Every
storage system
must have a root volume. Therefore, you must always have one volume designated as the
root volume. However, you can change which volume is used as
the system's
root volume.
Before you begin
The volume that you are designating to be the new root volume must meet the minimum size requirement. The required minimum size for the root volume varies, depending on the storage system model. If the volume is too small to become the new root volume, Data ONTAP prevents you from setting the root option.
In addition, the volume that you are designating to be the new root volume must have at least 2 GB of free space.
It must also have a fractional reserve of 100%. The vol status –v command displays information about a volume’s fractional reserve.
If you use a FlexVol volume for the root volume, ensure that it has a guarantee of
volume.
Starting in Data ONTAP 8.0.1, you can designate a volume in a 64-bit aggregate to be the new root volume.
If you move the root volume outside the current root aggregate, you must also change the value of the aggregate
root option so that the aggregate containing the root volume becomes the root aggregate.
For storage systems with the root volume on the storage array, the array LUN used for the root volume must meet the minimum array LUN size for the root volume. For more information about the minimum array LUN size for the root volume, see the
Hardware Universe at hwu.netapp.com.
About this task
You might want to change the storage system's root volume, for example, when you migrate your root volume from a traditional volume to a FlexVol volume.
Steps
- Identify an existing volume to use as the new root volume, or create the new root volume by using the
vol create command.
- Use the
ndmpcopy command to copy the
/etc directory and all of its subdirectories from the current root volume to the new root volume.
For more information about
ndmpcopy, see the
Data ONTAP Data Protection Tape Backup and Recovery Guide for 7-Mode.
- Enter the following command to specify the new root volume:
vol options
vol_name root
vol_name is the name of the new root volume.
If the volume does not have at least 2 GB of free space, the command fails and an error message appears.
After a volume is designated to become the root volume, it cannot be brought offline or restricted.
- If you moved the root volume outside the current root aggregate, enter the following command to change the value of the aggregate
root option so that the aggregate containing the root volume becomes the root aggregate:
aggr options aggr_name root
aggr_name
is the name of the new root aggregate.
For more information about the aggregate
root option, see the na_aggr(1) man page.
- Enter the following command to reboot
the storage system:
reboot
When
the storage system finishes rebooting, the root volume is changed to the specified volume.
If you changed the root aggregate, a new root volume is created during the reboot when the aggregate does not already contain a
FlexVol
volume designated as the root volume and when the aggregate has at least 2 GB of free space.
- Update the
httpd.rootdir option to point to the new root volume.
