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Storage Management

In this lab, we’re going to go over managing and formatting partitions. Having a solid understanding of how to use these tools is a fundamental component of a Linux sysadmin career. *This course is not approved or sponsored by Red Hat.*

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Lab Info
Level
Intermediate
Last updated
Sep 17, 2025
Duration
1h 0m

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Table of Contents
  1. Challenge

    Create a 2 GB GPT Partition
    1. Create the partition:

      gdisk /dev/nvme1n1
      
    2. Enter n to create a new partition.

    3. Accept the default for the partition number.

    4. Accept the default for the starting sector.

    5. For the ending sector, enter +2G to create a 2 GB partition.

    6. Accept the default partition type.

    7. Enter w to write the partition information.

    8. Enter y to proceed.

    9. Finalize the settings:

      partprobe
      
  2. Challenge

    Create a 2 GB MBR Partition
    1. Create the partition:
    ```
    fdisk /dev/nvme2n1
    ```
    
    1. Enter n to create a new partition.

    2. Accept the default partition type.

    3. Accept the default for the partition number.

    4. Accept the default for the starting sector.

    5. For the ending sector, type +2G to create a 2 GB partition.

    6. Enter w to write the partition information.

    7. Finalize the settings:

      partprobe
      
  3. Challenge

    Format the GPT Partition with XFS and Mount the Device persistently
    1. Format the partition:

      mkfs.xfs /dev/nvme1n1p1
      

    Getting It Ready for Mounting

    1. Run the following:

      blkid
      
    2. Copy the UUID of the partition at /dev/nvme1n1p1.

    3. Open the /etc/fstab file:

      vim /etc/fstab
      
    4. Add the following, replacing <UUID> with the UUID you just copied:

      UUID="<UUID>" /mnt/gptxfs xfs defaults 0 0
      
    5. Save and exit the file by pressing Escape followed by :wq.

    Create a Mount Point

    1. Create the mount point we specified in fstab:

      mkdir /mnt/gptxfs
      
    2. Mount everything that's described in fstab:

      mount -a
      
  4. Challenge

    Format the MBR Partition with ext4 and Mount the Device.

    Format the MBR Partition with ext4 and Mount the Device on /mnt/mbrext4

    1. Format the partition:

      mkfs.ext4 /dev/nvme2n1p1
      

    Create a Mount Point

    1. Create the mount point:

      mkdir /mnt/mbrext4
      
    2. Mount it:

      mount /dev/nvme2n1p1 /mnt/mbrext4
      
    3. Check that it's mounted:

      mount
      

      The partition should be listed in the output.

    4. Mount the disk:

      mount /dev/nvme2n1p1 /mnt/mbrext4
      
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