Chapter 12. Managing Server Storage Devices

Objectives

This chapter covers the following Microsoft-specified objectives for the "Managing and Maintaining Physical and Logical Devices" section of the Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment exam:

Manage basic disks and dynamic disks

• When working in a Windows Server 2003 environment, you need to have a thorough understanding of the different types of disks available. In addition, it is important to understand how they are used and how to manage them.

Optimize server disk performance

• Implement a RAID solution

• Defragment volumes and partitions

• The purpose of this objective is to teach you how to create, manage, and troubleshoot problems with the various RAID solutions available in Windows Server 2003. In addition, you should be familiar with maintaining volumes and partitions using the Disk Defragmenter utility.

Outline

Introduction			486
Managing Basic Disks and Dynamic Disks			486
	Introduction to Basic Disks		486
	Using the DISKPART Utility		489
	Introduction to Dynamic Disks		491
	Limitations of Dynamic Disks		493
Using the Disk Management Console to Manage Disks			494
Monitoring and Configuring Disks and Volumes			496
	Viewing Disk Properties		497
	Viewing Volume Health Status		498
	Viewing and Configuring Volume Properties		499
	Managing Disks on a Remote Computer		501
	Adding a New Disk		501
Working with Basic Disks			502
	Creating a Primary Partition on a Basic Disk		503
	Creating an Extended Partition on a Basic Disk		505
	Creating a Logical Drive on a Basic Disk		506
	Deleting a Partition		507
	File Systems and Formatting a Partition		507
		The File Allocation Table (FAT) File System	507
		The NT File System (NTFS)	508
		Formatting the Partition or Logical Drive	509
	Changing the Drive Letter of a Partition		510
	Using Mounted Drives		511
	Marking a Partition As Active		512
Working with Dynamic Disks			513
	Converting a Basic Disk to a Dynamic Disk		514
	Creating Simple Volumes on a Dynamic Disk		516
	Extending Dynamic Volume Size		518
	Creating a Spanned Volume		520
Implementing RAID Solutions			522
	Creating a Striped Volume		522
	Creating a Mirrored Volume		524
	Creating a RAID-5 (Stripe with Parity) Volume		527
Recovering from Disk Failures			528
	Recovering a Failed Mirrored Drive		528
	Recovering a Failed RAID-5 Drive		532
	Importing Foreign Disks		533
Optimizing Server Disk Performance			533
	Using the Disk Cleanup Utility		534
	Using the Check Disk Utility		535
	Using the Disk Defragmenter Utility		536
Chapter Summary			539
	Key Terms		539
Apply Your Knowledge			540

Study Strategies

• The sections in this chapter outline features that are basic to using and managing Windows Server 2003. The proper use of and recovery from problems with storage have always been major points on Microsoft exams. Expect the Windows Server 2003 exams to continue that tradition. Make sure you have a complete understanding of the capabilities of basic and dynamic disks, especially as to how they are similar and how they are different.

• Most of the disk-related questions on the test will probably concern the use of dynamic disks. Although basic disks can be used in Windows Server 2003, the advanced storage functionality is supported only on dynamic disks. Make sure you understand the various capabilities of dynamic disks, how they are configured, and how to recover from failures. However, there are still applications where dynamic disks are not recommended. Know what they are and why. Expect to see questions about this topic on the exam.

• This chapter contains a lot of hands-on exercises. Make sure that you work through most, if not all, of them to become familiar with the Disk Management MMC, and working with both dynamic and basic disks. A server or virtual software with multiple drives is highly recommended.