diff --git a/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/pages/clusterStorage.ts b/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/pages/clusterStorage.ts
index 56dfad7271..e218cdde6a 100644
--- a/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/pages/clusterStorage.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/pages/clusterStorage.ts
@@ -48,6 +48,19 @@ class ClusterStorageRow extends TableRow {
   findStorageClassResourceKindText() {
     return cy.findByTestId('resource-kind-text');
   }
+
+  findStorageSizeWarning() {
+    return cy.findByTestId('size-warning-popover').click();
+  }
+
+  findStorageSizeWarningText() {
+    return cy
+      .findByTestId('size-warning-popover-text')
+      .should(
+        'have.text',
+        'To complete the storage size update, you must connect and run a workbench.',
+      );
+  }
 }
 
 class ClusterStorageModal extends Modal {
diff --git a/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/tests/mocked/projects/clusterStorage.cy.ts b/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/tests/mocked/projects/clusterStorage.cy.ts
index a572757d9c..3ca4c6c0c4 100644
--- a/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/tests/mocked/projects/clusterStorage.cy.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/__tests__/cypress/cypress/tests/mocked/projects/clusterStorage.cy.ts
@@ -56,6 +56,28 @@ const initInterceptors = ({ isEmpty = false, storageClassName }: HandlersProps)
               storageClassName,
               status: { phase: 'Pending' },
             }),
+            mockPVCK8sResource({
+              displayName: 'Updated storage with no workbench',
+              storageClassName,
+              storage: '13Gi',
+              status: {
+                phase: 'Bound',
+                accessModes: ['ReadWriteOnce'],
+                capacity: {
+                  storage: '12Gi',
+                },
+                conditions: [
+                  {
+                    type: 'FileSystemResizePending',
+                    status: 'True',
+                    lastProbeTime: null,
+                    lastTransitionTime: '2024-11-15T14:04:04Z',
+                    message:
+                      'Waiting for user to (re-)start a pod to finish file system resize of volume on node.',
+                  },
+                ],
+              },
+            }),
           ],
     ),
   );
@@ -322,6 +344,18 @@ describe('ClusterStorage', () => {
     clusterStorage.findClusterStorageTableHeaderButton('Name').should(be.sortDescending);
   });
 
+  it('should show warning when cluster storage size is updated but no workbench is connected', () => {
+    initInterceptors({});
+    clusterStorage.visit('test-project');
+    const clusterStorageRow = clusterStorage.getClusterStorageRow(
+      'Updated storage with no workbench',
+    );
+    clusterStorageRow.toggleExpandableContent();
+    clusterStorageRow.shouldHaveStorageSize('Max 13Gi');
+    clusterStorageRow.findStorageSizeWarning();
+    clusterStorageRow.findStorageSizeWarning().should('exist');
+  });
+
   it('Edit cluster storage', () => {
     initInterceptors({});
     clusterStorage.visit('test-project');
diff --git a/frontend/src/concepts/dashboard/DashboardPopupIconButton.tsx b/frontend/src/concepts/dashboard/DashboardPopupIconButton.tsx
index 2984a3e08a..eb5b0db48e 100644
--- a/frontend/src/concepts/dashboard/DashboardPopupIconButton.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/concepts/dashboard/DashboardPopupIconButton.tsx
@@ -1,8 +1,9 @@
 import React from 'react';
-import { Button, ButtonProps, Icon } from '@patternfly/react-core';
+import { Button, ButtonProps, Icon, IconComponentProps } from '@patternfly/react-core';
 
 type DashboardPopupIconButtonProps = Omit<ButtonProps, 'variant' | 'isInline'> & {
   icon: React.ReactNode;
+  iconProps?: Omit<IconComponentProps, 'isInline'>;
 };
 
 /**
@@ -10,9 +11,19 @@ type DashboardPopupIconButtonProps = Omit<ButtonProps, 'variant' | 'isInline'> &
  */
 const DashboardPopupIconButton = ({
   icon,
+  iconProps,
   ...props
 }: DashboardPopupIconButtonProps): React.JSX.Element => (
-  <Button icon={<Icon isInline>{icon}</Icon>} variant="plain" isInline {...props} />
+  <Button
+    icon={
+      <Icon isInline {...iconProps}>
+        {icon}
+      </Icon>
+    }
+    variant="plain"
+    isInline
+    {...props}
+  />
 );
 
 export default DashboardPopupIconButton;
diff --git a/frontend/src/k8sTypes.ts b/frontend/src/k8sTypes.ts
index 6e10ad7a29..e6659ca8aa 100644
--- a/frontend/src/k8sTypes.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/k8sTypes.ts
@@ -313,6 +313,7 @@ export type PersistentVolumeClaimKind = K8sResourceCommon & {
     capacity?: {
       storage: string;
     };
+    conditions?: K8sCondition[];
   } & Record<string, unknown>;
 };
 
diff --git a/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/PVSizeField.tsx b/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/PVSizeField.tsx
index 62ca708697..3d4faeb24b 100644
--- a/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/PVSizeField.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/PVSizeField.tsx
@@ -4,6 +4,10 @@ import { ExclamationTriangleIcon } from '@patternfly/react-icons';
 import ValueUnitField from '~/components/ValueUnitField';
 import { MEMORY_UNITS_FOR_SELECTION, UnitOption } from '~/utilities/valueUnits';
 import { PersistentVolumeClaimKind } from '~/k8sTypes';
+import {
+  ConnectedNotebookContext,
+  useRelatedNotebooks,
+} from '~/pages/projects/notebook/useRelatedNotebooks';
 
 type PVSizeFieldProps = {
   fieldID: string;
@@ -13,6 +17,7 @@ type PVSizeFieldProps = {
   currentStatus?: PersistentVolumeClaimKind['status'];
   label?: string;
   options?: UnitOption[];
+  existingPvcName?: string;
 };
 
 const PVSizeField: React.FC<PVSizeFieldProps> = ({
@@ -23,10 +28,18 @@ const PVSizeField: React.FC<PVSizeFieldProps> = ({
   currentStatus,
   label = 'Persistent storage size',
   options = MEMORY_UNITS_FOR_SELECTION,
+  existingPvcName,
 }) => {
   const currentSize = currentStatus?.capacity?.storage;
   const isUnbound = currentStatus && currentStatus.phase !== 'Bound';
 
+  const { notebooks } = useRelatedNotebooks(
+    ConnectedNotebookContext.REMOVABLE_PVC,
+    existingPvcName,
+  );
+
+  const hasExistingNotebookConnections = notebooks.length > 0;
+
   return (
     <FormGroup label={label} fieldId={fieldID} data-testid={fieldID}>
       <ValueUnitField
@@ -60,8 +73,9 @@ const PVSizeField: React.FC<PVSizeFieldProps> = ({
                 variant="warning"
                 icon={<ExclamationTriangleIcon />}
               >
-                Storage size can only be increased. If you do so, the workbench will restart and be
-                unavailable for a period of time that is usually proportional to the size change.
+                {!hasExistingNotebookConnections
+                  ? 'Storage size can only be increased. To complete the storage size update, you must connect to and run a workbench.'
+                  : 'Storage size can only be increased. If you do so, the workbench will restart and be unavailable for a period of time that is usually proportional to the size change.'}
               </HelperTextItem>
             )}
           </HelperText>
diff --git a/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/StorageSizeBars.tsx b/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/StorageSizeBars.tsx
index 20cd742981..4dc4946eb4 100644
--- a/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/StorageSizeBars.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/pages/projects/components/StorageSizeBars.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import * as React from 'react';
 import {
   Bullseye,
+  Popover,
   Progress,
   ProgressMeasureLocation,
   Spinner,
@@ -8,12 +9,14 @@ import {
   SplitItem,
   Content,
   Tooltip,
+  Flex,
 } from '@patternfly/react-core';
-import { ExclamationCircleIcon } from '@patternfly/react-icons';
+import { ExclamationCircleIcon, ExclamationTriangleIcon } from '@patternfly/react-icons';
 import { PersistentVolumeClaimKind } from '~/k8sTypes';
-import { getPvcTotalSize } from '~/pages/projects/utils';
+import { getPvcRequestSize, getPvcTotalSize } from '~/pages/projects/utils';
 import { usePVCFreeAmount } from '~/api';
 import { bytesAsRoundedGiB } from '~/utilities/number';
+import DashboardPopupIconButton from '~/concepts/dashboard/DashboardPopupIconButton';
 
 type StorageSizeBarProps = {
   pvc: PersistentVolumeClaimKind;
@@ -22,6 +25,26 @@ type StorageSizeBarProps = {
 const StorageSizeBar: React.FC<StorageSizeBarProps> = ({ pvc }) => {
   const [inUseInBytes, loaded, error] = usePVCFreeAmount(pvc);
   const maxValue = getPvcTotalSize(pvc);
+  const requestedValue = getPvcRequestSize(pvc);
+
+  if (pvc.status?.conditions?.find((c) => c.type === 'FileSystemResizePending')) {
+    return (
+      <Flex>
+        <Content component="small">Max {requestedValue}</Content>
+        <Popover
+          bodyContent="To complete the storage size update, you must connect and run a workbench."
+          data-testid="size-warning-popover-text"
+        >
+          <DashboardPopupIconButton
+            icon={<ExclamationTriangleIcon />}
+            aria-label="Size warning"
+            data-testid="size-warning-popover"
+            iconProps={{ status: 'warning' }}
+          />
+        </Popover>
+      </Flex>
+    );
+  }
 
   if (!error && Number.isNaN(inUseInBytes)) {
     return (
diff --git a/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/CreateNewStorageSection.tsx b/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/CreateNewStorageSection.tsx
index 50b491c25a..9b7ef15617 100644
--- a/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/CreateNewStorageSection.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/CreateNewStorageSection.tsx
@@ -85,6 +85,7 @@ const CreateNewStorageSection = <D extends StorageData>({
         currentStatus={currentStatus}
         size={String(data.size)}
         setSize={(size) => setData('size', size)}
+        existingPvcName={data.existingPvc?.metadata.name}
       />
     </FormSection>
   );
diff --git a/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/utils.ts b/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/utils.ts
index c5c88de8c8..429e1038a9 100644
--- a/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/utils.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/pages/projects/screens/spawner/storage/utils.ts
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ export const useCreateStorageObject = (
       formData?.description || (existingData ? getDescriptionFromK8sResource(existingData) : ''),
     size: formData?.size || (existingData ? existingData.spec.resources.requests.storage : size),
     storageClassName: formData?.storageClassName || existingData?.spec.storageClassName,
+    existingPvc: existingData,
   };
 
   const [data, setData] = useGenericObjectState<StorageData>(createStorageData);
diff --git a/frontend/src/pages/projects/utils.ts b/frontend/src/pages/projects/utils.ts
index b6b175adf5..05fe6108b1 100644
--- a/frontend/src/pages/projects/utils.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/pages/projects/utils.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,9 @@ export const getNotebookStatusPriority = (notebookState: NotebookState): number
 export const getPvcTotalSize = (pvc: PersistentVolumeClaimKind): string =>
   formatMemory(pvc.status?.capacity?.storage || pvc.spec.resources.requests.storage);
 
+export const getPvcRequestSize = (pvc: PersistentVolumeClaimKind): string =>
+  formatMemory(pvc.spec.resources.requests.storage);
+
 export const getCustomNotebookSize = (
   existingNotebook: NotebookKind | undefined,
 ): NotebookSize => ({