---
title: "How to configure an additional disk"
description: "Find out how to add and configure additional storage space on a VPS"
url: https://docs.ovhcloud.com/en/guides/bare-metal-cloud/virtual-private-servers/config-additional-disk
lang: en
lastUpdated: 2025-07-24
---
# How to configure an additional disk
## Objective
With OVHcloud Virtual Private Servers you have the possibility to add a secure storage space as a service option. This storage is separated from the internal storage capacity of the VPS solution which makes it a secure place for your backups or other static data. The additional disk will only be accessible from the server's IP address and data stored on it will remain unaffected, even if the VPS is reinstalled or should suffer data loss.
**This guide explains how to enable the additional disk option and configure the storage space for use with the VPS.**
## Requirements
- A [VPS](https://www.ovhcloud.com/en-gb/vps/) in your OVHcloud account
- Administrative access via SSH or RDP to your VPS
***
### OVHcloud Control Panel Access
- **Direct link:** VPS management
- **Navigation path:** Bare Metal Cloud > Virtual private servers > Select your VPS
***
:::warning
This feature is currently unavailable for Virtual Private Servers in [Local Zones](https://www.ovhcloud.com/en-gb/lp/vps-localzone/).
:::
## Instructions
### Subscribing to the additional disk option
After selecting your VPS, click on the `Additional disk
` tab in the horizontal menu. Click on `Order an additional disk
` and choose a disk size from the selection that appears.
Take note of the pricing information, then click on `Order
`. You will be guided through the order process and receive a confirmation email as soon as the disk is installed.
### Mounting the new storage space
:::warning
OVHcloud provides services for which you are responsible with regard to their configuration and management. It is therefore your responsibility to ensure that they function correctly.
This guide is designed to assist you in common tasks as much as possible. Nevertheless, we recommend contacting a [specialist service provider](https://partner.ovhcloud.com/en-gb/directory/) or reaching out to [our community of users](https://community.ovhcloud.com/community/en) if you experience any issues.
:::
#### On a Linux VPS
If a GNU/Linux distribution is installed on your VPS, establish an SSH connection to your server from the command line terminal or by using a SSH client application.
The examples below presume you are logged in as a user with elevated permissions.
You can use the following command to verify the name of the new device:
```bash
$ lsblk
sda 8:0 0 80G 0 disk
├─sda1 8:1 0 79.9G 0 part /
├─sda14 8:14 0 4M 0 part
└─sda15 8:15 0 106M 0 part /boot/efi
sdb 8:16 0 50G 0 disk
```
In this example, the additional disk is named `sdb`.
Execute `fdisk` to create a partition on the disk; when prompted, enter `n` for a new partition and accept the subsequent defaults by pressing Enter. Finally, use the `w` command to write the changes to the disk.
```bash
$ sudo fdisk /dev/sdb
Welcome to fdisk (util-linux 2.34).
Changes will remain in memory only, until you decide to write them.
Be careful before using the write command.
```
```bash
Command (m for help): n
Partition type
p primary (0 primary, 0 extended, 4 free)
e extended (container for logical partitions)
Select (default p):
```
```bash
Partition number (1-4, default 1):
First sector (2048-104857599, default 2048):
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.
```
```bash
Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered.
Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.
```
Now that the partition `sdb1` is created, you can format it with ext4:
```bash
$ sudo mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdb1
Creating filesystem with 13106944 4k blocks and 3276800 inodes
Filesystem UUID: a667d351-cf36-49f2-94b4-daf03d7a86a6
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
```
The final step is to mount the disk:
```bash
$ sudo mkdir /mnt/disk
$ sudo mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt/disk
```
You can see in the last line that the additional disk is now mounted at `/mnt/disk`:
```bash
$ df -h
Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on
udev 1.9G 0 1.9G 0% /dev
tmpfs 385M 1.1M 384M 1% /run
/dev/sda1 78G 2.4G 75G 4% /
tmpfs 1.9G 0 1.9G 0% /dev/shm
tmpfs 5.0M 0 5.0M 0% /run/lock
tmpfs 1.9G 0 1.9G 0% /sys/fs/cgroup
/dev/sda15 105M 3.9M 101M 4% /boot/efi
/dev/loop1 68M 68M 0 100% /snap/lxd/18150
/dev/loop3 32M 32M 0 100% /snap/snapd/10707
/dev/loop4 56M 56M 0 100% /snap/core18/1944
/dev/loop5 70M 70M 0 100% /snap/lxd/19188
tmpfs 385M 0 385M 0% /run/user/0
/dev/loop6 56M 56M 0 100% /snap/core18/1988
/dev/loop2 32M 32M 0 100% /snap/snapd/11036
tmpfs 385M 0 385M 0% /run/user/1000
/dev/sdb1 49G 53M 47G 1% /mnt/disk
```
:::info
This previous step is not persistent because the disk will be detached if the VPS is restarted. In order to automate the mounting process, the `fstab` file needs to be edited.
:::
First, retrieve the UUID (block ID) of the device:
```bash
$ sudo blkid
/dev/sda1: LABEL="cloudimg-rootfs" UUID="e616a2cd-3c02-4c79-9823-9b1bb5c13b26" TYPE="ext4" PARTUUID="a44089a3-f407-41e6-b7a5-1ed7672cef20"
/dev/sda15: LABEL_FATBOOT="UEFI" LABEL="UEFI" UUID="4411-1580" TYPE="vfat" PARTUUID="e1746ac7-80c1-4859-9b4d-fa6ce11b3ae9"
/dev/loop1: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop2: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop3: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop4: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop5: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop6: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/sda14: PARTUUID="7d19a2c9-75df-443e-8301-0bb85931df7d"
/dev/sdb1: UUID="87571b68-30e1-498b-a64c-49ec5cd4f31c" TYPE="ext4" PARTUUID="c965cbdf-01"
```
Open `/etc/fstab` with a text editor:
```bash
$ sudo nano /etc/fstab
```
Add the line below to the file and replace the UUID with your own:
```console
UUID=87571b68-30e1-498b-a64c-49ec5cd4f31c /mnt/disk ext4 nofail 0 0
```
Save and exit the editor. The disk should be automatically mounted after every reboot from now on.
#### On a Windows VPS
If a Windows OS is installed on your VPS, establish a remote desktop (RDP) connection to your server.
Once logged in, right-click on the `Start Menu
` button and open `Disk Management
`.
The new disk will be displayed as an unknown volume with unallocated space.
If the disk is marked as offline here, it needs to be initialised first. You can use the [Windows GUI](#initDiskManagement) or the [DISKPART utility](#initDiskpart) to achieve this. Otherwise, proceed with [formatting the disk in Disk Management](#formatDiskManagement).
##### **Initialising the disk in Disk Management**
[](#)
Right-click on the disk and select `Online
`.
Then right-click on the disk again and this time select `Initialise Disk
`.
Select `MBR
` in the new window and click `OK
`.
##### **Initialising the disk with DISKPART**
[](#)
Right-click on the `Start Menu
` button and open `Run
`.
Type `cmd`
and click `OK
` to open the command line application.
At the command prompt, open DISKPART:
```console
C:\> diskpart
```
Use the following series of DISKPART commands to set the disk to online:
```console
DISKPART> san
SAN Policy : Offline Shared
```
```console
DISKPART> san policy = OnlineAll
DiskPart successfully changed the SAN policy for the current operating system.
- Implementation of the strategy on the extra disk:
[Code] DISKPART> list disk
Disk ### Status Size Free Dyn Gpt
-------- ------------- ------- ------- --- ---
Disk 0 Online 200 GB 0 B
* Disk 1 Offline 10 GB 1024 KB
```
```console
DISKPART> select disk 1
Disk 1 is now the selected disk.
```
```console
DISKPART> attributes disk clear readonly
Disk attributes cleared successfully.
```
```console
DISKPART> attributes disk
Current Read-only State : No
Read-only : No
Boot Disk : No
Pagefile Disk : No
Hibernation File Disk : No
Crashdump Disk : No
Clustered Disk : No
```
```console
DISKPART> online disk
DiskPart successfully onlined the selected disk.
```
##### **Formatting the disk**
[](#)
In `Disk Management
`, right-click on the new disk and select `New Simple Volume...
`.
In the wizard, click `Next
` to specify the volume size. It should be set to maximum by default. Click `Next
` to continue.
Leave the new drive letter at default or select a different one, then click `Next
`.
Label the volume (optional) and confirm the formatting options by clicking `Next
`.
In the last window, click `Finish
` to format the disk. It will be available as a drive in File Explorer after the operation.
### How to cancel the additional disk option
In the `Home
` tab, in the **Your configuration**
section, click `...
` next to the `Additional disks`
option, then click `Close
`.
## Go further
Join our [community of users](https://community.ovhcloud.com/).