Add and Mount New HDD or SSD on Ubuntu

Add New HDD or SSD to Ubuntu

Add New Hard Drive (HDD or SSD) to Ubuntu, HDD for expanded storage or an SSD for faster performance, is a common task for Ubuntu users. However, configuring the drive properly can seem intimidating if you’re not familiar with the necessary steps. From physically connecting the drive to formatting and mounting it, each stage requires attention to detail to ensure optimal performance and usability.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of adding a new hard drive to an Ubuntu system. You’ll learn how to detect the drive, create partitions, format the drive with the appropriate filesystem, and set it up to mount automatically at boot. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced user, these solutions will help you make the most of your new hardware.

Let’s get started on expanding your system’s storage capabilities!

Introduction

Adding a new Hard Disk Drive (HDD) to an Ubuntu Server can be necessary for several reasons, and it often revolves around the need for additional storage capacity or for specific use cases. Here are some common reasons why you might need to add a new HDD to an Ubuntu Server:

Insufficient Storage Space
Separation of Data
Backup
Redundancy
Performance Improvement

Adding a new Hard Drive to the Ubuntu Virtual Machine or Server

IMPORTANT: Create backup of your environment before any changes!

Step 1: Check Installed HDDs

Execute the command df -h to check disk usage on your system.

sudo df -h

Output:

root@scripts:~# df -h
Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on
tmpfs 96M 2.9M 93M 3% /run
/dev/sda2 21G 11G 8.7G 56% /
tmpfs 479M 0 479M 0% /dev/shm
tmpfs 5.0M 0 5.0M 0% /run/lock
/dev/sdb1 91G 728M 85G 1% /opt/downloads
tmpfs 96M 4.0K 96M 1% /run/user/1000

Disk usage on the drives:

/dev/sda2 21G 11G 8.7G 56% /
/dev/sdb1 91G 728M 85G 1% /opt/downloads

Execute the command lshw -C disk

sudo lshw -C disk

Output of the command will show more information about installed drives:

root@scripts:~# sudo lshw -C disk
  *-disk:0
       description: SCSI Disk
       product: Virtual disk
       vendor: VMware
       physical id: 0.0.0
       bus info: scsi@32:0.0.0
       logical name: /dev/sda
       version: 2.0
       size: 21GiB (22GB)
       capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
       configuration: ansiversion=6 guid=5052e3a8-005c-4ad7-b4ec-90473eff1f8a logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512
  *-disk:1
       description: SCSI Disk
       product: Virtual disk
       vendor: VMware
       physical id: 0.1.0
       bus info: scsi@32:0.1.0
       logical name: /dev/sdb
       version: 2.0
       size: 100GiB (107GB)
       capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
       configuration: ansiversion=6 guid=c9257d9b-898c-408c-8a23-06c59e79f317 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512

Step 2: Install HDD in Virtual Server or Server and Reboot It

Check Disks again to find a new installed drive:

root@scripts:~# sudo lshw -C disk
*-disk:0
description: SCSI Disk
product: Virtual disk
vendor: VMware
physical id: 0.0.0
bus info: scsi@32:0.0.0
logical name: /dev/sda
version: 2.0
size: 21GiB (22GB)
capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
configuration: ansiversion=6 guid=5052e3a8-005c-4ad7-b4ec-90473eff1f8a logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512
*-disk:1
description: SCSI Disk
product: Virtual disk
vendor: VMware
physical id: 0.1.0
bus info: scsi@32:0.1.0
logical name: /dev/sdb
version: 2.0
size: 100GiB (107GB)
capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
configuration: ansiversion=6 guid=c9257d9b-898c-408c-8a23-06c59e79f317 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512
*-disk:2            -> NEW DRIVE
description: SCSI Disk
product: Virtual disk
vendor: VMware
physical id: 0.2.0
bus info: scsi@32:0.2.0
logical name: /dev/sdc
version: 2.0
size: 50GiB (53GB)
configuration: ansiversion=6 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512

Compare the last lshw -C disk output with the command output from Step 1 and there will be a new hard drive *-disk:2

Very important is to remember logical name: /dev/sdc for the new drive. We will use it for partitioning in the Step 3.

Step 3: Create a Partition on the New Inserted Drive

# Create partition
sudo fdisk /dev/sdc

# Open help menu
Command (m for help): m -> Type m

Help:

  DOS (MBR)
   a   toggle a bootable flag
   b   edit nested BSD disklabel
   c   toggle the dos compatibility flag

  Generic
   d   delete a partition
   F   list free unpartitioned space
   l   list known partition types
   n   add a new partition
   p   print the partition table
   t   change a partition type
   v   verify the partition table
   i   print information about a partition

  Misc
   m   print this menu
   u   change display/entry units
   x   extra functionality (experts only)

  Script
   I   load disk layout from sfdisk script file
   O   dump disk layout to sfdisk script file

  Save & Exit
   w   write table to disk and exit
   q   quit without saving changes

  Create a new label
   g   create a new empty GPT partition table
   G   create a new empty SGI (IRIX) partition table
   o   create a new empty DOS partition table
   s   create a new empty Sun partition table

# Press "n" to add a new partition

Command (m for help):
All unwritten changes will be lost, do you really want to quit?
Command (m for help): n
Partition type
   p   primary (0 primary, 0 extended, 4 free)
   e   extended (container for logical partitions)

# Press "p" to create primary partiton

Select (default p): p

# Just press enter
Partition number (1-4, default 1):

# Just press enter
First sector (2048-104857599, default 2048):

# Just press enter
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.

# Press "w" to write table to disk and exit

The partition table has been altered.
Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.

Step 4: Check Created Partition

Check the partition using the following commands:

root@scripts:~# sudo fdisk /dev/sdc

Welcome to fdisk (util-linux 2.37.2).
Changes will remain in memory only, until you decide to write them.
Be careful before using the write command.

Command (m for help): p
Disk /dev/sdc: 50 GiB, 53687091200 bytes, 104857600 sectors
Disk model: Virtual disk
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disklabel type: dos
Disk identifier: 0x3b162f62

Device Boot Start End Sectors Size Id Type
/dev/sdc1 2048 104857599 104855552 50G 83 Linux

Step 5: Format New Partition

root@scripts:~# sudo mkfs -t ext4 /dev/sdc1 
mke2fs 1.46.5 (30-Dec-2021) 
Creating filesystem with 13106944 4k blocks and 3276800 inodes 
Filesystem UUID: ab714abb-3dc6-44e9-a542-6e5c242168e2 
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

On this way, you will create a new partition on /dev/sdc1.

Step 6: Add new Mount Point

To add a new mount point, follow the following instructions:

Create a directory for the new mount point
Manually mount point
Edit /etc/fstab file

# Create directory 
sudo mkdir /opt/downloads

# Add manually mount point
sudo mount /dev/sdc1 /opt/downloads


# Update /etc/fstab for automatic mounting (optional but recommended):
# To ensure that the new disk is mounted automatically on system boot,
# add an entry to the /etc/fstab file. Edit the file and add a line 
# like:

sudo nano /etc/fstab

# Add the following line
/dev/sdc1   /opt/downloads   ext4   defaults   0   2