Initialize a physical volume
Prepare a partition or whole device for LVM use.
bashANYlvmpvcreatephysical-volume
bash
sudo pvcreate /dev/sdb1Notes
Prepare a partition or whole device for LVM use.
Linux LVM, RAID, and Encryption Cheat Sheet
LVM volume management, mdadm RAID, and LUKS encryption workflows.
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LVM Basics
Create and inspect physical volumes, volume groups, and logical volumes.
bash
sudo pvsNotes
Compact overview of LVM physical volumes.
Display physical volume details
Verbose physical volume information including UUID and extents.
bashANYlvmpvdisplayinventory
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sudo pvdisplayNotes
Verbose physical volume information including UUID and extents.
bash
sudo vgcreate vgdata /dev/sdb1Notes
Create a VG from one or more initialized PVs.
bash
sudo vgsNotes
Compact view of VGs, free extents, and sizes.
Display volume group details
Verbose VG information including free space and metadata.
bashANYlvmvgdisplayvolume-group
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sudo vgdisplay vgdataNotes
Verbose VG information including free space and metadata.
Create a logical volume by size
Allocate a fixed-size LV from a volume group.
bashANYlvmlvcreatelogical-volume
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sudo lvcreate -L 100G -n lvdata vgdataNotes
Allocate a fixed-size LV from a volume group.
Create a logical volume with remaining free space
Use all remaining free extents in the VG.
bashANYlvmlvcreatefree-space
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sudo lvcreate -l 100%FREE -n lvdata vgdataNotes
Use all remaining free extents in the VG.
List logical volumes
Preferred compact overview of logical volumes and attributes.
bashANYlvmlvsinventory
bash
sudo lvsNotes
Preferred compact overview of logical volumes and attributes.
Display logical volume details
Verbose LV information including path and size.
bashANYlvmlvdisplayinventory
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sudo lvdisplay /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Verbose LV information including path and size.
bash
sudo mkfs.ext4 /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Format a new logical volume for use.
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sudo mount /dev/vgdata/lvdata /mnt/dataNotes
Mount an LV like any other block device.
LVM Growth and Snapshots
Extend, reduce, snapshot, and move LVM storage.
bash
sudo vgextend vgdata /dev/sdc1Notes
Increase free capacity in a volume group.
bash
sudo lvextend -L +50G /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Grow the logical volume size.
Extend an LV and filesystem together
Grow both the LV and the contained filesystem when supported.
bashANYlvmlvextendfilesystem
bash
sudo lvextend -r -L +50G /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Grow both the LV and the contained filesystem when supported.
Grow an ext filesystem after LV extension
Expand an ext filesystem to fill the larger LV.
bashANYresize2fsext4grow
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sudo resize2fs /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Expand an ext filesystem to fill the larger LV.
bash
sudo xfs_growfs /mnt/dataNotes
Expand an XFS filesystem using the mounted path.
Reduce an LV size
Dangerous if done without shrinking the filesystem first.
bashANYlvmlvreduceshrink
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sudo lvreduce -L 50G /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Dangerous if done without shrinking the filesystem first.
Shrink an ext filesystem before LV reduction
For ext filesystems, shrink the filesystem before shrinking the LV.
bashANYresize2fsext4shrink
bash
sudo resize2fs /dev/vgdata/lvdata 45GNotes
For ext filesystems, shrink the filesystem before shrinking the LV.
Create an LVM snapshot
Create a snapshot LV for backup or rollback workflows.
bashANYlvmsnapshotlvcreate
bash
sudo lvcreate -L 10G -s -n lvdata_snap /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Create a snapshot LV for backup or rollback workflows.
bash
sudo lvremove /dev/vgdata/lvdata_snapNotes
Delete an unneeded LVM snapshot.
bash
sudo pvmove /dev/sdb1Notes
Relocate data to other PVs before removing a disk.
bash
sudo vgreduce vgdata /dev/sdb1Notes
Detach an empty or evacuated PV from a VG.
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sudo lvremove /dev/vgdata/lvdataNotes
Remove an LV and return space to the VG.
RAID and Encryption
Software RAID and common encrypted volume workflows.
bash
sudo mdadm --create /dev/md0 --level=1 --raid-devices=2 /dev/sdb1 /dev/sdc1Notes
Create a mirrored software RAID device.
bash
sudo mdadm --create /dev/md0 --level=5 --raid-devices=3 /dev/sdb1 /dev/sdc1 /dev/sdd1Notes
Create a RAID5 array with striping and parity.
bash
cat /proc/mdstatNotes
Quick view of RAID sync, rebuild, and degraded state.
bash
sudo mdadm --detail /dev/md0Notes
Inspect RAID level, members, and rebuild progress.
Examine RAID metadata on members
Inspect md superblock metadata directly on a member device.
bashANYmdadmexamineraid
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sudo mdadm --examine /dev/sdb1Notes
Inspect md superblock metadata directly on a member device.
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sudo mdadm --stop /dev/md0Notes
Stop a software RAID device before disassembly or recovery work.
Assemble an existing array
Discover and assemble arrays based on metadata or config.
bashANYmdadmassembleraid
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sudo mdadm --assemble --scanNotes
Discover and assemble arrays based on metadata or config.
Generate mdadm.conf array entries
Persist discovered arrays into mdadm configuration.
bashANYmdadmmdadm.confraid
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sudo mdadm --detail --scan | sudo tee -a /etc/mdadm/mdadm.confNotes
Persist discovered arrays into mdadm configuration.
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sudo cryptsetup luksFormat /dev/sdb1Notes
Create a LUKS-encrypted block device.
bash
sudo cryptsetup open /dev/sdb1 cryptdataNotes
Map an encrypted device to /dev/mapper/cryptdata.
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sudo cryptsetup close cryptdataNotes
Lock and remove the decrypted device mapping.
Show decrypted mapper devices
Verify decrypted mapper devices and mountpoints.
bashANYcryptsetupmapperlsblk
bash
lsblk -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,FSTYPE,MOUNTPOINTSNotes
Verify decrypted mapper devices and mountpoints.
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