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Do partitions needed to be unmounted when resizing a partition?

I want to know if it is possible to resize an existing root partition without using live cd. The server is running on centos and I prefer not to use lvm and mounting of partitions. Just resizing the existing partition. Below are the partitions:

[root@61540 ~]# fdisk -l
Disk /dev/sda: 2000.3 GB, 2000398934016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 243201 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sda1   *           1          13      104391   83  Linux
/dev/sda2              14        1058     8393962+  82  Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sda3            1059        7457    51399967+  83  Linux

[root@61540 ~]# df -h
Filesystem            Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda3              48G   12G   34G  26% /
/dev/sda1              99M   12M   82M  13% /boot
tmpfs                 7.9G     0  7.9G   0% /dev/shm

Edit: Below are the filesystems

[root@61540 ~]# mount
/dev/sda3 on / type ext3 (rw,usrquota,grpquota)
/dev/sda1 on /boot type ext3 (rw)

In my case I want to add the unallocated space of my 2TB disk to sda3 partition. Are there any way to resize the partition aside from using a live cd? because I have no direct access to the server. I also encounter parted but I can't unmount the partition because some OS files is stored there. What are my other options?

Edit: I just recently came upon this article, and I want to confirm if deleting a partition using fdisk will not delete the data on the partition.

I also came upon this article that states it is must to have live cd or rescue system to resize the root partition.

Is it safe for me to follow the instructions from the first article that I refer?

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Pelang
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  • What type of file system are you using on the root partition? – EEAA Nov 22 '12 at 06:43
  • its ext3. i added it on question description also. thanks @EEAA – Pelang Nov 22 '12 at 06:56
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    If you want to experiment, I **strongly** recommend you build a virtual machine with a basic setup, and similar partitioning to your existing disk. Do not try it on production, until you have the procedure down perfectly in a VM. Also, **make a BACKUP**. – Zoredache Nov 22 '12 at 08:37
  • Are you also the Jan Mark who is the author of this question: http://serverfault.com/questions/450085/do-partitions-needed-to-be-unmounted-when-resizing-a-partition/ ? – MadHatter Nov 22 '12 at 08:53
  • -@MadHatter I read about an [online positive resizing article here](http://raftaman.net/?p=228). Is this is an example of the online resizing you mention in the other question?. Resizing without any live cd. – Pelang Nov 22 '12 at 09:15

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I think that the best way you can make profit from your 2 TB is not by extending the root partition but by creating other partitions and mounting them under /home, /var, /opt or whatever mount point depending on what you are going use that space for.

Here is a guide about linux partitioning for further information : http://www.linuxsa.org.au/tips/disk-partitioning.html

m0ntassar
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