I'm am looking to expand my partition to it's full size instead of the default partition size that comes with the installement of the rasplex image. My current setup is an SD card class 10 which is only used for booting. Used to be my main memory. But since i wanted to play 1080p video's with DTS sound i overclocked the RPI and moved to partition over to a USB drive to prevent corruption. I know that for the moment it's not really necessary to expand the partition to it's full size, but I still want to do it. If not for the pleasure of making it work only :D I do kind of worry that with my ever growing library i will eventually run into disk space troubles as i also sync music and pictures next to video. Any help would be greatly appriciated.
I'm am looking to expand my partition to it's full size instead of the default partition size that comes with the installement of the rasplex image. My current setup is an SD card class 10 which is only used for booting. Used to be my main memory. But since i wanted to play 1080p video's with DTS sound i overclocked the RPI and moved to partition over to a USB drive to prevent corruption. I know that for the moment it's not really necessary to expand the partition to it's full size, but I still want to do it. If not for the pleasure of making it work only :D I do kind of worry that with my ever growing library i will eventually run into disk space troubles as i also sync music and pictures next to video. Any help would be greatly appriciated.
From my testing of the latest experimental RasPlex builds I can say that they contain an additional "growstorage" command in the installed "cmdline.txt", which handles the expansion of the secondary partition (used for data storage) to fill out the entire free space of the card.
This works fine for RasPlex installs running entirely from the SDcard.
Unfortunately that command does not work the same way for RasPlex installs on a USB drive, so there I end up using just a small area of the USB stick for data.
The size of the data partition in the image is only 651 MB, which leaves over 28 GB of that stick as unallocated space.
Extending Ext4 partitions to fill out a storage device is simple on Linux systems, since they have standard tools for it.
But doing the same on a Windows computer requires getting some extra tools for it, as the system tools don't support that partition type.
I'm currently looking for the best way of doing this (since I don't use Linux on my computers).
Edit:
I solved my problems by installing the free edition of "Paragon Partition Manager" which can handle most kinds of drives and partition types, including Ext4.
Best regards: dlanor
If you don't want to install anything on your computer to do this (usually) one time task, there is also the option of booting the linux based gparted program off a cd or usb stick. It works pretty much like the Paragon Partition Manager mentioned above.
If you don't want to install anything on your computer to do this (usually) one time task, there is also the option of booting the linux based gparted program off a cd or usb stick. It works pretty much like the Paragon Partition Manager mentioned above.
Thanks for the tip. I did in fact download those 'GParted Live' files as well (both for CD and USB), and saved them for possible future needs.
But I decided to go with the Paragon application, mainly because this allows me to do the job without having to reboot before and after.
I simply run it like any other Windows application (though obviously with greater care than usual in how I operate it :D).
And once I had it I quickly found other uses for it, such as large-drive FAT32 formatting (which Windows' disk manager refuses to do), and GUI-based cleanup of multi-partition USB drives (instead of having to use command-line 'DiskPart'). So for me this is definitely not just a one-time tool.
Best regards: dlanor
Hi,
I've been trying to expand my USB Storage partition but keep corrupting the install and have to start over. My steps:
- Flash Rasplex (0.4 RC1) to SD (8GB) and USB (16GB)
- Modify cmdline.txt on SD to "boot=/dev/sda1 disk=/dev/sda2 quiet oprofile.timer=1"
- This works up until here and boots to the USB just fine.
- Using MiniTool Partition Wizard my USB looks like (System [Fat32]250MB, Storage [Ext4]599MB, Unallocated 14GB)
- I move the Storage partition to the very right (System [Fat32]250MB, Unallocated 14GB, Storage [Ext4]599MB)
- Delete Storage partition (This is probably the issue... :blink: )
- Can't expand the unallocated space without removing this partition.
- Format Unallocated space as Ext4 and rename to Storage
- End result is an unbootable configuration
I've downloaded Paragon Partition Manager as dlanor suggested but can't figure out the steps necessary to expand USB Storage partition.
Any tips?
Thanks,
Matt
I've been trying to expand my USB /Storage/ partition but keep
corrupting the install and have to start over. My steps:
1. Flash Rasplex (0.4 RC1) to SD (8GB) and USB (16GB)
2. Modify cmdline.txt on SD to "boot=/dev/sda1 disk=/dev/sda2 quiet
oprofile.timer=1"
1. This works up until here and boots to the USB just fine.
Yes, that's correct and very similar to what I use myself.
The only difference is that I also include ssh in the command line,
since some people report loss of the SSH server on soft reboots.
3. Using MiniTool Partition Wizard my USB looks like (System
[Fat32]250MB, Storage [Ext4]599MB, Unallocated 14GB)
4. I move the /Storage /partition to the very right (System
[Fat32]250MB, Unallocated 14GB, Storage [Ext4]599MB)
That's obviously wrong as you still leave 14GB unallocated (== unusable).
You just moved the small Ext4 partition from one place to another,
without changing its size.
What you needed to do was to expand that partition without moving it,
so that it would use all the additional space to the end of the drive.
And that would then be the final step.
5. Delete /Storage /partition (This is probably the issue... :blink: )
1. Can't expand the unallocated space without removing this partition.
That sounds like an odd limitation of the program,
but would have been wrong anyway.
It's not the first partition that should be expanded...
6. Format Unallocated space as Ext4 and rename to Storage
I think that would result in an invalid partition setup.
There's always 1MB left unallocated between the 1st and 2nd partition.
And there's also a risk that the tool you used doesn't initialize the Ext4 partition in the same way as the orignal RasPlex image.
I've downloaded Paragon Partition Manager as dlanor suggested but can't
figure out the steps necessary to expand USB /Storage /partition.
01: Install the original RasPlex image on the USB3 drive
02: Insert the USB3 drive in the PC where you've installed "Paragon Partition Manager"
03: Check the drive letter which the PC assigned to the FAT32 partition of the USB drive
04: Start "Paragon Partition Manager" (click on its 'splash logo' to make that go away quicker)
05: In the drive list shown, look for something that seems to be your USB drive.
That drive should have 3 partition rectangles, two small ones and one larger (unallocated space)
06: Left-click the leftmost rectangle of the 'suspect' drive entry, to see if it has the correct drive letter
The correct drive should have the same drive letter noted in step 3, for its first partition.
07: Left-click the middle rectangle of that drive, and check that it has the label "Storage" and type "Linux Ext4"
08: Right-click the same middle rectangle and choose "Move/Resize Partition..." in the popup menu
09: In the new dialog box, note the small orange-bordered rectangle, which represents current partition size.
10: Aim for the right-hand edge of that rectangle and press+hold the left mouse button to drag the edge to the right.
This will expand the chosen size for that partition, though the execution of that change is still deferred.
11: Still in that dialog box, click the "Yes" button to confirm the change. (but the action is still deferred)
12: Note the bottom right corner of the main program window, and its new text "You have unsaved changes".
13: Note 'the Green tick' "Apply" button at the left edge of the window, just above the start of the 'Disk Map' listing.
14: Click that apply button to start the real partition modification(s) after one more "Yes" click in a popup box to confirm it.
15: During the work you see a progress dialog,
and at the end of the work you get to click an "OK" button in a new popup box,
after which you can close the progress dialog.
16: You are now back in the main program mode again, ready to work on other partitions.
17: So this is where you'd normally exit that program with the job done :)
Don't forget to edit cmdline.txt and config.txt in the FAT32 partition to match your setup.
For consistency I do this BOTH on the SDcard and on the USB3 stick.
This way all soft reboot methods will work consistently,
regardless of whether they read the files from SDcard or USB3.
Best regards: dlanor
@dlanor, thanks for the detailed steps; appreciate it. I assume in between step 4/5 there is "Click Resize Partitiion". I can't find Paragon Partition Manger 12 which has the context menus; using version 2014 which has the Windows 8 tiled look.
Still running into the same issue. Unable to resize the ext4 (storage) partition. I physically can't drag the partition any bigger/smaller. The fat32 (system) is OK and can drag it around. Will try on another USB stick.
Thanks again!
@dlanor, thanks for the detailed steps; appreciate it. I assume in between step 4/5 there is "Click Resize Partitiion".
No, the command to resize is given in step 8. Though the command text states "Move/Resize Partition..."
That command opens a dialog box where you can choose to move and/or resize the partition using mouse manipulation of the partition rectangle. And the correct operation is to drag the right edge of the partition rectangle to the right, to absorb free space.
I can't find Paragon Partition Manger 12 which has the context menus; using version 2014 which has the Windows 8 tiled look.
I don't understand what you're talking about.
I use "Paragon Partition Manager(TM) 2014 Free" myself, and it is with this version that I went through each of the steps described in my previous post, while writing it. So that description represents exactly what you need to do with that precise program version. The menu has Windows 8 style icons, but also context menus.
Still running into the same issue. Unable to resize the ext4 (storage) partition. I physically can't drag the partition any bigger/smaller.
Of course you can't move or resize if you haven't opened the only dialog box where that is permitted.
Also, you should NOT drag the partition around anywhere.
You should only drag the right edge of the partition rectangle to extend it, not the whole rectangle.
The fat32 (system) is OK and can drag it around.
How ?
The partition entries in the main program window are NOT directly subject to manipulation of this kind.
That always has to be done in submenus and/or dialog windows specific to the tasks.
The 'Disk Map' list in the main window is just to present the disks and their partitions in their current state.
And of course for use in opening submenus and dialogs related to each such disk/partition.
And it is in those sub-windows that you specify any changes to be made.
Will try on another USB stick.
Sorry, but this is not a matter of what stick you use. Results with any stick will be the same.
You need to follow the instructions I gave, so you reach the context menu containing the "Move/Resize Partition..." command.
Here are some screenshots from a new run I made of the same steps:
The first one is from step 8, with mouse hovering over the context menu command "Move/Resize Partition...", just before left-clicking that command. (You don't see the mouse pointer in screenshots though.) The context menu was opened by right-clicking the middle rectangle of the drive entry at the bottom of the 'Disk Map' list. That's the one locally labeled as 'Hard Disk 5' (though in fact it's an SDcard).
Judging from your recent post, finding that context menu is your main problem, but I assure you that it's there, even in the 2014 version we both use.
Just position the mouse pointer tip inside that rectangle and press the right-hand mouse button to open that context menu.
The second screenshot is from step 9, inside the move/resize dialog but before making any changes (to this 8GB SDcard).
The third picture is from step 11, after extending the rectangle, but before confirming the change.
The next two pictures are partial screenshots showing the 'unsaved change' notification and the 'Apply' button to be used next.
The sixth picture shows the progress dialog box during the work.
Note that the percentage will stay at zero for most of the time until the work is completed.
This does not mean that progress has stopped, but only that the indicator isn't proportional to time (all the real work is done in a spurt at the end).
After the work is completed there will be a warning box intended for Linux users, which you can safely ignore (as the PC doesn't boot from that partition).
So just close that box.
This final picture shows how the program should look thereafter, with everything completed except for closing the progress window.
Btw:
The progress dialog only mentions the operation "Move", even when the real operation is a resize without moving the partition base.
That's probably just because the programmer implemented move first, and then didn't bother to update the message string.
Hopefully these pictures will be helpful to you and others with similar needs.
Best regards: dlanor
@dlanor - you're my hero!!! There are two interfaces for Paragon Partition Manager 2014. I never thought of clicking on "Switch to Full Scale Launcher". I always thought it was advertising asking me to upgrade. :P
Anyways, once I launched the other interface it was as simple as pie. Thanks for all your help.
That's a great post, thanks very much dlanor!
Can you confirm that these steps are still necessary for a USB install with 0.4.0 RC2? I'd prefer to allow the growstorage to handle the expansion automatically, but I want to run from USB. Does growstorage still only work correctly for SD-only-based installs?
HI.
Trying to expand the boot partition on my USB Stick with 2 different tools, and doesn't work at all. The boot crash at the beginning all the time.
Don't understand why, its not the first time I make that sort of operation... :(
Will have to make a fresh install for all new release :(.
That's a great post, thanks very much dlanor!
Can you confirm that these steps are still necessary for a USB install with 0.4.0 RC2? I'd prefer to allow the growstorage to handle the expansion automatically, but I want to run from USB. Does growstorage still only work correctly for SD-only-based installs?
Yes, to my knowledge the 'growstorage' command is specific for SDcard only.
----- switch of reply target -----
Trying to expand the boot partition on my USB Stick with 2 different tools, and doesn't work at all. The boot crash at the beginning all the time.
Don't understand why, its not the first time I make that sort of operation... :(
It's hard to say what went wrong without knowing more about what tools and methods you used.
You say that you've done this sort of operation before, but was that also for Ext4 partitions ?
There are tons of Windows-oriented tools around which simply can't handle non-Windows-compatible partition types.
Will have to make a fresh install for all new release :(.
Actually I do that every time, since the auto-updates are not certain to include everything needed.
I use the auto-update features only when I specifically want to test how well they work.
Once you get into the habit of it, a fresh install from scratch is no big deal.
Though the pre-caching does take quite a while with a large Plex library (a few hours for mine).
Best regards: dlanor
I try 2 differents Tools : Partition Wizard Home Edition and Paragon partition Manager.
But the point is : we can't use the automatic update system if the partition is too small or become full quickly (for me it was caused by crash logs). Update system is useless if we're run out of space ^^
The growstorage didn't work with USB stick, and i think a lot of users use one for better performance. It will be a big issue in future i think.
Is that possible for the dev team to update the installer software to include the ability to change the partition size during the installation process ?.
Maybe a "noob" mode who don't ask for partition size, and one advanced mode where you can change it ?.
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