diff --git a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/server/datanode/DataNode.java b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/server/datanode/DataNode.java
index 99c0a876d3..7c9e9cbaf6 100644
--- a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/server/datanode/DataNode.java
+++ b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/server/datanode/DataNode.java
@@ -294,7 +294,8 @@ public class DataNode extends ReconfigurableBase
 
   static final int CURRENT_BLOCK_FORMAT_VERSION = 1;
   public static final int MAX_VOLUME_FAILURE_TOLERATED_LIMIT = -1;
-  public static final String MAX_VOLUME_FAILURES_TOLERATED_MSG = "should be greater than -1";
+  public static final String MAX_VOLUME_FAILURES_TOLERATED_MSG =
+      "should be greater than or equal to -1";
 
   /** A list of property that are reconfigurable at runtime. */
   private static final List<String> RECONFIGURABLE_PROPERTIES =
@@ -1405,7 +1406,7 @@ void startDataNode(List<StorageLocation> dataDirectories,
         || volFailuresTolerated >= volsConfigured) {
       throw new DiskErrorException("Invalid value configured for "
           + "dfs.datanode.failed.volumes.tolerated - " + volFailuresTolerated
-          + ". Value configured is either greater than -1 or >= "
+          + ". Value configured is either less than -1 or >= "
           + "to the number of configured volumes (" + volsConfigured + ").");
     }
 
diff --git a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/resources/hdfs-default.xml b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/resources/hdfs-default.xml
index 7c72af0a18..c187a7d0ce 100644
--- a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/resources/hdfs-default.xml
+++ b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/main/resources/hdfs-default.xml
@@ -1281,8 +1281,8 @@
   <description>The number of volumes that are allowed to
   fail before a datanode stops offering service. By default
   any volume failure will cause a datanode to shutdown.
-  The range of the value is -1 now, -1 represents the minimum
-  of volume valids is 1.
+  The value should be greater than or equal to -1 , -1 represents minimum
+  1 valid volume.
   </description>
 </property>