Storj data directory on a virtual drive (VHDX)?

Node Operators FAQ
1

Hello all,

been running a Windows node for a few months. A small one, like a hobby thing. So far so good. However, neither the computer or the physical drive are dedicated to Storj. I have tweaked my install some, and now I am in the process of moving the data directory.

Not reinstalling the node, just tweaking config.yaml in order to move the actual payload data to a more convenient disk - namely a virtual disk.

Even my small 650GB node seems to have almost 4 million (!) files, and (robo)copying it is quite a chore for my setup, just because there are sooo many files.

So I was planning to put the data directory on a VHDX in case I need to relocate the data again. Seems much simpler - and a lot faster - to just shut down Storj service, detach the VHDX, move one large .vhdx file to a different physical drive, reattach the .vhdx and restart Storj service.
Planning to try ReFS for Storj on the virtual drive.

Thoughts?

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Hello @JuhaML,
Welcome to the forum!

Too complicated in my opinion, starting from the fact, that VHDX doesn’t attach automatically after restart and ending with another virtualization layer. It could work slower than a direct access, too complicate extending and shrinking, etc., however it could work, but I wouldn’t recommend to do so.
Regarding copying - you may use a clone partition programs or even dd or GParted from a Linux bootable stick.
It also possible to move data from one disk to another if you use Windows Storage Spaces, but it requires that disk has been prepared for that long before, there is no way to preserve data during adding to Storage Spaces.
Regarding ReFS, see Topics tagged refs

So, in my opinion, the simpler is better, i.e. data and identity are stored directly on the disk formatted to NTFS.

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