# how to add new slice



## pippo (Apr 29, 2010)

I have 8.0 installed on a 500gb sata; am using only about half - ca. 250gb.
Is there a way I can add 1 or more slices or how to use the remaining space?
TIA


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## paean (Apr 29, 2010)

You'll be happy to know the Handbook lists ways to add slices. sysinstall(8) is the easiest way if you're new to FreeBSD. 

Also see newfs(8) and growfs(8).


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## pippo (Apr 29, 2010)

Perhaps I was not clear.
I do not wish to add another disk.
I want to add another slice on a active installation (which could be done with the disk unmounted) as I do have FreeBSD installed on other disks on same computer. Or, would it be possible (how?) to add a partition on the same disk that could be used to store files or another OS?
Sysinstall, growfs and newfs do not appear to have the capacities that I am looking for... I am not interested in reinstalling ...
I'm not sure if it's possible to reset the geometry and/or the labels as one does when installing... I have seen some weird stuff when trying to use these tools... the instructions are not always "spot-on-clear"...


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## phoenix (Apr 29, 2010)

paean said:
			
		

> sysinstall(8) is the easiest way if you're new to FreeBSD.



sade(8) is more appropriate than sysinstall.  It's the same tools as sysinstall, but without all the extra sysinstall crud.


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## phoenix (Apr 29, 2010)

pippo said:
			
		

> Perhaps I was not clear.
> I do not wish to add another disk.
> I want to add another slice on a active installation (which could be done with the disk unmounted) as I do have FreeBSD installed on other disks on same computer. Or, would it be possible (how?) to add a partition on the same disk that could be used to store files or another OS?
> Sysinstall, growfs and newfs do not appear to have the capacities that I am looking for... I am not interested in reinstalling ...
> I'm not sure if it's possible to reset the geometry and/or the labels as one does when installing... I have seen some weird stuff when trying to use these tools... the instructions are not always "spot-on-clear"...



You can't (AFAIK) shrink a UFS filessytem.  Thus, you can't free up space to create a new partition or slice.

Unless you have free, unallocated, unpartitioned space on the disk, you're only solution is to backup, reformat, re-install.


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## aragon (Apr 29, 2010)

gpart(8)


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## jb_fvwm2 (Apr 30, 2010)

If by "using only half" you mean half contains
no OS nor DATA, your can easily make it
into a gjournal filesystem, and mount it 
somewhere like "/new"  (just one of many things).
If you mean you have 50 percent free using "df",
you have other options...


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## pippo (May 1, 2010)

Actually, in this case it means nothing, nada, like not formatted (I think), no OS, no slice, no partition - just plain empty. So, I'm wondering how I could set up
1. new slice
or
2. add partition
or
3. extend present slice (ad4s1h) from some 50gb to use the rest of the empty space.
There's always option
4. Suggest a use - like, I'm thinking of using that space as a repository for anything and everything including files from both XP (or any windoz or FreeBSD os's.


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## jb_fvwm2 (May 1, 2010)

Use fat32 if you want windows/bsd access. But limit
its size to the limitations of your bios/OS (only have
it like 12 gig...) (that may or may not foul up
the drive letter assignments you have already).  The remainder, half you can
jgournal for a WRKDIRPREFIX for port buids which
fill up /usr; and half of the remainder as
UFS2, (/spare), and you'd have a few G. left
for future uses.
...
As for "howto's," find a guide at the list below
or on the web... or in the HOWTO section...
...
For suggested sizes, check the freebsd-questions list where
many threads exist "initial setup size" type questions.


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## pippo (May 2, 2010)

Why fat32?
I only use XP (ntfs) and FBSD ufs...
I guess the determining factor depends on the os being used.
If I'm running FBSD, I can access any other disks or lan with samba.
If I boot XP, then I'm floating alone and can's access the new partition unless it's ntfs (or fat32 ?) from XP. And a new Windoz partition would muck up the bios... I think I'll go with aragon's gpart and just do another slice for the rest of the disk. Then I can use another FreeBSD box to act as a server for any XP and FreeBSD machines to use that extra slice.  heh! heh!
Thanks guys.


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## jb_fvwm2 (May 3, 2010)

backup critical files from bsd >> /fat32
backup critical files from xp >> /fat32 (d: or...)
I don't think the BIOS sees partitions, the
boot loader/ os do...
Say I had 30 g windows, 30 g bsd, 30 g fat32
on a 100g hard drive.
and bootit installed in windows
I could image (after defrag ) windows and
bsd to fat32 in batch mode, having the
boot-loader shareware Bootit beep when done
...
Just one scenario.  (A few gotcha's to any
such ... I always try to follow someone 
else's more-than-forum-verbose guides when
setting up hardware partitions etc)

(I try to reserve fat32 on new disks if I have
enough time to do so (pre-gpart...) )


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## saifikhan (Sep 11, 2010)

pippo said:
			
		

> I have 8.0 installed on a 500gb sata; am using only about half - ca. 250gb.
> Is there a way I can add 1 or more slices or how to use the remaining space?
> TIA



'gpart' should be used and not sysinstall/fdisk.

eg. lets say your disk is ad4

`gpart show ad4`

to add a slice to the existing active disk.

`gpart add -t freebsd ad4`

Please note that i did not specify the starting block or the size, since gpart can figure that out. Additionally, the slice type is 'freebsd' and *not* 'freebsd-ufs' since the original slice entry was created with fdisk (cf. sysinstall).

Hope this helps.


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