HP StorageWorks All-in-One Storage System User Guide (440583-006, June 2008)

• Basic disks can contain up to four primary partitions (or three primary partitions and one extended
partition).
• Format drives with a 16 K allocation size for best support of shadow copies, performance, and
defragmentation.
• NTFS formatted drives are recommended, because they provide the greatest level of support for
shadow copies, encryption, and compression.
• Only basic disks can be formatted as FAT or FAT32.
• Read the online Disk Management help found in the utility.
Scheduling defragmentation
Defragmentation is the process of analyzing local volumes and consolidating fragmented files and
folders so that each occupies a single, contiguous space on the volume. This improves file system
performance. Because defragmentation consolidates files and folders, it also consolidates the free
space on a volume. This reduces the likelihood that new files will be fragmented.
Defragmentation for a volume can be scheduled to occur automatically at convenient times.
Defragmentation can also be done once, or on a recurring basis.
NOTE:
Scheduling defragmentation to run no later than a specific time prevents the defragmentation process from
running later than that time. If the defragmentation process is running when the time is reached, the process
is stopped. This setting is useful to ensure that the defragmentation process ends before the demand for
server access is likely to increase.
If defragmenting volumes on which shadow copies are enabled, use a cluster (or allocation unit) size
of 16 KB or larger during the format. Otherwise defragmentation registers as a change by the Shadow
Copy process. This increase in the number of changes forces Shadow Copy to delete snapshots as
the limit for the cache file is reached.
CAUTION:
Allocation unit size cannot be altered without reformatting the drive. Data on a reformatted drive cannot
be recovered.
For more information about disk defragmentation, read the online help.
Disk quotas
Disk quotas track and control disk space use in volumes.
NOTE:
To limit the size of a folder or share, see “Quota management” on page 164 .
Configure the volumes on the server to perform the following tasks:
• Prevent further disk space use and log an event when a user exceeds a specified disk space limit.
• Log an event when a user exceeds a specified disk space warning level.
File server management140