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Import a preexisting Azure Disk volume
If you already have an Azure Disk volume to use with
GKE on Azure, you can create a PersistentVolume (PV) object and
reserve it for a specific PersistentVolumeClaim (PVC).
This page explains how to create a PV by using an existing volume
populated with data, and how to use the PV in a Pod.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Hard to understand","hardToUnderstand","thumb-down"],["Incorrect information or sample code","incorrectInformationOrSampleCode","thumb-down"],["Missing the information/samples I need","missingTheInformationSamplesINeed","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-25 UTC."],[],[],null,["# Import a preexisting Azure Disk volume\n======================================\n\nIf you already have an Azure Disk volume to use with\nGKE on Azure, you can create a PersistentVolume (PV) object and\nreserve it for a specific PersistentVolumeClaim (PVC).\n\nThis page explains how to create a PV by using an existing volume\npopulated with data, and how to use the PV in a Pod.\n\nBefore you begin\n----------------\n\n- [Connect to your cluster](/kubernetes-engine/multi-cloud/docs/azure/how-to/connect-and-authenticate-to-your-cluster)\n\nCreate a PersistentVolume for a pre-existing volume\n---------------------------------------------------\n\nYou can import an existing volume by specifying a new PV.\n\n1. Copy the following YAML into a file named `existing-volume.yaml`.:\n\n apiVersion: v1\n kind: PersistentVolume\n metadata:\n name: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eVOLUME_NAME\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n annotations:\n pv.kubernetes.io/provisioned-by: disk.csi.azure.com\n spec:\n capacity:\n storage: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eVOLUME_CAPACITY\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n accessModes:\n - ReadWriteOnce\n persistentVolumeReclaimPolicy: Retain\n storageClassName: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eSTORAGE_CLASS_NAME\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n claimRef:\n name: my-pvc\n namespace: default\n csi:\n driver: disk.csi.azure.com\n volumeHandle: /subscriptions/\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eSUBSCRIPTION_ID\u003c/var\u003e/resourcegroups/\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eRESOURCE_GROUP_NAME\u003c/var\u003e/providers/microsoft.compute/disks/\u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDISK_NAME\u003c/var\u003e\n fsType: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eFILE_SYSTEM_TYPE\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n\n Replace the following:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eVOLUME_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: a name for the volume\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eVOLUME_CAPACITY\u003c/var\u003e: size of the volume. For example, `30Gi`. For more information on specifying volume capacity in Kubernetes, see the [Meaning of memory](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/configuration/manage-compute-resources-container/#meaning-of-memory).\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eSTORAGE_CLASS_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the name of the StorageClass that\n provisions the volume.\n For example, you can use the default `standard-rwo`.\n\n | **Note:** A StorageClass is required to reference other attributes like `allowVolumeExpansion`, even if a volume is not dynamically provisioned.\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eSUBSCRIPTION_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the Azure subscription ID that contains the\n volume.\n\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eRESOURCE_GROUP_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the Azure resource group that contains\n the volume.\n\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDISK_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the Azure Disk name of the volume.\n\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eFS_TYPE\u003c/var\u003e: the\n [file system type](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/azuredisk-csi-driver/blob/master/docs/driver-parameters.md#dynamic-provisioning)\n of the volume. For example, `ext4`.\n\n2. Apply the YAML to your cluster\n\n kubectl apply -f existing-volume.yaml\n\n3. Confirm the creation of your PV\n\n kubectl describe pv \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eVOLUME_NAME\u003c/var\u003e\n\n The output of this command contains the status of the PV.\n\nUse the volume with a PersistentVolumeClaim and Pod\n---------------------------------------------------\n\nAfter you have imported your volume, you can create a PVC and a Pod that\nmounts the PVC.\n\n1. The following YAML creates a PVC and attaches it to a Pod running the Nginx web\n server. Copy it into a file named `nginx.yaml`:\n\n apiVersion: v1\n kind: PersistentVolumeClaim\n metadata:\n name: my-pvc\n spec:\n storageClassName: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eSTORAGE_CLASS_NAME\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n volumeName: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eVOLUME_NAME\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n accessModes:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eACCESS_MODE\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n resources:\n requests:\n storage: \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"devsite-syntax-l devsite-syntax-l-Scalar devsite-syntax-l-Scalar-Plain\"\u003eVOLUME_CAPACITY\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/var\u003e\n ---\n\n apiVersion: v1\n kind: Pod\n metadata:\n name: web-server\n spec:\n containers:\n - name: web-server\n image: nginx\n volumeMounts:\n - mountPath: /var/lib/www/html\n name: data\n volumes:\n - name: data\n persistentVolumeClaim:\n claimName: my-pvc\n\n Replace the following:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eSTORAGE_CLASS\u003c/var\u003e: the name of the StorageClass from the PersistentVolume you created previously. For example, `standard-rwo`.\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eACCESS_MODE\u003c/var\u003e: the access mode of the volume. For Azure Disk, use `ReadWriteOnce`. For Azure File, use `ReadWriteMany`.\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eVOLUME_CAPACITY\u003c/var\u003e: size of the volume. For example, `30Gi`.\n2. Apply the YAML to your cluster\n\n kubectl apply -f nginx.yaml\n\n3. Check the status of your Nginx instance with `kubectl describe`. The output\n should have a `STATUS` of `Running`.\n\n kubectl describe pod web-server\n\nWhat's next\n-----------\n\n- Use additional [storage drivers](/kubernetes-engine/multi-cloud/docs/azure/how-to/storage-drivers) with GKE on Azure.\n- Read the documentation for the [Azure Disk CSI driver](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/azuredisk-csi-driver/tree/v1.8.0/docs)."]]