Exchange 2003 server running on Windows Server 2003 that is running out of space on the system partition
I have an Exchange 2003 server running on Windows Server 2003 that is running out of space on the system partition. I have a RAID 5 configuration.
I want to replace the drives with larger ones and resize the partitions in the process. I had two thoughts as a way to do this. One would be to install a temporary Exchange server, move everything to the temporary server, rebuild the new server with larger drives and then move the mailboxes back to the rebuilt server and remove the temporary server.
The other thought would be to backup the stores. Rebuild the server with new drives and reinstall exchange with the /disasterrecovery switch.
Any thoughts on either or any other recommendations? I don't want a lot of downtime and I don't want to loose the data.
Software/Hardware used:
Software/Hardware used:
ASKED:
August 12, 2008 1:03 PM
UPDATED:
May 27, 2011 7:38 PM
Answer Wiki:
Hi,
As this thread quiet for a while, I wonder if you have solved your problem. Assuming you have fixed, in case of who have the same problem. I think there is a better solution with step by step tutorial. I hope it will be helpful.
To upgrade a old small hard drive to a new larger one, you can clone hard drive and <a href="http://www.partition-magic.org/windows-server-2003/resize-partition-windows-server-2003.html">resize partition windows 2003</a> after cloning hard drive to new target place , you can see this:
<a href="http://www.partition-magic.org/res/copy-hard-drive-to-new-hard-drive.html">http://www.partition-magic.org/res/copy-hard-drive-to-new-hard-drive.html</a>
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Thank you for the response. The Issue is not the space for the mail stores but the system partition space. It was fine when the server was first installed but with service packs and updates it is running out of space so I need rebuild it to give it more space.
It is time-consuming to rebuild the Server, in fact, you just need to resize the partitions with third party software like Partition Magic. It is very easy to operate. This guide may helps you, How to resize Server partition with partition magic server
Are the mail stores on the same Raid array but in a seperate logical drive? If so why not migrate them to an DAS box on the server and delete the old Store partition and expand the system partition into the free space created.