From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2011 11:58:50 -0700 From: Duke Normandin To: Fans of the OS Plan 9 from Bell Labs <9fans@9fans.net> In-Reply-To: <07c7e8b84292fe614b56765045ad44a5@kw.quanstro.net> Message-ID: References: <07c7e8b84292fe614b56765045ad44a5@kw.quanstro.net> User-Agent: Alpine 2.00 (DEB 1167 2008-08-23) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: Re: [9fans] Plan9 topology Topicbox-Message-UUID: 98843952-ead6-11e9-9d60-3106f5b1d025 On Fri, 14 Jan 2011, erik quanstrom wrote: > > > i don't use venti, i use the original file server, but this still holds > > > true of any worm system. in the 6 years i've had my worm, i've used > > > 12gb. yet the size of my worm went from 18gb to 1500gb. > > > > So the sub-partition fossil is mounts a WORM drive/device? or can this > > sub-partition be another box on the network? > > i think there are two misunderstandings here > 1. "worm device" these days is a term that denotes how the device > is used, not its actual properties. real worm devices aren't used much > anymore. plasmon (or whatever they're called today) stll sells udo2, though Do you mean what is being referred to below as "worm HDD": http://www.storagesearch.com/view64.html > 2. you only need 1 file server accessing block storage. everyone else > accesses file storage from the file file server. this usage is somewhat > confusing since everything (device drivers, user level services) in plan > 9 is a file server, but /the/ file server generally means primary, worm > storage. you need one of those. other than the file server, only a tiny > amount of disk is helpful for the storage of authentication keys in the > "nvram" partition or dos file. if the pc had actual usuable nvram, or > if you don't mind typing keys on each boot, or you're booting as a > terminal, no local storage is necessary. I think that I'm also getting confused with the use of the term "server". I've just beens listening to Tanenbaum: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx3KuE7UjGA talking about Minix3 and microkernels. Everything is in "user mode" - except the kernel controls. So the Plan 9 "servers" you are referring to, are daemons running in user space, and not a separate physical box, like a machine running *only* "named", and being referred to as a "nameserver"; or another running only "httpd", and being called a "webserver". Am I close? -- Duke