Resolving the next 2TB partition limit...

Here is an issue that we all have to cope with, sooner or later.
I just bought a Western Digital external disk (My Book Studio Edition II) with 4TB capacity. I need to use it as a single 4TB partition but it seems that the current MBR partitioning format doesn’t allow any partitions bigger than 2TB at least under Windows XP 32-bit and maybe even Vista 32-bit.

I have read a lot about this problem and it seems that you need to use the newer “GUID Partition Table ( GPT)” partitioning scheme.
Western Digital does acknowledge the problem. Please read the following links

http://wdc.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wdc...jIzMCZwX2N2PSZwX3BhZ2U9Mg!!&p_li=&p_topview=1

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device/storage/GPT_FAQ.mspx

I have a HP HDX18t notebook with Vista Home Premium 64-bit SP2 installed, so I shouldn’t have any problems. I followed all instructions found on the Western Digital and Microsoft site. I formatted the disk RAID-0 using GPT and I created a single 4TB volume. All seemed ok but when I started filling the drive over 2TB the volume failed and became inaccessible! I tried a lot of times but it always fails when I copy more than 2 TB of data.

Is there a way to resolve this problem?
Or is it a BIOS limitation?
Do I have to change the operating system partition from MBR to GPT?

P.S. I created the RAID-0 using the Western Digital "Drive Manager" software.

 

ext4 can handle partitions that large... but thats linux based.

x64 based NTFS systems should be able to handle 2+ TB partitions. 32bit i think has a problem but i didnt think x64 should.

Out of curiosity why do you need a single 4TB drive? Do you have single files that are larger than 2TB?

 

I need all 4TB in one single partition for managing better my data. I like to keep my files in "one place", not having to distribute them in various partitions.I already have a lot of harddisks and every one has its own drive letter. Adding more partitions and drive letters becomes confusing.

Back to the problem. I found some more info that explains the MBR and 32bit limitation.Here it is:

Most operating systems do not have a 2TB limitation, however the master boot record structure (MBR) used to partition the disk could. A 32-bit operating system’s memory is managed by addresses. Hence a 32-bit OS will have 2^32 addressable locations. Most disks have a standard 512 bytes per sector. Doing the math 2^32 * 512 = 2TB (2,199,023,255,040) is the maximum limit.A maximum of 2TB Partition size when initialized in MBR format.

Does that mean that if I use a bigger sector size (let's say 4KB) I could surpass the 2TB limit?

 

Several methods of exceeding the 2TB limit of a single volume exist:

1)If you are attaching the drive to a RAID controller that will partition and format the drive to present to the OS please contact the RAID controller manufacturer.

That is mostly a solution for desktop users that use third party RAID controllers. It doesn't apply to notebook users.

2)Create 2 TB partitions and use dynamic disks and spanning to aggregate the total available space. Spanned disks are capable of capacities up to 64TB.

I haven't tried this solution but I think that spanning is not possible on external drives. Am I wrong?

3)Win XP 32-bit and Win2K do not support volumes greater than 2TB. Win x64, 64-bit operating systems do, but in order to create volumes bigger than 2TB from these operating systems, you must convert the disk to GPT file
system, available when using Windows Server 2003 /w SP1, Windows XP x64, Windows Vista or later versions.
In theory, a GPT disk can be up to 2^64 logical blocks in length. Logical blocks are commonly 512 bytes in size. Win Server 2003 SP1, Win XP x64 edition, and later versions, the maximum raw partition of 18 exabytes can be supported.(Windows file systems currently are limited to 256
terabytes each.)

This is the most common solution that I found on the net. I tried it but it didn't work. The 4TB partition creates OK but when I fill the partition with more than 2TB of data, the partition "disappears" and I can't access the data anymore.The "My Computer" and Western Digital software see the whole drive as an unformatted space.
Strange because I have Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit with Service Pack 2 installed. Am I doing something wrong?
Can anybody tell me in simple steps what I have to do to initialize in GPT and format the whole drive as a single 4TB partition?

P.S. I used the Western Digital Drive manager software and the Windows Disk Manager under administrative tools.

 

well to cut it short, why can't u just split the drive into two 2TB partitions and fill up one partition at a time... it will save u a lot of trouble u know....

 

That's exactly how I use it now!
But it doesn't resolve the problem. Imagine having in future an even bigger harddisk. It is a bit odd having to divide in several 2TB partitions.

I would like to solve this issue the "right way".
That is why I ask if somebody knows the right procedure to create a GPT partition bigger than 2TB.

 

happily my home server cares about this on it's own, being the ultimative NAS.

i find it fun how they sell such 4TB devices that can't even format as such oh the joy of tons of people that will get irritated

 

Yes that's right. My next external disk will be a NAS one. It is a bit more complex to set up but more flexible too... and you don't have any size limitation because it is accessed in a different way.

 

how about a WHS NAS? even better and even more flexible

 

Yes I agree. Windows Home Server NAS is a nice solution but I have only 2 notebooks (I rarely use the second one) so I don't really feel the need for such a network. I don't even need sharing files very often but sooner or later I will build a Home Server too.

I know a nice site that provides quite a lot of useful information regarding building Home Servers even for beginners. Everybody that wants to learn about them should find it quite helpful.
http://www.wegotserved.com/

Just click the "Get Started" link on the top right.
Hope that helps.