--- title: "Configuring an additional disk on a VPS" description: "Learn how to enable the additional disk option and configure the storage space for use with the VPS." url: https://docs.us.ovhcloud.com/en/bare-metal-cloud/vps/configuring-additional-disk lang: en --- > For AI agents: the complete documentation index is available at https://docs.us.ovhcloud.com/en/llms.txt, the full documentation bundle is available at https://docs.us.ovhcloud.com/en/llms-full.txt. # Configuring an additional disk on a VPS **Learn how to enable the additional disk option and configure the storage space for use with the VPS.** With OVHcloud Virtual Private Servers, you have the option to add secure storage space as a service. This storage is separated from the internal storage capacity of the VPS solution, which makes it a secure place for your backups or other static data. The additional disk will only be accessible from the server’s IP address, and data stored on it will remain unaffected, even if the VPS is reinstalled or suffers data loss. **Warning:** **NOTE:** This feature is currently unavailable for Virtual Private Servers in [Local Zones](https://us.ovhcloud.com/vps/vps-amd/).   ## Requirements - A [VPS](https://us.ovhcloud.com/vps/) in your OVHcloud account - Access to the [OVHcloud Control Panel](https://manager.us.ovhcloud.com/) - Administrative access via SSH or RDP to your VPS   ## Instructions Log in to the [OVHcloud Control Panel](https://manager.us.ovhcloud.com/), go to the `Bare Metal Cloud` section, then `Virtual Private Servers`, and select your VPS.   ### Subscribing to the additional disk option After selecting your VPS, click on the `Additional disk` tab. Click on `Order an additional disk` and choose a disk size from the selection that appears. Take note of the pricing information, then click on `Order`. You will be guided through the order process and receive a confirmation email as soon as the disk is installed.   ### Mounting the new storage space **Warning:** **NOTE:** OVHcloud provides services for which you are responsible for their configuration and management. You are therefore responsible for their proper functioning.\ \ This tutorial is designed to help you as much as possible with common tasks. If you are having difficulty performing these actions, please contact a specialized service provider. OVHcloud cannot provide you with technical support in this regard. #### On a Linux VPS #### On a Linux VPS If a GNU/Linux distribution is installed on your VPS, establish an SSH connection to your server from the command line terminal or by using an SSH client application. The examples below presume you are logged in as a user with elevated permissions. You can use the following command to verify the name of the new device: ```bash $ lsblk sda 8:0 0 80G 0 disk ├─sda1 8:1 0 79.9G 0 part / ├─sda14 8:14 0 4M 0 part └─sda15 8:15 0 106M 0 part /boot/efi sdb 8:16 0 50G 0 disk ``` In this example, the additional disk is named `sdb`. Execute `fdisk` to create a partition on the disk; when prompted, enter `n` for a new partition and accept the subsequent defaults by pressing Enter (“↩”). Finally, use the `w` command to write the changes to the disk. ```bash $ sudo fdisk /dev/sdb Welcome to fdisk (util-linux 2.34). Changes will remain in memory only, until you decide to write them. Be careful before using the write command. ``` ```bash Command (m for help): n Partition type p primary (0 primary, 0 extended, 4 free) e extended (container for logical partitions) Select (default p): ``` ```bash Partition number (1-4, default 1): First sector (2048-104857599, default 2048): Last sector, +/-sectors or +/-size{K,M,G,T,P} (2048-104857599, default 104857599): Created a new partition 1 of type 'Linux' and of size 50 GiB. ``` ```bash Command (m for help): w The partition table has been altered. Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table. Syncing disks. ``` Now that the partition `sdb1` is created, you can format it with ext4: ```bash $ sudo mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdb1 Creating filesystem with 13106944 4k blocks and 3276800 inodes Filesystem UUID: a667d351-cf36-49f2-94b4-daf03d7a86a6 Superblock backups stored on blocks: 32768, 98304, 163840, 229376, 294912, 819200, 884736, 1605632, 2654208, 4096000, 7962624, 11239424 Allocating group tables: done Writing inode tables: done Creating journal (65536 blocks): done Writing superblocks and filesystem accounting information: done ``` The final step is to mount the disk: ```bash $ sudo mkdir /mnt/disk ``` ```bash $ sudo mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt/disk ``` You can see in the last line that the additional disk is now mounted at `/mnt/disk`: ```bash $ df -h Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on udev 1.9G 0 1.9G 0% /dev tmpfs 385M 1.1M 384M 1% /run /dev/sda1 78G 2.4G 75G 4% / tmpfs 1.9G 0 1.9G 0% /dev/shm tmpfs 5.0M 0 5.0M 0% /run/lock tmpfs 1.9G 0 1.9G 0% /sys/fs/cgroup /dev/sda15 105M 3.9M 101M 4% /boot/efi /dev/loop1 68M 68M 0 100% /snap/lxd/18150 /dev/loop3 32M 32M 0 100% /snap/snapd/10707 /dev/loop4 56M 56M 0 100% /snap/core18/1944 /dev/loop5 70M 70M 0 100% /snap/lxd/19188 tmpfs 385M 0 385M 0% /run/user/0 /dev/loop6 56M 56M 0 100% /snap/core18/1988 /dev/loop2 32M 32M 0 100% /snap/snapd/11036 tmpfs 385M 0 385M 0% /run/user/1000 /dev/sdb1 49G 53M 47G 1% /mnt/disk ``` **Note:** This previous step is not persistent because the disk will be detached if the VPS is restarted. To automate the mounting process, the `fstab` file needs to be edited. First, retrieve the UUID (block ID) of the device: ```bash $ sudo blkid /dev/sda1: LABEL="cloudimg-rootfs" UUID="e616a2cd-3c02-4c79-9823-9b1bb5c13b26" TYPE="ext4" PARTUUID="a44089a3-f407-41e6-b7a5-1ed7672cef20" /dev/sda15: LABEL_FATBOOT="UEFI" LABEL="UEFI" UUID="4411-1580" TYPE="vfat" PARTUUID="e1746ac7-80c1-4859-9b4d-fa6ce11b3ae9" /dev/loop1: TYPE="squashfs" /dev/loop2: TYPE="squashfs" /dev/loop3: TYPE="squashfs" /dev/loop4: TYPE="squashfs" /dev/loop5: TYPE="squashfs" /dev/loop6: TYPE="squashfs" /dev/sda14: PARTUUID="7d19a2c9-75df-443e-8301-0bb85931df7d" /dev/sdb1: UUID="87571b68-30e1-498b-a64c-49ec5cd4f31c" TYPE="ext4" PARTUUID="c965cbdf-01" ``` Open `/etc/fstab` with a text editor: ```bash $ sudo nano /etc/fstab ``` Add the line below to the file and replace the UUID with your own: ```console UUID=87571b68-30e1-498b-a64c-49ec5cd4f31c /mnt/disk ext4 nofail 0 0 ``` Save and exit the editor. The disk should be automatically mounted after every reboot from now on. ##### On a Windows VPS #### On a Windows VPS If a Windows OS is installed on your VPS, establish a remote desktop (RDP) connection to your server. Once logged in, right-click on the `Start Menu` button and open `Disk Management`. The new disk will be displayed as an unknown volume with unallocated space. If the disk is marked as offline here, it needs to be initialized first. You can use the [Windows GUI](#initialising-the-disk-in-disk-management) or the [DISKPART utility](#initialising-the-disk-with-diskpart) to achieve this. Otherwise, proceed with [formatting the disk](#formatting-the-disk) in Disk Management.   **Initializing the disk in Disk Management** Right-click on the disk and select `Online`. Then right-click on the disk again and this time select `Initialize Disk`. Select `MBR` in the new window and click `OK`.   **Initializing the disk with DISKPART** Right-click on the `Start Menu` button and open `Run`. Type `cmd` and click `OK` to open the command line application. At the command prompt, open DISKPART: ```powershell C:\> diskpart ``` Use the following series of DISKPART commands to set the disk to online: ```powershell DISKPART> san SAN Policy : Offline Shared ``` ```powershell DISKPART> san policy = OnlineAll DiskPart successfully changed the SAN policy for the current operating system. - Implementation of the strategy on the extra disk: [Code] DISKPART> list disk Disk ### Status Size Free Dyn Gpt -------- ------------- ------- ------- --- --- Disk 0 Online 200 GB 0 B * Disk 1 Offline 10 GB 1024 KB ``` ```powershell DISKPART> select disk 1 Disk 1 is now the selected disk. ``` ```powershell DISKPART> attributes disk clear readonly Disk attributes cleared successfully. ``` ```powershell DISKPART> attributes disk Current Read-only State : No Read-only : No Boot Disk : No Pagefile Disk : No Hibernation File Disk : No Crashdump Disk : No Clustered Disk : No ``` ```powershell DISKPART> online disk DiskPart successfully onlined the selected disk. ```   **Formatting the disk** In `Disk Management`, right-click on the new disk and select `New Simple Volume...`. In the wizard, click `Next` to specify the volume size. It should be set to maximum by default. Click `Next` to continue. Leave the new drive letter at default or select a different one, then click `Next`. Label the volume (optional) and confirm the formatting options by clicking `Next`. In the last window, click `Finish` to format the disk. It will be available as a drive in File Explorer after the operation.   ### Cancelling the additional disk option From the `Home` tab, in the **Your configuration** panel. Click the _more options_ `...` button next to **Additional disks** and click on `Cancel`.   ## Go further Browse all the [Virtual Private Servers guides](https://docs.us.ovhcloud.com/en/bare-metal-cloud/vps/landing-page-vps.md). Browse the rest of the [OVHcloud US documentation](https://docs.us.ovhcloud.com/en/index.md) for guides on our other products and services. Learn more about [VPS](https://us.ovhcloud.com/vps/) on the OVHcloud US website.