Forum Discussion
ReFS volume appears RAW (version doesn't match expected value) after Windows Update
I solved this by uninstalling KB5009557. The ReFS volume came back working as it should, instead of appearing as RAW.
Update: since even the February 2022 Windows Update bricks ReFS in the same way, and hints from Microsoft are that ReFS 1.x is no longer supported, we copied everything to new disks, upgrading ReFS from 1.2 to 3.4 in the process. Such a (manual) ReFS upgrade should be the solution that everyone needs, allowing to re-enable Windows Update.
I can confirm - this worked for me too. Followed this, adding devices.hotplug and a value of false. to our VM configurations in VMWare:
https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/1012225
17 Windows 2019 servers with ReFS volumes. All now updated through latest windows updates and stable.
MicrosoftThe main issue is there are various versions of REFS
ReFS v1 as used on Server 2012R2 and ReFS v3 used on later OS's
The Updated fix, for Refs on removable drives, only addresses the ReFS v3 case and does not (and never will) address the refsv1 case.
Note that some disks, even on later OS's might be using ReFS v1 if they were originally set up on earlier systems
And so the fix will not help on those disks on those systems
Since its mainly VMWare VM's that are affected, as they consider hotplug disks as removable, suggest using the vmware devices.hotplug solution described earlier
You can check the Refs version with
fsutil fsinfo refsinfo x:
(although cant do this if the drive is currently showing as RAW)
stephc_msft So ReFS version 3.1 is not affected by this and the 2022-02 updates can safely be installed, correct?
- stephc_msftYes, refs v3.1 on WS2016 will be ok after Feb updates. Note that if still using v1.2 refs disk on WS2016 or later, then the v1.2 disks will still be affected, it they are detected as removable/hoypluggable.
stephc_msft I lost two ReFS v1.2 volumes with 4TB of irreplaceable data on each attached to a Win10 Pro machine. These volumes were created when it was allowed and I kept them because there was no indicator of any kind in all these years that this is not a supported configuration. Neither set of drives is removable. None of the KB's mentioned in this thread here seem to exist on Win10 Pro. Can you please advise what can be uninstalled to recover the data?
Any help will be appreciated.
stephc_msft Thanks for the info. If am understanding what you are saying correctly, then my Exchange 2016 Server running on Windows Server 2012 R2 will never be able to patched beyond the 2022-01 security update for Windows Server because both the security patch and the out of band update do not account for the older version of REFS?
My only options are to try the VMware workaround or migrate to a newer OS? Is there a way to upgrade REFS to a version that is supported by the patch? Thanks again for taking the time to post in the thread.
- stephc_msft
Unfortunately the only way to upgrade the ReFS version (if using refsv1 disks on WS2016 or later) is to create new disks or reformat old disks (and confirm refsv3.x) and copy/restore data.
For those still on WS2012R2 (which doesnt support refsv3), then the best (and only) soln if on VMWare is the vmware disable hotplug soln .If WS2012R2 and NOT on VMWare then shouldnt be affected by the issues (except in much rarer
circumstances such as really using removable USB drives etc)
KB5010691: ReFS-formatted removable media may fail to mount or mounts as RAW after installing the January 11, 2022 Windows updates (microsoft.com)
But only briefly touches on the refs version and WS2012R2 aspect
"Is there a way to upgrade REFS to a version that is supported by the patch? "
Any in-place upgrade (starting from Windows Server 2016) will upgrade all attached write-able disks to the latest ReFS Version without formatting or data loss. However, the Exchange Team do not support in-place upgrades of the OS. This is certainly due to the dependencies of .net / PowerShell that would change. Also, IIS services, but the latter often upgrade well.
If you would like to prevent the upgrade set the drive to read-only via PowerShell or diskpart.This can be needed if you are just testing the upgrade and would like to revert. Once upgraded you cannot downgrade. Also, there is no tool (afaik) to execute a manual upgrade without reformatting.
- Even though your post was helpful I have to shake my head at how sad it is how Microsoft treats its customers now. Do you not care about your onprem customers now? Who do you think knows what version of ReFS they were running? Should I worry about what version of NTFS or FAT32 i'm running or maybe Microsoft will say sorry your SOL version 3.2 of NTFS is no longer supported and our update broke it and we aren't going to fix it. So next time I upgrade my OS do I have to reformat every drive I have or worry this will happen again?
This screw-up almost cost me to lose data (almost formatted the drive because I thought it was corrupt) and you should be appologizing rather than pretty. much publically telling everyone sorry your SOL. At least you should have a utility to upgrade your ReFS version (if possible) or maybe at least warn users? This is really inexcusable. The only thing good about it I guess is it's lit a fire under me to get every piece of Microsoft out of our infrastructure that I can. Thank you for the explanation. Indeed the ReFS volume that turns into RAW is 1.2, and the one that keeps working is 3.4. Same machine, both are storage spaces (no VMWare or removable media involved). So what is the recommended solution for the older version?
