How to Fix "Extend Volume is Not Available" on Windows Server [2024 Guide]

Updated by

Tracy King 

Last updated on April 22, 2024

Windows has a built-in option to extend a volume when you have free or unallocated space available. But if there's no unallocated space, this option grays out, and you can't extend the volume on your Windows server, which can affect your computer's performance. It can also significantly slow down your machine.

If you encounter similar issues with your disk partitions, this article offers some practical solutions to help you enable the volume so that you can extend a partition in Windows with little effort.

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Guides to enable the Extend Volume option for all hard drive partitions.

Why don't I have the "Extend Volume" option in Windows Server?

There can be many reasons why an Extend Volume option might appear grayed out, some of which include:

No adjacent unallocated space

If there's unallocated space on the disk, but not contiguous to it, this is why your Extend Volume option is grayed out.

2. Disk Management does not support FAT32, exFAT, and EXT partitions

If your partition has available space but is not in NTFS or RAW format, you may not be able to choose Extend Volume. That's because Windows Server volumes do not support FAT32, exFAT, or EXT partitions.

Your disk has no unallocated space.

If there is no unallocated space available on the partition you are trying to extend, you might have problems expanding the volume into the free space.

Partitions on an MBR disk are limited to 2 TB.

If your disk space is full and has reached its maximum capacity, you might face issues while trying to extend a volume on a Windows server. (This could be one of the primary reasons for issues with extending volumes on a Windows server.)

Need to extend Windows Server partition? Download a tool

If you have problems expanding the volume to unallocated space, you can switch to a professional and free partition manager called “Partition Master.”

To successfully fix the extended partition error and resize partitions, tools Partition Master is the safest tool. This tool has a user-friendly interface that makes it easier and time-saving for users to operate.

You can download this tool for free and enjoy some stunning features, such as:

• Clone/duplicate disk without worrying about data loss.
• Migrate Windows to a new SSD with just one click.
• Easily merge or resize partitions.
• It has a special resize/allocation feature that lets you effectively expand volumes.

This utility is designed specifically to provide the best disk management on Windows servers. Here are some ways that can help you resolve issues with extending volumes.

Method 1: Addressing the issue of unable to extend server volume when no adjacent unallocated space is available

If there is not enough unallocated space on your hard disk, you will not be able to extend the volume. To easily expand a partition using non-contiguous unallocated space, you can use tools like Partition Master to extend the partition.

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You can use the Partition Master tool to free up space by dragging partitions around flexibly. It will allocate the space correctly.

Step 1: Locate the target partition

Please enter the "Partition Manager" and find the target partition, then choose "Resize/Move".

Step 2: Extend the Target Partition

Please drag the partition to the right or left to add the unallocated space into the current partition, and then click “OK” to confirm.

Additional option: Get space from another drive

If there isn't enough unallocated space, right-click a large partition with enough room and select “Allocate Space.”

Then, in the “Allocate to” section, select the partition you want to extend.

Step 3: Perform the operation to expand the partition

Drag the partition you want to move into the “Unallocated” space, and then click “OK”.

Click the Run Task button, and then click Apply to save all changes.

Method 2: Convert FAT32 to NTFS Without Losing Data

For FAT32, exFAT, or EXT formats, Windows has a specific limitation in place. In these formats, Disk Management doesn't allow you to extend the volume.

“Partition Master” has no such limitation. It lets you convert FAT to NTFS. It offers users two methods to do this:

Utilize Partition Master tool to extend other formatted partitions. Resize or extend partition in Disk Management by converting FAT32 to NTFS format.

You can directly choose Method 1 to extend the partition, or use the partition converter in Method 2.

< strong > First, convert FAT32 to NTFS < /strong >

Step 1: Install and launch the Partition Master tool on your computer.

Step 2. Right-click on a FAT32 partition in the Partition Manager and select Advanced, then Convert to FAT.

Step 3: Click “Proceed” in the dialog box that pops up.

Step 4: Click on the “Apply” button to start the conversion process and wait for it to finish.

Next, extend the partition in Disk Management.

You can skip to Method 3 to learn how to extend a partition with Disk Management in detail.

Method 3: Fix "No Unallocated Space on Drive" Issue

If you don't have unallocated space on your drive, you can free some up manually. Next to the target disk, select the disk you want to free space from. You can choose to delete or shrink the partition, which will create some space for allocation.

You can fix the issue of unallocated space on your device by shrinking a partition and then extending a volume. Here's how:

<Step 1> Type diskmgmt.msc in the search bar to open Disk Management.

Step 2: Right-click on the disk that you want to shrink, and select "Shrink Volume."

Step 3: Here, specify the size of the unallocated space.

It allocates the space correctly.

Step 4: Here, you will select the disk that you want to extend. To increase the size of the target volume, choose "Extend Volume." Add the unallocated space to the volume, and then click "Next" to confirm.

Step 6: Click on “Finish” to complete the process of extending the partition on the Windows Server computer.

Now, you have successfully fixed the “extend volume greyed out” issue.

Method 4: Work around the "MBR 2TB Partition" Limitation

If you have a problem with partition size or filesystem type – for example, if you have a 2 TB partition formatted as MBR (an older Windows format with a 2 TB limit) – it will only show you the first 2 TB of your file.

We do not recommend Disk Management because it requires deleting partitions to convert the disk. Thus, to keep your partitions and expand their spaces, you can run the Convert MBR to GPT feature in Partition Master. This feature will easily convert your MBR format to GPT without losing your data.

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Video Tutorial: 2 Best Ways to Fix "Volume Cannot Be Extended" Issue on Server (UTF-8)

In this video, we've rounded up two of the most effective methods to easily fix the " unable to extend volume " error on your Windows Server. Here are the details:

In short

When you can't extend a partition in Windows Server, try to figure out the reason for the disk partition structure. After finding the cause, you can use one of the above methods to extend the partition.

AOMEI Partition Assistant is a professional and reliable tool that offers convenient annual and lifetime subscriptions. This third-party software provides users with more than one reliable solution to help them overcome the issue of "unable to extend Windows Server volume."

Furthermore, this tool allows you to extend both system and non-system partitions without rebooting your computer. It also offers great features and functions, such as securely converting your file system from FAT32 to NTFS format. Additionally, it enables you to convert an MBR disk to GPT without deleting the partitions.