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Introducing NFS Fundamentals for the Solaris OS
Vishal Padwal, August 2008
Network file system (NFS) is a client-server application that lets users view, store, and update files on a remote system as though the files
were on a local system.
Note: The information in this tip pertains to the Solaris 9 or 10 Operating System and NFS version 4 (NFSv4), although occasionally NFSv2 and NFSv3 are discussed.
NFS Environment
An NFS environment consists of two components:
The NFS server, which contains file resources that are shared with other systems
The NFS client, which mounts file resources that are shared over the network and presents the resources as if they were on a local system
NFS Server Files
/etc/dfs/dfstab lists the resources to share at boot time.
/etc/nfs/nfslogd.conf defines the location of the configuration logs that are used for NFS server logging.
/etc/dfs/sharetab lists local resources that are currently being shared by the NFS server.
/etc/rmtab lists the file systems remotely mounted by NFS clients. Do not edit this file.
/etc/nfs/nfslog.conf lists information defining the location of the configuration logs used for NFS server logging.
Format of dfstab File
# cat /etc/dfs/dfstab
# Place share(1M) commands here for automatic execution
# on entering init state 3.
#
# Issue the command 'svcadm enable network/nfs/server' to
# run the NFS daemon processes and the share commands, after adding
# the very first entry to this file.
#
# share [-F fstype] [-o options] [-d "<text>"] <pathname> [resource]
# .e.g,
# share -F nfs -o rw=engineering -d "home dirs" /export/home2
For example, here we have a home directory called /export/home/<dir_name> that's shared in read-only mode:
share -o ro /export/home/<dir_name>
NFS Server Daemons in the Solaris 10 OS
Description of daemons:
mountd handles file system mount requests from remote systems and provides access control. Not used in NFSv4.
nfsmapid is the NFS user and group ID mapping daemon, which is used with NFSv4.
nfsd handles client file system requests and is used with NFSv4.
statd works with the lockd daemon to provide crash recovery and functions for the lock manager.
lockd supports record locking operations on NFS files.
nfslogd provides operational logging for NFSv2 and v3.
With the Solaris 10 OS and NFSv4, you need only two daemons to support NFS: nfsmapid and nfsd.
The mountd and lockd daemons are integrated together, and nfsmapid and
nfsd are supported in NFSv4 with port 2049, which improves support for NFS through a firewall.
If you want to use NFSv2 or v3 with the Solaris 10 OS, all daemons are supported.
Starting and Stopping the NFS Server Service
The svc:/network/nfs/server service starts the NFS server daemons when the system enters run level 3.
To start the NFS server daemon manually, run this command:
# svcadm enable svc:/network/nfs/server
To stop the NFS server daemon manually, run this command:
# svcadm disable svc:/network/nfs/server
Checking NFS Dependencies
Check dependencies using the svcs command:
# svcs | grep nfs
# svcs -l nfs/server
NFS Server Commands
shareall reads and executes statements from /etc/dfs/dfstab.
shares makes a local directory on the NFS server available for mounting.
dfshares, when used without any arguments, displays resources currently being shared.
dfmount displays a list of NFS server directories that are currently mounted.
unshare makes file resources unavailable for mounting.
Configuring the NFS Server for Sharing
Syntax:
# share [-F <FSType>] [-o <option>] [<pathname>]
where:
-F <FSType> specifies the file system type.
-o <option> specifies the options that control access to the shared resource, for example read-only access.
<pathname> specifies the absolute path name of the resource for sharing.
For example, if you want to share the /export/home/<dir_name> directory, make an entry like the following in
the /etc/dfs/dfstab file:
#share -F nfs -o ro /export/home/<dir_name>
In this example, -F specifies an NFS file system, -o ro specifies that access to the share is read-only, and
/export/home/<dir_name> is the absolute path of the share.
Similarly, by using the -o rw option, you can specify that
<pathname> is shared as read/write to all clients, and you can use
-o root=<dir_name> to enable root privileges for the <dir_name> directory.
Making File Resources Unavailable for Mounting
Syntax:
# unshare [-F <FSType>] [<pathname>]
For example:
#unshare -F nfs /export/home/<dir_name>
Mounting a Remote File System
Syntax:
mount [-F <FSType>] [-o <options>] <server>:<pathname> [<mount_point>]
For example:
# mount -F nfs -o ro gladiator:/export/home/<dir_name> /mymountpoint
where:
Gladiator is the name of the remote server.
/export/home/<dir_name> is the remote file resource.
/mymountpoint is the mount point where /export/home/<dir_name> is shared.
Another example:
# mount -o ro Gladiator,Sun,Moon :/Central_data /mymountpoint
In the second example, if the Gladiator system is unavailable, then the request will flow to the second system, which is called Sun, and so on.
Unmounting Remote File Systems From a Client
Syntax:
umount [<mount_point>]
For example:
# umount /mymountpoint
Mounting Remote Resources at Boot Time
To mount a remote file system at boot time, make an entry in /etc/vfstab.
For example, add the following entry in the /etc/dfstab file:
device to mount is Gladiator:/export/home/<dir_name>
device to fsck is -
mount point is /mymountpoint
FS type is nfs
fsck pass is -
mount at boot is yes
mount options is bg (for background)
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