Install your Root Filesystem as ZFS !
I'd like to write another Chinese version for some spare time, but sorry for I'm crasy busy currently.
Here's Robin Guo from ZFS testing team in ERI, I just saw Navada 90
is released 2 days ago.
If you're not ever heard about ZFS, that
might be a good chance to start with it.
And If you have known but you didn't ever install your machine with
ZFS as
Root Filesystem (/), that might be a good start point try to do it!
See ZFS
Boot on OpenSolaris
Navada 90 is just released with the *Great feature* of ZFS
(Install+Boot) as the Root.Filesystem (/), this putback is occurred at May 14, 2008, and
integrated into Navada 90 finally.
As the Testing Lead for the ZFS testing group, I'd like to see more
and more
experience from everybody to use ZFS on their machine and enjoy the
benefit from ZFS.
Here's the new feature ZFS related in Navada 90, it support all kind
of platforms.(Sun4u/Sun4v/x86/amd64)
(1) You can select the install type as ZFS by text install (UFS still
be the default, though). Unfortunately, if you use GUI install, you may miss this great feature
for the GUI install is UFS-only, so far.
If you choose the install type as ZFS, then a menu will appear to ask
you input the pool name, root filesystem name, pool size, and you have choice to
decide if you'd like to set /var as another filesystem separate from /. The configuration is
just meaningful and straight forward, and the installation will launch after all setting is
done.
(2) You can use ZFS Volume (ZVOL) as the dump or swap device now,
the only
difference from before is the dump & swap must be separate
filesystem on ZFS. (Not like UFS before, we could specify a slice to be dump & swap as
the same time on UFS)
(3) You can get almost *all benefit* from ZFS such as snapshot your
Root Filesystem without any space cost while initial created and could rollback to the specific snapshot whenever
you want. You can install your Root Filesystem as mirror configuration in case of
disk corruption. You can set compression on your disk to save the space usage, and you
can get the performance improvement by ZFS from the very beginning.
For example, we once measure the install time on some machine which
reduce the
OS install period from 25min (UFS) to 20min (ZFS). Yes, that could
means amazing
improvement!
(4) You could always LiveUpgrade (LU, the recommended way) migrate
your old OS to Navada 90 or further release, LU implement quite a lot in this
version and will provide the way to upgrade the existence Zones as well, regardless it resides
on UFS or ZFS before.
Surely, it could possible be a risk, for you, to install your Root
Filesystem as ZFS. Since ZFS is still new, and ZFS Root is just released as the 1st
version both support on sparc/x86/amd64, that's your may have your choice.
*Note*, So far, there's some limitation for ZFS Root I could share
with you and to help you decide if you'd like to have a try.
A. ZFS Root could only reside on a single slice, or multiple slices
with mirror configuation, the disk label need to be SMI, it's not possible to create a raidz ZFS
Root pool, so far.
B. The preserve of old existence slice is not support very well on
ZFS Install currently, so if you has very important data slice reside on your single disk, you
may drop me or mail to alias zfs-discuss@opensolris.org to get support.
C. If you'd like to use LiveUpgrade to upgrade your system, it
deserve a try, but if you have Zones already, you may need to check the upgrade_log after LU
finished,to make sure all your Zones also upgrade successful. You could also
drop me or mail to alias zfs-discuss@opensolris.org to get further support about LU.
Yah, I don't want write too long since this message is about to
deliver to *all*. ZFS testing team is currently crazy busy for the project of ZFS (Install+Boot) backport to s10u6 as well. We might has good chance to see a official business
release of above amazing features in s10u6.
Let ZFS Root roll ! I wish you enjoy it, really.
Any question you could access either from below links,
http://opensolaris.org/os/community/zfs/
http://www.opensolaris.org/os/community/zfs/boot/
or contact ZFS community zfs-discuss@opensolris.org
, it's always welcome!
- Cheers
