Can two disks be seen as one big partition ?

[NewtownGuy]

Please forgive this naive question about the Linux file system works.

If I'm running Fedora Core 3, what do I need to do so that an application can see two, 500 GB disks, for example, as a single, 1,000 GB partition ?

Thank you.

-- NewtownGuy

 

[zeland]

You can either use RAID0 or LVM to combine the 2 drives together. Both methods would require you clear the drives to create the appropriate partitions.

--== Anything can go wrong. It's just a matter of how far wrong it will go till people think its right. ==--

 

[smah]

Logical Volume Manager can be used for this. I can't remember if it is included with FC3, though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lvm

 

[TSch]

Indeed, LVM is the key.

You need to build a "volume group" containing both disks and voila ...

Later you can also add disks to this volume group if it becomes necessary ...

Regards
Thomas

 

[thedaver]

Just wanted to mention that, last time I checked, grouping drives to create a large, virtual drive does increase your risk of data loss since the entire volume can be compromised by one device failure. Thus a volume or RAID0 of 3 drives can be ruined by 1 drive failure.
Just a risk management point. Good luck!

D.E.R. Management - IT Project Management Consulting

http://www.dermanagement.com/

 

[jkupski]

To reduce the risk of data loss, try 3 500GB drives in a RAID5, or 4 500GB drives in a RAID10. Both of these solutions will give you the 1TB you are looking for, and the latter will also likely cause you to see significant performance improvements.