In Cloud Block Storage, you work with volumes. Volumes are the detachable block storage devices that expand the storage capacity of your server. You can think of them like USB memory sticks. Like a USB memory stick, volumes may only be attached to one server at a time, and they retain data, even without being attached to a server.

There are two types of volumes:

  • Standard Performance SATA drive storage.

  • High Performance solid state drive (SSD) storage.

Each type is charged by the GB of storage you provision, so create volumes of the size you need. Volumes can be anywhere from 50 GB (SSD) or 75 GB (SATA) to 1 TB, and you can always create larger volumes later.

Create the volume#

Note: Confirm the name and region of the server you will attach the volume to. Volumes can be attached to only servers in the same region.

  1. Log in to the Cloud Control Panel.

  2. Click Storage in the main navigation.

  3. Click Block Storage Volumes in the Storage sub-navigation.

  4. Click the Create Volume button.

  5. Give your volume a name.

  6. Select the region. Volumes can be attached only to servers in the same region.

  7. Select a volume type:

    Volume type

    Description

    Standard

    This is a standard SATA drive for users who need additional storage on their Cloud Server.

    High Performance

    This is an SSD drive, which offers a higher performance option for databases and high performance applications.

    NOTE: Performance gains from SSD are in some cases limited by network speed. We recommend SSD-based Cloud Block Storage volumes be created in our IAD datacenter for best performance.

  8. Select the size of the volume, from 50 GB (SSD) or 75 GB (SATA) to 1024 GB (1 TB).

    Volume maximums:

    1024 GB (1 TB) / volume

    14 volumes / server

    10 TB of SATA and 10 TB of SSD per region (which can be increased via a Support request)

  9. Click the Create Volume button. The larger your volume, the longer it may take to create. When your volume is created, a green Available icon displays under Status on the Volume Details page, and the status bar turns green in the Block Storage Volumes list.

The next step is to attach your volume, as described below.

To detach and delete the volume, see Detach and delete Cloud Block Storage volumes.

View volume details#

The Volume Details screen displays basic information about the volume. Here you can see the Volume’s Status, what server it may be attached to, its size, region, and type. Additionally, if your volume is attached to a Linux server, you can see its path.

The Volume Details screen displays by default once you create the volume.

You can also see a volume’s details by clicking its name in the Block Storage Volumes list (Servers>Block Storage)

Status#

This section displays the status of your volume. Possible statuses are:

  • Building – Volume is still being created.

  • Available – Volume is created, but not attached.

  • In-Use – Volume is attached to a Server.

  • Deleting – Volume is being deleted.

Attached to#

This section displays the attachment status of your volume. Possible statuses are:

  • Unattached: The volume is not attached to a server.

    • Attach Volume...: Click this to display a list of servers you can attach the volume to.

  • Name of Server: If your volume is attached, you can click the server’s name to see the server’s details.

  • path: If your volume is attached to a Linux server, its path (/dev/XXXX) displays here.

    Note: The file path /dev/XXXX is what is known as a device file, or special file. It appears as an ordinary system file, but it serves as an interface for a device driver. It allows the operating system to read and write data with attached devices, such as storage volumes. Your Cloud Block Storage volumes appear as available devices once you have attached them to your cloud server.

  • ID: This is the ID of the volume.

  • Size: The size of the volume.

  • Region: Where the volume is located.

  • Type: The type of volume, either Standard (a SATA drive) or High Performance (an SSD drive).

  • Snapshots: This section displays how many snapshots you have of the volume. There is also a link which allows you to create a snapshot. Snapshots are described later in this product overview.

Attach the volume to a server#

When the volume is created, it exists by itself and cannot have any data written to it. The volume must be attached to a server in the same region before anything else can be done with it. The process for attaching a volume is the same for all servers. After you attach the volume, you must partition, format, and mount it, which we cover on the next page.

If you’d like to know more about the differences between attaching and mounting a volume, read the article attaching versus mounting.

  1. Display the Select a Server window by one of two methods:

    • From the Volume Details screen, click Attach Volume link.

    • From the Block Storage Volumes screen, click a volume’s Manage button (the cog at the left) and select Attach Volume. The Select a Server menu only displays servers in the same region as the Cloud Block Storage Volume.

  2. Click the dot next to a server name to select it.

  3. Click the Attach Volume button.

It may take a few minutes to attach your volume to your server. While the Cloud Block Storage volume is attaching, its status bar will be yellow in the Block Storage Volumes list. When it is done attaching, its status bar will turn green and the name of the server it is attached to displays under the heading Attached to.

Next steps: Prepare your Cloud Block Storage volume