DOCUMENT:Q113503  08-AUG-2001  [winnt]
TITLE   :Overview of Disk Volume Sets in Windows NT
PRODUCT :Microsoft Windows NT
PROD/VER::; winnt:3.5,3.51,4.0
OPER/SYS:
KEYWORDS:kbother

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The information in this article applies to:

 - Microsoft Windows NT Server version 3.1 
 - Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 3.1 
 - Microsoft Windows NT Advanced Server 
 - Microsoft Windows NT Workstation versions 3.5, 3.51, 4.0 
 - Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 3.5, 3.51, 4.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

Volume sets more effectively use memory under Windows by combining free disk
space on from one to 32 disks into a single volume with a single drive letter.

MORE INFORMATION
================

Here are the important facts about volume sets in Windows NT:

Characteristics
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 - Both Windows NT Server and Windows NT Workstation can create and use volume
   sets.

 - Volume sets provide no fault tolerance; if even one area of disk space in the
   set is lost, all the data is lost.

 - Volume sets are transparent to the user. When a volume set is created all
   areas of free space are assigned the same drive letter.

 - Volume sets are the only Windows NT disk partition management option that
   allows more than one area of disk space in the set to reside on the same
   physical hard disk.

 - Volume sets are the only Windows NT disk partition management option that
   allows the individual areas of disk space making up the volume to be of
   different sizes.

Creating Volume Sets
--------------------

 - Volume sets must be created from free disk space--they cannot be used with
   existing partitions.

 - To create a volume set, first select free space on 1 to 32 disks, then select
   Create Volume Set from the Partition menu in Disk Administrator.

 - Shut down and restart the computer. When Windows NT restarts, Autochk.exe
   will run the equivalent of "chkdsk /f" on the entire volume set and the
   volume set will be created or extended. You can then format it for a file
   system.

   NOTE: The chkdsk procedure must complete before the volume set will be
   accessible and may take many hours depending on the volume size and directory
   and file structure. For additional information, click the article number
   below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   Q187941 An Explanation of the New CHKDSK /C and /I Switches

 - Volume sets are file system independent and can be formatted with any hard
   disk file system installed with Windows NT.

 - Volume sets can be created on 1 disk or as many as 32.

Configuration Characteristics
-----------------------------

 - Normally, only the Windows NT installation that created the volume set will
   recognize it--other operating systems will not. MS-DOS will identify the
   different areas of disk space in the volume set as "Non- DOS." From within
   other Windows NT installations, Disk Administrator will identify the areas of
   disk space in the volume set as having an "Unknown" file system.

 - Other installations of Windows NT on the same computer can recognize a volume
   set created by a different installation of Windows NT by restoring disk
   configuration information. See page 529 of the "Windows NT Advanced Server
   System Guide" for more information.

 - You cannot install Windows NT on an existing volume set. Setup describes
   volume set partitions as "Windows NT Fault Tolerance." If you attempt to
   select one of these partitions for installation, a message states that
   Windows NT does not recognize this partition, and you must delete it before
   Setup can use it.

 - Volume sets may offer somewhat better performance than input and output from
   a single partition, but their main advantage is that they allow the most
   efficient use of hard disk space.

REFERENCES
==========

Windows NT Advanced Server System Guide, page 529.

Additional query words: prodnt

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Keywords          : kbother 
Technology        : kbWinNTsearch kbWinNTWsearch kbWinNTW400 kbWinNTW400search kbWinNT351search kbWinNT350search kbWinNT400search kbWinNTW350 kbWinNTW350search kbWinNTW351search kbWinNTW351 kbWinNTW310 kbWinNTSsearch kbWinNTS400search kbWinNTS400 kbWinNTS351 kbWinNTS350 kbWinNTS310 kbWinNTAdvSerSearch kbWinNTS351search kbWinNTS350search kbWinNTS310search kbWinNT310Search kbWinNTW310Search
Version           : :; winnt:3.5,3.51,4.0

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