LVM Manager

Interactive Bash script for managing LVM (Logical Volume Manager) on Ubuntu Server 24.04 LTS.

lvm-manager.sh provides a guided menu to create new LVM storage, extend existing logical volumes, and inspect the current LVM layout — with confirmations, input validation, and logging suitable for production use.

Features

• Interactive menu-driven workflow
• Automatic detection of empty, unused disks
• Create full LVM stack: partition → PV → VG → LV → filesystem → mount → /etc/fstab
• Extend existing LVs (optionally add a new disk to the VG)
• Automatic filesystem resize (resize2fs for ext4, xfs_growfs for xfs)
• Display LVM and disk information (lsblk, pvs, vgs, lvs, df, mounts)
• Colored terminal output and session logging
• Safety checks to protect the OS/root disk and existing data

Requirements

Item	Details
OS	Ubuntu Server 24.04 LTS
Shell	Bash only
Privileges	root (sudo)

Packages

Install dependencies on Ubuntu 24.04:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y lvm2 parted e2fsprogs xfsprogs util-linux

Command	Package
lsblk, blkid, findmnt	util-linux
parted, partprobe	parted
pvcreate, vgcreate, vgextend, lvcreate, lvextend	lvm2
resize2fs	e2fsprogs
xfs_growfs	xfsprogs
mount, df	util-linux / coreutils

The script checks for missing commands at startup and prints the required package names.

Installation

git clone <repository-url>
cd lvm-setup-script
chmod +x lvm-manager.sh

Usage

sudo ./lvm-manager.sh

Menu

========================================
LVM Manager
========================================

1. Create New LVM
2. Extend Existing LVM
3. Show LVM Information
4. Exit

Workflows

1. Create New LVM

1. Detect and select an empty disk (auto-selected if only one is found)
2. Confirm the operation
3. Create GPT partition table and a single LVM partition
4. Create Physical Volume (PV)
5. Prompt for Volume Group (VG) name
6. Prompt for Logical Volume (LV) name and size (100G, 50G, 100%FREE, etc.)
7. Choose filesystem: ext4 or xfs
8. Prompt for mount point (directory created if missing)
9. Mount the LV and append a UUID entry to /etc/fstab
10. Verify the mount and print a success summary

2. Extend Existing LVM

1. Select an existing Volume Group
2. Select a Logical Volume inside that VG
3. If an empty disk is available, optionally add it to the VG (pvcreate + vgextend)
4. Enter extension size (+50G, +100G, +100%FREE, etc.)
5. Run lvextend and resize the filesystem automatically
6. Print final size summary

3. Show LVM Information

Displays a formatted report of:

• lsblk — block devices
• pvs — physical volumes
• vgs — volume groups (including free space)
• lvs — logical volumes
• df -h — disk usage
• Active mounts and filesystem types
• Root/OS disk and available empty disks

Empty Disk Detection

A disk is offered for use only when all of the following are true:

• TYPE=disk in lsblk
• Not mounted (disk or any child)
• Has no partitions
• Has no filesystem signature (blkid)
• Is not a Physical Volume
• Is not used by any Volume Group
• Is not the root/OS disk

Disks found	Behavior
0	Message: No available disk detected.
1	Automatically selected
2+	Interactive selection menu

Safety

The script is designed to avoid accidental data loss:

• Never offers the root/OS disk as an empty disk
• Skips disks that are mounted, partitioned, or already part of LVM
• Asks for confirmation before destructive operations
• Double confirmation before:
  • mklabel (partition table creation)
  • pvcreate
  • vgcreate
  • lvcreate
  • mkfs (filesystem format)
• Backs up /etc/fstab before appending new entries
• Skips duplicate fstab entries (same mount point or UUID)
• Aborts immediately on command failure (set -Eeuo pipefail)

Warning: Operations on the wrong disk can destroy data. Always verify disk selection in virtualized or cloud environments where device names (/dev/sdb, /dev/nvme1n1, etc.) may differ between reboots.

Logging

All actions are logged to:

/var/log/lvm-manager.log

Each executed command is printed to the terminal and recorded in the log file.

Example: Create LVM on a New Disk

Assume /dev/sdb is a blank 500 GB data disk:

sudo ./lvm-manager.sh
# Select: 1. Create New LVM
# Confirm disk: /dev/sdb
# VG name: data-vg
# LV name: lv-storage
# LV size: 100%FREE
# Filesystem: ext4
# Mount point: /data

Expected summary:

========================================
Operation Completed Successfully
========================================

VG         : data-vg
LV         : lv-storage
Filesystem : ext4
Mount      : /data
Size       : 500G
========================================

Example: Extend an Existing LV

sudo ./lvm-manager.sh
# Select: 2. Extend Existing LVM
# Select VG: data-vg
# Select LV: lv-storage
# Use new disk? yes  (if /dev/sdc is available)
# Extension size: +100%FREE

The script extends the LV and grows the filesystem to use the new space.

Troubleshooting

Issue	Suggestion
No available disk detected	Attach a new disk or ensure the target disk has no partitions, filesystem, or LVM signatures
This script must be run as root	Run with sudo ./lvm-manager.sh
Missing command errors	Install packages listed in Requirements
Partition not found after partprobe	Wait a few seconds and retry; check dmesg for kernel errors
xfs_growfs requires a mount point	Ensure the LV is mounted before extending an XFS volume
Operation aborted mid-way	Check /var/log/lvm-manager.log and run lsblk, pvs, vgs, lvs to assess partial state

Script Structure

The script is organized into reusable functions:

check_root          print_header        print_menu
detect_empty_disks  choose_disk         create_partition
create_pv           create_vg           create_lv
format_fs           mount_lv            update_fstab
extend_vg           extend_lv           resize_filesystem
show_info           confirm_action      log
cleanup

License

MIT License.

Use at your own risk on production systems — test in a non-production environment first.