Hi Matt,
Thanks for answering my questions. Now if you'll indulge me, I have
one more for you(or anyone else that may be able to answer this):
Regarding the scenario of starting with a single glusterfs node and
then adding a second node later on: If I do something like AFR, how
does the system know which way to sync? How can I be sure I will end
with my data mirrored and not deleted?
So far, glusterfs sounds like the way to go..
thanks,
Jon
On Feb 4, 2008, at 5:31 PM, Matt Paine wrote:
Hi Jon
I'm thinking about implementing gluster as a possible way of home
directory server redundancy(using the afr translator), but I have
a few questions that I can't seem to find the answer to:
-Does installing gluster require a total format of the "bricks" or
data volumes involved? Can I just install it over the current
system and keep data intact? From what I read it just works over
the current filesystem (ext3, xfs, etc)?
No. A gluster "brick" is simply a directory that is exported as a
filesystem (very similar to NFS). The underlying filesystem can be
whatever you want (as long as its readable from the kernel).
-We currently have a single node w/fibre channel raid (partitioned
into 7 luns for different user groups) for our home directories.
All exported using NFS. We are getting in a new server and raid
unit, which will become the primary server once it is setup. Can
I setup the new server and raid as a single gluster node, get the
data copied over (via rsync or something similar), move clients
over to the new machine, then resetup the old server/raid combo
and add it into the gluster system? Or is there a better way to
do this?
Sounds like a perfectly fine way to do it.
-Concerning NFS and tied into the above question: we use it for
it's compatibility with Mac, Linux and Solaris workstations and
has worked fairly well. We'd like to stick with it. Would that
require running a fuse/gluster client on one of the above nodes
and re-exporting it as NFS? That is the way I seem to understand
from my searches on the mailing lists. Or can you directly
export a gluster brick via nfs? And if running the fuse/gluster
client on one of the server nodes w/ exported NFS is necessary, is
this a safe way to do things?
There were problems a while ago about exporting glusterfs volumes as
NFS exports, but I believe these problems have now been sorted out
(if you use the gluster patched fuse client). I am unable to tell
you if Mac and Solaris works with glusterfs exports, but all I can
sugest there is to download the source and give it a crack :) Or
someone else might be able to jump in with a better answer.
Good luck :)
Matt.
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Jonathan Fine
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Astronomy and Astrophysics
Eberly College of Science
Pennsylvania State University
