Lesson 7: Configuring

Storage
MOAC 70-698: Installing and Configuring
Windows 10

Microsoft Official Academic Course

 Overview
Objective 2.2 – Configure Storage.
• Configure disks, volumes, and file system options
using Disk Management and Windows PowerShell
• Create and configure VHDs
• Configure removable devices
• Create and configure storage spaces
• Troubleshoot storage and removable devices issues

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2

 Configuring Disks,
Volumes, and File System
Options
Lesson 7: Configuring Storage

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 3

Configuring Disks, Volumes,
and File System Options
• Drive interfaces
o Small Computer System Interface (SCSI)
o Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA)
o Universal Serial Bus (USB)
Maximum
File System Maximum File Size
Partition Size
FAT 2 GB 2 GB
FAT32 32 GB 4 GB
Limited by the size of the volume on which
NTFS 256 TB*
it resides

Limited by the size of the volume on which

exFAT 128 PB
it resides

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 4

 Understanding Disk and
Drive Types
Partition • Master boot record (MBR)
styles • GUID partition table (GPT)

Types of • Basic
disks • Dynamic

• Simple
Types of • Spanned
volumes •
•
Striped
Mirrored volumes

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 5

 Using Disk Management to Configure
Disks, Volumes, and File Systems
• Initialize the
disk and then
choose a drive
type and a
partition style
(for basic disks)
using the Disk
Management
tool

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 6

 Create a Simple Volume

Format a Partition

New Volume Menu

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 7

Create a Spanned Volume
• Include two or more disks
(up to 32) that are
represented in Windows
Explorer as a single drive
letter
• Sometimes referred to as fill
and spill  because all of the
storage space on the first disk
must be filled before data is
stored on the second and
subsequent disks
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 8
 Striped and Mirrored
Volumes
• Mirrored volumes store an
exact copy of data from the first
member of the mirrored volume
to the second member

• Striped volumes must contain

at least 2 disks and can contain
up to 32 disks

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 9

 Using Windows PowerShell to Configure
Disks, Volumes, and File Systems
Allows for task automation and configuration
management that consist of a command-line
shell and associated scripting language

Administrative tasks are generally performed

with cmdlets

You have to run the Windows PowerShell

cmdlets as an administrator

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 10

Creating and Configuring
VHDs
• Create a new .vhd/.vhdx
file by using the available
disk space on the
computer and saving it to
the location that you
specify
• If you have a .vhd/vhdx
file, you can mount the
drive to your system
running Windows 10
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 11
 Supporting Storage Pools
and Storage Spaces
• Storage Spaces allows you to combine multiple disks
into a single logical volume that can be mirrored to
protect against one or more drive failures.
• When the drives are combined, Windows places them
into a storage pool.
• Benefits:
o Data resiliency, which can protect your data against hard
disk failure.
o Volume sizes can be larger than the actual physical size of
your drives in the storage pool using thin provisioning.

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 12

 Creating Storage Pools
• Use the Manage Storage Spaces tool found in the
Control Panel

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 13

 Creating Storage Spaces
Simple (no resiliency)

Two-way mirror

Three-way mirror

Parity

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14

 Thin Provisioning

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 15

 Create a Storage Pool and a
Storage Space in Windows 10

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 16

 Configuring Removable
Storage Devices
• Monitoring and securing removable media includes
using Group Policy to control whether users are
allowed to use removable media on your network or on
specific computers as well as whether they can deploy
BitLocker/BitLocker To Go to encrypt and protect
removable media that is lost or stolen.
• Configure Group Policy Objects (GPOs) to monitor the
use of removable storage devices on your network.
• Configure GPOs to prevent the use of removable
media on your network for computers and/or users.
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 17
 Configuring Removable
Storage Devices
• Configure GPOs to
prevent the use of
removable media
on your network
for computers
and/or users.

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 18

Troubleshooting Storage and
Removable Devices Issues
Ensure the device is connected properly and turned on.

Ensure the port or storage interface is enabled in the system’s BIOS.

Ensure the device driver is installed.

Ensure that the storage device is initialized, partitioned, formatted and assigned a
drive letter.

Check for malware.

Check for GPO settings that would disable removable storage devices.

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 19

Troubleshooting Storage and
Removable Devices Issues
• When you connect a storage device to a system running
Windows 10 and it does not come up, make sure that it is
properly connected (data link and power connections).
• Try removing and reseating the device, as well as connecting the
device on a different port or connector.
• See if the device is recognized by Disk Manager. If it is not
recognized by Disk Manager, open Device Manager to see if the
drive is recognized. If it is not, try to find and install the
appropriate driver.
• If the storage device (fixed or removable) is connected properly,
open Disk Manager to see if the drive is initialized, partitioned,
formatted, and assigned a drive letter.
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 20
 Lesson Summary
• A file system is the overall structure your computer uses to name, store,
and organize files and folders on a hard disk or partition. The file system
provides a map of the clusters (the basic units of logical storage on a hard
disk) that a file has been stored in. When you install a hard disk in a
computer, you must format it with a file system.
• NTFS is the preferred file system that supports much larger hard disk and a
higher level of reliability than FAT-based file systems. In addition, NTFS
offers better security through permissions and encryption.

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 21

 Lesson Summary
• Windows 10 supports two partition styles, MBR and GPT; and two
primary types of disks, basic and dynamic. In addition, the operating
system supports simple, spanned, striped, and mirrored volumes. Use the
Disk Management tool in the Computer Management snap-in to manage
disks, partitions, and volumes.
• With Disk Management, you can create a new .vhd/.vhdx file by using the
available disk space on the computer and saving it to the location that you
specify. If you have a .vhd/vhdx file, you can mount the drive to your
system running Windows 10.
• Storage Spaces is a feature in Windows 10 that allows you to combine
multiple disks into a single logical volume that can be mirrored to protect
against one or more drive failures.

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 22

 Copyright 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
All rights reserved. Reproduction or translation of this work beyond that
named in Section 117 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act without the
express written consent of the copyright owner is unlawful. Requests for
further information should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John
Wiley & Sons, Inc. The purchaser may make back-up copies for his/her own
use only and not for distribution or resale. The Publisher assumes no
responsibility for errors, omissions, or damages, caused by the use of these
programs or from the use of the information contained herein.

Microsoft Official Academic Course