_2_231077

I thought it might say that.

Do you have lights-out access through an iLO II with the license needed to use virtual media? Then you could use one of the many offline utilities to expand it during a quiet time with a virtual/remote CD.

The other option is to make another logical disk and split the data set in half but that might not work for your data layout.

nishin

You can extend only volumes created on a dynamic disk, not volumes created on a basic disk that you've upgraded. If you try to extend volumes created on a basic disk, you'll receive the error "DiskPart failed to extend the volume. Please make sure the volume is valid for extending."

You can refer ; http://support.microsoft.com/kb/325590

sdyckman

ASKER

Thanks nishen

But this disk has not been converted it is still a basic disk. From 325590 which you posted:

"For Basic volumes, the unallocated space for the extension must be the next contiguous space on the same disk"

My task meets that requirement.

Member_2_231077

I guess you could create an E: partition using most of the space, then a f: partition with enough room to put a small OS with partitioning tool and remote control prog (the gparted CD that meyersd suggested might have remote control support) then you could make that active and boot it, delete E: and expand C: to fill the contiguous space between D: and F: and then change the active partition again.

Personally I'd cough up $500 for the iLO advanced pack so you had virtual media and iLO control after the graphical stage where the OS boots, there's one on eBay for £50.

sdyckman

ASKER

Thanks Andyalder,
I am going to see if I can get someone on site to use the tool meyersd suggested to do the extension. I will post back in a few days to let everyone know how it went, and to award points.

Thanks,

Shain

nishin

Shain, Anything positive?

sdyckman

ASKER

FYI My Contact has been out of towm. I am going to suggest we try :

meyersd:I've had the odd problem with diskpart myself in the past. Use this tool: http://gparted.sourceforge.net/ - it has the necessary network and RAID drivers for common hardware.

Its free and it works (always nice words to hear used together). But, as always when manipulating disc partitions, make sure you have a good backup first.

I will update the post as to the result, just as I have anything concrete.

nishin

Author,

Was the tool successfull?

sdyckman

ASKER

To be honest, this has not been a priority for the onsite admin, and he is has taken no action. Since the onsite admin is the customer, it is his call. In our last discussion, he told me he had an older version of partition magic that he wanted to use. I have been waiting to award points to meyersd for pointing me toward third party tools, until the onsite admin acctually does something. This is the first question I have posted to this board, so if you think it is appropiate for me to award points now I will.

sdyckman

ASKER

Unfortunately my customer decided that this issue was not enough of a priority to get involved himself. I 100% remote support and could not try meyersd solution without the customers help. Thank you for your suggestions I will accept myersd solution as the most probable resolution.

Duncan Meyers

Thanks!

peter_thomas

meyersd is for gnome. were talking about a primary ntfs partition on a windows 2003 server.

Duncan Meyers

gparted is a Linux-based bootable CD that will extend NTFS partitions amongst many others. It works perfectly with Windows 2003. See http://gparted.sourceforge.net/features.php for more information.