3.4.0 Matrix Server Administration Guide

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Configure Dynamic Volumes
Matrix Server includes a Volume Manager that you can use to create,
extend, recreate, or delete dynamic volumes. Dynamic volumes allow
large filesystems to span multiple disks, LUNs, or storage arrays.
Overview
Basic and Dynamic Volumes
Volumes are used to store PSFS filesystems. There are two types of
volumes: dynamic and basic.
Dynamic volumes are created by the Volume Manager. They can include
one or more disk partitions that have been imported into the matrix.
These entities are called subdevices. A single PSFS filesystem can be placed
on each dynamic volume. Additional subdevices can be added to a
dynamic volume as necessary, and the filesystem on the volume can also
be extended.
A basic volume consists of a single disk partition that has been imported
into the matrix. A PSFS filesystem is then created directly on the disk.
Basic volumes can be converted to dynamic volumes.
Types of Dynamic Volumes
Matrix Server supports two types of dynamic volumes: striped and
concatenated. The volume type determines how data is written to the
volume.