Adding volumes

You might want to add a volume if IBM® WebSphere® Application Server is out of space, IBM DB2® requires more storage, or you want to install packages and the operating system does not have enough space.

Before you begin

You must be assigned Cloud group administration role with permission to Manage all cloud groups (Full permission) perform these steps.
Important: When external block storage is no longer needed in a vm deployment, you must reformat the storage before using it in another vm deployment.

About this task

A volume configuration is the number of volumes and the respective formats, sizes and mount points associated with the virtual machine.

Restriction: A virtual machine can have a maximum of 15 volumes consisting of operating system volumes, VMFS, RAW and Block type storage and an additional 15 volumes of Block Shared type storage. Volumes cannot be attached to or removed from virtual machines that already have snapshots, but in most cases, snapshots can be created while volumes are attached.

You can use the console, the command line interface, or the REST API to complete this task. For the command line and REST API information, see the Related information section.

Procedure

  1. Access the console pane. Click Cloud > Volumes.
  2. Click Create New icon on the toolbar.
  3. You can choose one of the following methods to add volumes:
    • Add a LUN as a block or block shared volume.
    1. Select the Specify a LUN as Block/Block Shared Volume radio button and click Next.
    2. Optional: Provide an alias or readable name.
    3. From the LUNs drop down list, select a LUN.
    4. From the Type drop down list, select volume type of Block or Block Shared and click Add.
    • Create a new VMFS volume from data stores.
    1. Select the Add a VMFS Volume from Data Stores radio button and click Next.
    2. Enter a name for the volume in the Name field.
    3. Optional: Enter a description of the volume in the Description field.
    4. Only VMFS type volumes can be created.
    5. In the In Cloud Group field, select an available cloud group from the drop down list.
    6. In the Volume configuration field, select the Existing settings radio button to use the existing size settings, or select the Custom settings radio button, to create your own size settings for the volume. If you choose Custom settings, enter the size of the volume in the Size field.
      Note: You can define the size of your volume up to 1.8 TB (1887436.8 MB, or 1843.2 GB).
  4. Click OK. The new volume is added to the system. While this is in process, the status of the volume is Pending. When the process completes, the status changes to Available.