Extend my System partition using diskpart - booted to Boot disk, but still can't

You need disk director suite 10 from acronis http://www.acronis.com/enterprise/products/diskdirector/?source=us_googleADDS&keyword=server+partitioning&s_scid=server%20partition|1157511317&gclid=CPnNsvL3o5ECFQ2aOAodv3yedw

it will cost you but it is one of the only ways you can extend your partition.

Other options include server magic (I think Symantec makes it now)

eb

I will try the TRIAL version and see if it works. Will let you know.

You can also try the home version http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/diskdirector/ it costs less but may not work on a server, also has a trial

eb

It downloaded an EXE. Is this an app that runs through the GUI? Or a boot disk? Do I run the EXE on the machine or locally on my laptop to create a boot?

Run the EXE and it should install the program then you can access the program from the start menu.  You will beable to make the changes in the GUI and if need bee it will reboot for you to make the changes.

eb

I am hesitant to drop $500. The download says it is for server, but it isn't. It is the Suite (client software, not server). Do you know where I can download the free trial of the Server flavor? The site says it is free to try, but the download points to the client suite.  

So I found Acronis for servers. Doesn't support Dynamic Disks.

Need help!

I agre 100% with scrath, M$ dynamic disk is pure evil

Slight correction scrathcyboy, it is true hardware raid. IBM ServeRaid from the controller. Both the dynamic and serveraid info was in the original messege.

That being said, I have to say I agree with the theory of your solution completely. That is pretty much what I have come too.  

Here is some more info, with hopeful feed back. Without thinking all the way through, I converted the disk myself not thinking of the "system" or "boot" partition stipulation on extending partitions. But, I did a full back up of the server, sys state, data, etc, before I converted the disk.

If I do a complete restore, will it revert back, or can I even use the backup now?

I am leaning towards wiping the slate clean, build the server from scratch and configure a new TS out of it. It is one of 2 servers in a NLB cluster hosting TS for our users. It is just that I am the new Admin (2 weeks today), and am so NOT familiar with these boxes. I guess this would be the time to do get to know them..! Both servers are in the exact same scenario.

Thanks for everyone imput. Still looking for some feedback.

If you palan on doing a complete rebuild or a complete restore you should try the restore on a test system if you have it.

eb

"If I do a complete restore, will it revert back, or can I even use the backup now? "

It depends on what you backup to, and how you do it.  If you do a file by file backup, or in most cases an image of the file system, to another network drive, then you can remove the original drives (it might be a good idea to keep them ofr now, until you know this works, it depends on the RAID controller) and write down the parameters of that original disk RAID before you remove them.  

THen pop in new drives, reconfigure the RAID controller for the new drives, and then (presumably CD boot?) to the program that made the image and restore to the new drives.  If the imaging did not keep track of sectors on the original drives, everything will be fine.  You will get a working image.  If the backup program made an image that was dependent on the disk layout, it won't work correctly.

As two of us have said, the RAID controller and the backup program are wildcards here, you have to do a test restore, and you don't need to build a new system first.  You can get a pair of new hitachi drives (the most reliable in my experience), and make a raid wih them (even if not the full capacity of the disks, it doesn't matter, it is a test.  If it works, then you are clear sailing.  

Remember, though, when you build a NEW system, the hardware setup of the OS will not match the new hardware, so you will probably end up having to do a clean install anyway.  If this is a server, and you want to build a new one, you should do that first, install the OS, and the do a piecmeal recovery of what data you can from the old system after you have installed the main apps on the new system.

In a few cases a restore to a totally new system does not give a server OS too much problem, but in most cases, the HAL is not right, the hardware is too different, and windows will dig in its heels and refuise to run for you.  THere you have it.

scrathcyboy...

"It depends on what you backup to, and how you do it."

I used Backup Exec 11, all data, and sys state.

It seems, that would restore back sys state,data etc, but on the new dynamic drives. Pointless. It wouldn't revert back to a basic, I would think. That is what I am asking now.

what I said above is correct.  PUt in good working drives, not a "dynamic" -- i.e. compressed disk -- and restore, and it should work fine with BE 11.  Good luck

Ok, remember I said I have 2 identical boxes in the same scenario. So your acronis solution worked on the other server. However, when I look in my computer it doesn't report the same as acronis.