Indeed.According to wikipedia
"The ext4 filesystem can support volumes with sizes in theory up to 64 zebibyte (ZiB) and single files with sizes up to 16 tebibytes (TiB) with the standard 4 KiB block size, and volumes with sizes up to 1 yobibyte (YiB) with 64 KiB clusters, though a limitation in the extent format makes 1 exbibyte (EiB) the practical limit."
Yep. But:
1. That requires a GPT partition table and the stock images all use MBR.
2. For >16TB you need to be running a 64bit OS.
@OP:
Given how an OS is installed on Pi (by nuking everything on the target device) you'll find it easier in the long run to keep OS and data on separate physical devices.
1. Might be the OP's issue. .The easiest "solution" is probably to boot from another device and use the 4TB drive as an additional "data" drive.
It's generally good practice to keep data and boot drives separate...though; of course, not always practical.
I find the RP installation rather restrictive compared to other Linuxes which allow me to partition the disk however I like. On Intel machines, I frequently used to have multiple OS installed on different partitions with separate data areas. This meant that I could easily upgrade/delete/install a different distro without affecting the data ...Though obviously a backup first is always a good idea.
All of us who've worked in the industry will have anecdotes of severe pain caused by a lack of backups....or avoided by their existence 
I suspect that the reasons why the Pi installation is as it is are historical. ...Only small SD cards were available initially as boot devices; 32 bit OS, simplicity for the target audience etc etc.
Maybe it'll change at some point.
The way things have moved on in terms of storage is incredible really. The first computer that I worked on had EDS60 drives...60MB IIRC...they were luxury. This was a massive upgrade from magnetic tape.
Statistics: Posted by kip_the_elder — Tue Jul 09, 2024 10:46 am