Storage Space- Move to New PC-Doesn't Work

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billsacto

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Hello, and thanks for helping me out.

Here's what's going on:

I run a 2 drive Mirrored Storage Space. and it was working fine. However, last week, "C" drive started getting flakey so I replaced it. I had an image of the "C" drive that I reinstalled on the new "C" drive. The PC is back up and running- no problem. So easy!

However, when I plugged in my two Storage Space drives, Windows didn't recogize them as a Storage Space storage pool. Strange! Windows should have recoginized the drives as an existing Storage Space, but it didn't.

Below- I've included three screen shots from the pc with the new "C" drive and Storage Space NOT working and also three screen shots from the pc with the old "C" drive and Storage Space is working perfectly.

Also, I tried plugging in my two Storage Space drives to my laptop and they are recognized as a Storage Space storage pool and work perfectly.

Really appreciate any suggestions!

Thank you!

Bill


Storage Space- Not Working

Three Screen Shots with new "C" Drive:

1. Device Manager- Storage Space not working

1737829236586.webp

2. Disk Management- Storage Space not working

1737829140496.webp


3. Storage Pool- not working

1737829791071.webp


Screen Shots with original "C" Drive- Storage Space Working:
Storage Space- Working

Three Screen Shots with original (working) "C" Drive:

1. Device Manager- Storage Space working



2. Disk Management- Storage Space working

Disk Management:




3. Storage Pool- working

 

Attachments

  • 1737829269494.webp
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Solution
Thanks for the detailed post and images! Here's an analysis:

Observations from Your Screenshots:​

  1. Disk Management Issues:
    • The system with the new "C" drive does not seem to recognize the drives as part of an existing storage pool.
    • This is a classic sign that the pool metadata isn't being read or imported correctly from the drives.
  2. Device Manager:
    • Your drives are detected in the Device Manager, which shows that Windows can see the physical hardware.
    • This suggests the problem is likely with the configuration or pool metadata in the storage space, as opposed to the drives themselves.
  3. Storage Pool Window:
    • Windows is unable to display or connect to the storage pool on...
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Thanks for the detailed post and images! Here's an analysis:

Observations from Your Screenshots:​

  1. Disk Management Issues:
    • The system with the new "C" drive does not seem to recognize the drives as part of an existing storage pool.
    • This is a classic sign that the pool metadata isn't being read or imported correctly from the drives.
  2. Device Manager:
    • Your drives are detected in the Device Manager, which shows that Windows can see the physical hardware.
    • This suggests the problem is likely with the configuration or pool metadata in the storage space, as opposed to the drives themselves.
  3. Storage Pool Window:
    • Windows is unable to display or connect to the storage pool on the new "C" drive setup, but it does work on the original setup. Additionally, the drives work when connected to your laptop.
    • This confirms that the issue lies in the software configuration on the new install.
  4. Old C Drive and Laptop Behavior:
    • The fact that the Pool works perfectly on the old "C" drive installation and on your laptop shows that the metadata on the drives is intact and functional. The issue seems to revolve around how the reinstalled Windows handles Storage Spaces.

Troubleshooting Suggestions:​

Here are steps you can take to address the issue:

1. Ensure Pool Metadata Integrity​

When moving drives, the pool metadata sometimes doesn't automatically get imported. You can attempt to force the pool to attach using PowerShell:
Code: 
powershell
   Get-StoragePool
Check if the pool is listed. If it isn't, try:
Code: 
powershell
   Get-PhysicalDisk | Where-Object MediaType -eq "Unspecified"
   Reset-PhysicalDisk -FriendlyName "Your-Disk-Name"
Then attempt attaching it manually:
Code: 
powershell
   Import-StoragePool -FriendlyName "Your-Storage-Pool-Name"
Once imported, check:
Code: 
powershell
   Get-VirtualDisk
   Repair-VirtualDisk -FriendlyName "Your-Virtual-Disk"

2. Upgrade Drivers​

Check if all necessary drivers for your new "C" drive are fully installed and updated. Sometimes, missing chipset or USB/drive-related drivers can interfere with the detection of storage pools.

3. Backup Data​

If you have critical data in the Storage Pool, back it up on another system (like your laptop, where it seems to work). This creates a safety net before deeper interventions in the configuration.

4. Delete and Recreate the Pool (As a Last Option)​

If the above doesn't bring success, you might need to recreate the storage pool. Here's how you can safely do this:
  • Backup the data on the pool first.
  • On the new system, go to the Storage Spaces settings, delete the current unrecognized pool, and recreate it cleanly.
  • Copy the backed-up data back into the pool once recreated.

5. Check for Windows Updates​

Ensure that your new "C" drive installation is running all the latest feature updates for Windows. Missing updates, particularly in "Windows Server" features (which underpin Storage Spaces), can cause functional disparities.

Additional Notes:​

The behavior you're experiencing suggests a mismatch or lack of synchronization in how the new "C" drive environment is reading or identifying the pool's metadata. PowerShell commands to manually reset and import should typically restore expected functionality.
Let me know if you're comfortable proceeding with PowerShell, and I can guide you in more detail!
 
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Solution
Did you use a cloning tool to replicate the old “C” drive exactly, or did you perform a fresh install and then restore your data?
 
Last edited:
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Great question, @datawizard0103! Clarifying the installation method is key to pinpointing why your storage space isn't working as expected.

If you've cloned the old "C" drive exactly, you should have an exact replica of your previous system, which includes all installed software and settings. That approach can work well if the new hardware is similar enough to support the old drivers. However, if you performed a fresh install and then restored your data, some system files or configurations might be missing or mismatched with the new hardware.

Which method did you use? Knowing this will help determine whether the issue might be related to driver conflicts, missing boot configurations, or simply the way data was transferred.

Feel free to share more details so we can dive deeper into a solution!
 
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