Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.hardware (
More info?)
"Vanguard" <use_ReplyTo_header> wrote in message
news:edPox2BLFHA.2796@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
>
> Sorry, it is the other way around that destroys data (converting from
> dynamic to basic volumes). I've not been able to install on dynamic
> volumes but you say Windows could be installed on a basic volume and then
> converted to a dynamic volume. Good to know. I had read "A spanned
> volume is made from free disk space that is linked together from multiple
> disks (up to a maximum of 32 disks)." Well, if only free space were used
> then you'd have to wipe the boot and/or system partition(s) for Windows to
> get the free space. I guess the process would be to convert the basic
> disk and its basic volume to a dynamic disk and a simple volume and then
> adjoing that simple volume with others created from free space available
> elsewhere, like the new drive, to then create a spanned volume.
>
> I have to wonder what is on the *outside* of the dynamic volume to support
> it. The BIOS obviously doesn't support software-managed dynamic volumes
> (i.e., software RAID). All it does is find the first physical hard disk
> and load the code stored in the bootstrap area (first 460 bytes) of its
> MBR (Master Boot Record, which is sector 0). From what I've gleaned from
> various articles, defining a dynamic volume blows away the content of the
> MBR's bootstrap area. Indeed, the entire MBR gets usurped since the
> partition table isn't there anymore (and instead a 1MB database area is
> used on the disk). That would eliminate using multi-boot managers and any
> other product that usurp's the MBR bootstrap area, like GoBack.
>
> Since "Upgrading a disk to dynamic storage will render the entire disk
> unreadable to operating systems other than Windows 2000/XP", that would
> preclude using PartitionMagic or any other 3rd party partitioning software
> for managing your drives. The volumes within the dynamic volume are
> managed by Microsoft's software RAID. DriveImage, and probably other
> drive image software, doesn't support dynamic disks. Ghost 2003's support
> pages says it will support dynamic disks but only for simple volumes
> (those where its one, or more parts, are all on one physical disk) and not
> spanned, mirrored, or RAID-5 volumes - and that was before Symantec bought
> Powerquest and renamed DriveImage to Ghost. You're also screwed if you
> multiboot (where you retain a basic disk) and you used Windows XP Pro to
> create/convert basic volumes to dynamic volumes (on other disks) because
> the other operating systems don't support dynamic volumes; see KB article
> #308424.
>
You make some good points. The only time I actually use dynamic volumes is
on servers. They make it easier to make changes on the fly and then fix
things properly when the server is scheduled for maintenance. You can leave
some free unallocated space and then temporarily extend volumes if needed.
I've always been nervous about extending volumes across disks anyway. Every
time you add space from another volume you are increasing your chances of
losing the volume to hardware failure.
Kerry
239BC39-757F-4B42-8C0E-B734DF3514A7@microsoft.com...
and pick Convert to Dynamic disk. You cannot 
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