These buttons are used to change the attributes of a partition (for example the file system type and mount point) and also to create RAID devices. Buttons on this screen are also used to accept the changes you have made, or to exit the partitioning screen. For further explanation, take a look at each button in order:
New: Select this option to add a partition or LVM physical volume to the disk. In the Add partition dialog, choose a mount point and a partition type. If you have more than one disk on the system, choose which disks the partition may inhabit. Indicate a size in megabytes for the partition. If you wish to encrypt the partition, select that option.
Edit: Used to modify attributes of the partition currently selected in the Partitions section. Selecting Edit opens a dialog box. Some or all of the fields can be edited, depending on whether the partition information has already been written to disk.
You can also edit free space as represented in the graphical display to create a new partition within that space. Either highlight the free space and then select the Edit button, or double-click on the free space to edit it.
To make a RAID device, you must first create (or reuse existing) software RAID partitions. Once you have created two or more software RAID partitions, select Make RAID to join the software RAID partitions into a RAID device.
Delete: Used to remove the partition currently highlighted in the Current Disk Partitions section. You will be asked to confirm the deletion of any partition.
To delete an LVM physical volume, first delete any volume groups of which that physical volume is a member.
If you make a mistake, use the Reset option to abandon all the changes you have made.
Reset: Used to restore the partitioning screen to its original state. All changes made will be lost if you Reset the partitions.
RAID: Used to provide redundancy to any or all disk partitions. It should only be used if you have experience using RAID.
To make a RAID device, you must first create software RAID partitions. Once you have created two or more software RAID partitions, select RAID to join the software RAID partitions into a RAID device.
The RAID options dialog.
Figure 7.20. RAID options
Create a software RAID partition
Choose this option to add a partition for software RAID. This option is the only choice available if your disk contains no software RAID partitions.
The create a software RAID partition dialog.
Figure 7.21. Create a software RAID partition
Create a RAID device
Choose this option to construct a RAID device from two or more existing software RAID partitions. This option is available if two or more software RAID partitions have been configured.
The create a RAID device dialog.
Figure 7.22. Create a RAID device
Clone a drive to create a RAID device
Choose this option to set up a RAID mirror of an existing disk. This option is available if two or more disks are attached to the system.
The clone a RAID device dialog.
Figure 7.23. Clone a RAID device
LVM: Allows you to create an LVM logical volume. The role of LVM (Logical Volume Manager) is to present a simple logical view of underlying physical storage space, such as a hard drive(s). LVM manages individual physical disks — or to be more precise, the individual partitions present on them. It should only be used if you have experience using LVM. Note, LVM is only available in the graphical installation program.
To assign one or more physical volumes to a volume group, first name the volume group. Then select the physical volumes to be used in the volume group. Finally, configure logical volumes on any volume groups using the Add, Edit and Delete options.
You may not remove a physical volume from a volume group if doing so would leave insufficient space for that group's logical volumes. Take for example a volume group made up of two 5 GB LVM physical volume partitions, which contains an 8 GB logical volume. The installer would not allow you to remove either of the component physical volumes, since that would leave only 5 GB in the group for an 8 GB logical volume. If you reduce the total size of any logical volumes appropriately, you may then remove a physical volume from the volume group. In the example, reducing the size of the logical volume to 4 GB would allow you to remove one of the 5 GB physical volumes.
LVM Unavailable in Text Installs
LVM initial set up is not available in a text-mode installation. The installer allows you to edit pre-configured LVM volumes. If you need to create an LVM configuration from scratch, hit Alt+F2 to use the terminal, and run the lvm command. To return to the text-mode installation, hit Alt+F1.