How to Create Multiple Stripe Sets On the Same Disk Array.

ID: Q162624

The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows NT Workstation versions 3.51, 4.0
  • Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 3.51, 4.0

SYMPTOMS

When you try to create multiple stripe sets or stripe sets with parity and a volume set or a mirror set, you may encounter the following error.

The disk containing one of the free spaces you have chosen is not able to accept any more partitions.


CAUSE

The partition table only has support for up to four partitions per individual hard disk drive. When you create a Stripe Set, or a Stripe Set with parity, by default, Windows NT regards it as a primary partition. Thus, after the fourth primary partition is created, you have reached the maximum number of primary partitions on that hard disk.

Please note that Windows NT Workstation does not support Stripe Sets with Parity.


RESOLUTION

To work around this limit, you must configure each disk to have an extended partition. There is no partition or logical drive limitation in an extended partition so you will be able to create as many partitions or stripe sets as desired. This can be done with Disk Administrator.

  1. Start Disk Administrator and highlight the disk you are going to use and check the status in the bottom left hand corner of Disk Administrator. If the status box shows free space, go to the Partition menu and click Create Extended.


  2. A dialog box asking what size to make the extended partition appears, the size you choose should be large enough to hold all the stripe sets (or Fault Tolerant sets) that you plan to create on this hard disk. Which will usually be the entire disk.


  3. After you have entered the size of the extended partition click OK.

    NOTE: See how the slanted bars now slant from top right to bottom left.


  4. Select the partition again, and look in the status box in the bottom left-hand corner to confirm you now have a empty extended partition.


  5. Confirm this and go back to the Partition menu and click Commit Changes Now.


  6. Two dialog boxes now appear, one asking you to confirm these changes and another suggesting that you run the Emergency Repair Disk utility (Rdisk). Click OK to confirm the changes now and be sure to run the Rdisk utility (and chose update repair info) when you have completely set up your stripe set.


  7. Complete this procedure for all the drives you plan to create multiple stripe sets on.


NOTE: If you already have existing stripe sets installed on the hard disk drive but still have free unused space on the hard disk drive, this procedure will still work. But if you have a hard disk drive with 3 primary partitions and one extended partition, and the disk still has free space, you will not be able to create any more partitions on the hard disk drive. You will need to back up your data from partitions contained on the extended partition, delete the drives and extended partition, and re-create the extended partition to include the additional contiguous free space.

Keywords : kbsetup ntsetup ntfault NTSrvWkst
Version : WinNT:3.5,3.51,4.0
Platform : winnt
Issue type :


Last Reviewed: February 4, 1999
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