1 <!DOCTYPE article PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook V3.1//EN">
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8 <title>HOWTO-template for big HOWTOs</title>
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11 <firstname>Stein</firstname>
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12 <surname>Gjoen</surname>
\r
15 <email>sgjoen@nyx.net</email>
\r
21 <firstname>Gregory</firstname>
\r
22 <surname>Leblanc</surname>
\r
25 <email>gleblanc@cu-portland.edu</email>
\r
31 <firstname>Greg</firstname>
\r
32 <surname>Ferguson</surname>
\r
35 <email>gferg@sgi.com</email>
\r
42 <revnumber>v0.05</revnumber>
\r
43 <date>8 June 2000</date>
\r
44 <authorinitials>gjf</authorinitials>
\r
46 Fixed ids and comments
\r
51 <revnumber>v0.04</revnumber>
\r
52 <date>1 June 2000</date>
\r
53 <authorinitials>gjf</authorinitials>
\r
55 Additional spacing, layout changes, added new sections
\r
62 <primary>template</primary>
\r
66 This is a fully working template for big HOWTOs. The source
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67 contains fully described slots to make a convenient framework for
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68 you to fill in for making your own HOWTO; suggesting some names,
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69 conventions and contents for the chapters.
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72 <para><ulink url="big-howto-template.sgml">SGML source</ulink>
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73 for this document is available and should be consulted while reading.
\r
80 <!-- Section1: intro -->
\r
83 <title>Introduction</title>
\r
86 <primary>disk!introduction</primary>
\r
90 For various reasons this brand new release is codenamed the
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91 <emphasis>release</emphasis> release.
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95 New code names will appear as per industry standard
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96 guidelines to emphasize the state-of-the-art-ness of this
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101 This document was written when I read a feedback asking for a
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102 template to fill in to make new HOWTOs. This template was
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103 initially made by extracting the skeletal structure of the Multi
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104 Disk HOWTO which is a rather large HOWTO. It then went through
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109 Stating the background is a simple way to getting started
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114 First of all we need a bit of legalese. Recent development
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115 shows it is quite important.
\r
118 <!-- Section2: copyright -->
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120 <sect2 id="copyright">
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121 <title>Copyright Information</title>
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124 This document is copyrighted (c) 2000 Stein Gjoen and is
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125 distributed under the terms of the Linux Documentation Project
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126 (LDP) license, stated below. <emphasis>Replace with your name,
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127 or supply a new license, when you use this skeleton for a new
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132 Unless otherwise stated, Linux HOWTO documents are
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133 copyrighted by their respective authors. Linux HOWTO documents may
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134 be reproduced and distributed in whole or in part, in any medium
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135 physical or electronic, as long as this copyright notice is
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136 retained on all copies. Commercial redistribution is allowed and
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137 encouraged; however, the author would like to be notified of any
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138 such distributions.
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142 All translations, derivative works, or aggregate works
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143 incorporating any Linux HOWTO documents must be covered under this
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144 copyright notice. That is, you may not produce a derivative work
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145 from a HOWTO and impose additional restrictions on its
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146 distribution. Exceptions to these rules may be granted under
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147 certain conditions; please contact the Linux HOWTO coordinator at
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148 the address given below.
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152 In short, we wish to promote dissemination of this
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153 information through as many channels as possible. However, we do
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154 wish to retain copyright on the HOWTO documents, and would like to
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155 be notified of any plans to redistribute the HOWTOs.
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159 If you have any questions, please contact
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160 <email>linux-howto@metalab.unc.edu</email>
\r
164 <!-- Section2: disclaimer -->
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166 <sect2 id="disclaimer">
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167 <title>Disclaimer</title>
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170 No liability for the contents of this documents can be accepted.
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171 Use the concepts, examples and other content at your own risk.
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172 As this is a new edition of this document, there may be errors
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173 and inaccuracies, that may of course be damaging to your system.
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174 Proceed with caution, and although this is highly unlikely,
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175 the author(s) do not take any responsibility for that.
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179 All copyrights are held by their by their respective owners, unless
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180 specifically noted otherwise. Use of a term in this document
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181 should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark
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186 Naming of particular products or brands should not be seen
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191 You are strongly recommended to take a backup of your system
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192 before major installation and backups at regular intervals.
\r
196 <!-- Section2: newversions-->
\r
198 <sect2 id="newversions">
\r
199 <title>New Versions</title>
\r
202 <primary>(your index root)!news on</primary>
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206 This is where you make a summary of what is new. When a
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207 HOWTO exceeds 20 pages it takes more than a casual read to find
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208 the updates. This is where you help your readers with that,
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209 alerting them to specific and important updates to the document.
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213 This is the initial release.
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217 Tell people where the document home page is so the very
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218 newest release could be found in case of problems with the main
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219 <ulink url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/">Linux Documentation
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220 Project</ulink> homepage.
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224 The following is a sample from the Multi Disk HOWTO:
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228 The latest version number of this document can be
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229 gleaned from my plan entry if you
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230 <ulink url="http://www.cs.indiana.edu/finger/nox.nyx.net/sgjoen">
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231 finger</ulink> my Nyx account.
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235 <emphasis>If you have the capability, it would be nice to
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236 make the HOWTO available in a number of formats.</emphasis>
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240 The newest version of this HOWTO will always be made available on
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241 my website, in a variety of formats:
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248 <ulink url="http://www.nyx.net/~sgjoen/disk.html">HTML</ulink>.
\r
254 <ulink URL="http://www.nyx.net/~sgjoen/disk.txt">plain text</ulink>.
\r
260 <ulink url="http://www.nyx.net/~sgjoen/disk-US.ps.gz">compressed
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261 postscript (US letter format)</ulink>.
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267 <ulink url="http://www.nyx.net/~sgjoen/disk.sgml">SGML source</ulink>.
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274 Note that paper sizes vary in the world, A4 and US letter differ
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275 significantly. You might also wish to consider using the
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276 <emphasis>universal format</emphasis> (8.27x11in; 210x279mm).
\r
280 <!-- Section2: credits -->
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282 <sect2 id="credits">
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283 <title>Credits</title>
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286 <emphasis>It is always nice to acknowledge people who help you
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287 with input; it is also regarded by many as important in the
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288 Linux world new economy.</emphasis>
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292 In this version I have the pleasure of acknowledging:
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296 <email>name (at) site.org</email>
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300 <emphasis>Please scramble the addresses so email harvesters
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301 cannot get addresses from your HOWTO and then spam people. That
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302 has happened in the past.</emphasis>
\r
306 <emphasis>Somecompany</emphasis> is acknowledged for sending me
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307 documentation on their gizmos as well as permission to quote from
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308 the material. These quotes have been approved before appearing
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309 here and will be clearly labeled.
\r
313 <!-- Section2: feedback -->
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315 <sect2 id="feedback">
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316 <title>Feedback</title>
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319 Feedback is most certainly welcome for this document. Without
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320 your submissions and input, this document wouldn't exist. Please
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321 send your additions, comments and criticisms to the following
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322 email address : <email>sgjoen@nyx.net</email>.
\r
326 <!-- Section2: translations -->
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328 <sect2 id="translations">
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329 <title>Translations</title>
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332 Not everyone speaks English, pointers to translations are nice.
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333 Also your translators tend to give very important inputs.
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341 <ulink url="http://linuxdoc.org/">German Translation</ulink>
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342 by <email>someone (at) somewhere.de</email>
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348 <ulink url="http://linuxdoc.org/">French Translation</ulink>
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349 by <email>someone (at) somewhere.fr</email>
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355 <ulink url="http://linuxdoc.org/">Italian Translation</ulink>
\r
356 by <email>someone (at) somewhere.it</email>
\r
365 <!-- Section1: intro: END -->
\r
368 <!-- Section1: samples -->
\r
370 <sect1 id="samples">
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371 <title>Samples</title>
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374 <emphasis>This section gives some simple SGML examples you could
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375 use. Read the SGML source to see how it was done.</emphasis>
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379 Further information and examples can be obtained from the publication
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380 <ulink url="http://docbook.org/tdg/html/">DocBook: The Definitive
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381 Guide</ulink>. Written by <emphasis>Norman Walsh</emphasis>
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382 and <emphasis>Leonard Muellner</emphasis>; 1st Edition, October 1999.
\r
385 <!-- Section2: lists -->
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388 <title>Lists</title>
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391 <emphasis>Lists are used frequently, and are available in a number
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392 of formats shown below.</emphasis>
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396 A list in which each entry is marked with a bullet or other dingbat:
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403 <para>Apples</para>
\r
407 <para>Oranges</para>
\r
411 <para>Bananas</para>
\r
418 A list in which each entry is composed of a set of one or more
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419 terms and an associated description:
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426 <term>Fruits</term>
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428 <para>such as apples, oranges, and more.</para>
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435 <para>Don't eat too many; you are what you eat.</para>
\r
440 <term>Vegetables</term>
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442 <para>Potatos are spelled with care.</para>
\r
450 A list in which each entry is marked with a sequentially
\r
458 <para>Step one</para>
\r
462 <para>Step two</para>
\r
469 <!-- Section2: links -->
\r
472 <title>Links</title>
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475 <emphasis>Links can be used within your documents to refer to
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476 different sections and chapters or to refer to documents external
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477 to yours.</emphasis>
\r
480 <sect3 id="int-links">
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481 <title>Internal links</title>
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484 Click on the <xref LinkEnd="samples"> link to jump to the top of
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485 this chapter. Note the anchor at the section tag.
\r
489 <sect3 id="ext-links">
\r
490 <title>External links</title>
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493 Click on <ulink url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/">this</ulink> link
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494 to jump to the LDP site. Note you can use http, ftp, news and
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495 other protocols in the locator if required.
\r
501 <!-- Section2: images -->
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503 <sect2 id="images">
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504 <title>Images</title>
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507 <emphasis>Avoid diagrams if possible as this cannot be rendered
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508 in the ASCII outputs which are still needed by many around the
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514 <title>Graphics Test Image</title>
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515 <graphic FileRef="red.gif"></graphic>
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520 Here is another variation which allows for ALT text:
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527 <imagedata fileref="green.gif" format="gif">
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532 ALT text to be used: Green Ball
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538 Caption for the graphic goes here: This is a Green Ball.
\r
547 <!-- Section1: samples: END -->
\r
550 <!-- Section1: structure -->
\r
552 <sect1 id="structure">
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553 <title>Structure</title>
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556 <emphasis>A quick overview on how all parts fit together in the overall
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557 structure. An example from the Multi Disk HOWTO is used.</emphasis>
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561 As this type of document is supposed to be as much for learning as
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562 a technical reference document I have rearranged the structure to
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563 this end. For the designer of a system it is more useful to have
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564 the information presented in terms of the goals of this exercise
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565 than from the point of view of the logical layer structure of the
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566 devices themselves. Nevertheless this document would not be
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567 complete without such a layer structure the computer field is so
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568 full of, so I will include it here as an introduction to how it
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572 <!-- Section2: logical-struct -->
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574 <sect2 id="logical-struct">
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575 <title>Logical structure</title>
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578 <primary>disk!structure, I/O subsystem</primary>
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582 This is based on how each layer access each other, traditionally
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583 with the application on top and the physical layer on the bottom.
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584 It is quite useful to show the interrelationship between each of
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585 the layers used in controlling drives.
\r
588 ___________________________________________________________
\r
589 |__ File structure ( /usr /tmp etc) __|
\r
590 |__ File system (ext2fs, vfat etc) __|
\r
591 |__ Volume management (AFS) __|
\r
592 |__ RAID, concatenation (md) __|
\r
593 |__ Device driver (SCSI, IDE etc) __|
\r
594 |__ Controller (chip, card) __|
\r
595 |__ Connection (cable, network) __|
\r
596 |__ Drive (magnetic, optical etc) __|
\r
597 -----------------------------------------------------------
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602 In the above diagram both volume management and RAID and
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603 concatenation are optional layers. The 3 lower layers are in
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604 hardware. All parts are discussed at length later on in this
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609 <!-- Section2: doc-struct -->
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611 <sect2 id="doc-struct">
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612 <title>Document structure</title>
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615 Most users start out with a given set of hardware and some plans
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616 on what they wish to achieve and how big the system should be.
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617 This is the point of view I will adopt in this document in
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618 presenting the material, starting out with hardware, continuing
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619 with design constraints before detailing the design strategy that
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620 I have found to work well. I have used this both for my own
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621 personal computer at home, a multi purpose server at work and
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622 found it worked quite well. In addition my Japanese co-worker in
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623 this project have applied the same strategy on a server in an
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624 academic setting with similar success.
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628 Finally at the end I have detailed some configuration tables for
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629 use in your own design. If you have any comments regarding this
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630 or notes from your own design work I would like to hear from you
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631 so this document can be upgraded.
\r
635 <!-- Section2: reading-plan -->
\r
637 <sect2 id="reading-plan">
\r
638 <title>Reading plan</title>
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641 <emphasis>As you go beyond 50 pages or so there will be a lot of
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642 text that experts and even the experienced do not need to read.
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643 Keeping in mind that we wish to care for all kinds of people in
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644 the Linux world we might have to make a reading plan. Again,
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645 an example follows from the Multi Disk HOWTO.</emphasis>
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649 Although not the biggest HOWTO it is nevertheless rather big
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650 already and I have been requested to make a reading plan to make
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651 it possible to cut down on the volume.
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658 <term>Expert</term>
\r
661 (aka the elite). If you are familiar with Linux as well as
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662 disk drive technologies you will find most of what you need in
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663 the appendices. Additionally you are recommended to read the
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664 FAQ and the <XRef LinkEnd="bits-n-pieces">chapter.
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670 <term>Experienced</term>
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673 (aka Competent). If you are familiar with computers in
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674 general you can go straight to the chapters on
\r
675 <XRef LinkEnd="technologies"> and continue from there on.
\r
681 <term>Newbie</term>
\r
684 (mostly harmless). You just have to read the whole thing.
\r
685 Sorry. In addition you are also recommended to read all the
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686 other disk related HOWTOs.
\r
697 <!-- Section1: structure: END -->
\r
700 <!-- Section1: technologies -->
\r
702 <sect1 id="technologies">
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703 <title>Technologies</title>
\r
706 <primary>(your index root)!technologies</primary>
\r
710 <emphasis>Introduction of technology for the newbie with a few
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711 references to detailed works. Remember that not everyone has
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712 Internet access so you have to explain in sufficient details so
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713 even the newbie can get by.</emphasis>
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718 <!-- Section1: technologies: END -->
\r
721 <!-- Section1: implement -->
\r
723 <sect1 id="implement">
\r
724 <title>Implementation</title>
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727 <primary>(your index root)!implementation</primary>
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731 <emphasis>Now your readers should have a sufficient knowledge of
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732 what this is about and now we come to the hands on of implementing
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733 your clever scheme.</emphasis>
\r
738 <!-- Section1: implement: END -->
\r
741 <!-- Section1: maint -->
\r
744 <title>Maintenance</title>
\r
747 <primary>(your index root)!maintenance</primary>
\r
751 <emphasis>Few systems and designs are maintenance free, here you
\r
752 explain how to keep the system running.</emphasis>
\r
757 <!-- Section1: maint: END -->
\r
760 <!-- Section1: adv-issues -->
\r
762 <sect1 id="adv-issues">
\r
763 <title>Advanced Issues</title>
\r
766 <primary>(your index root)!advanced topics</primary>
\r
770 <emphasis>You can get most things up and running in a quick and
\r
771 dirty fashion, useful for testing and getting used to how things
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772 work. For more serious use you would need to be a little more
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773 advanced. This is the place to explain it all, if applicable.</emphasis>
\r
778 <!-- Section1: adv-issues: END -->
\r
781 <!-- Section1: moreinfo -->
\r
783 <sect1 id="moreinfo">
\r
784 <title>Further Information</title>
\r
787 <primary>(your index root)!information resources</primary>
\r
791 <emphasis>A HOWTO cannot describe everything, some times the user
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792 has to venture out on th enet to get more information or just
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793 updates. Here is the place to tell where and how. Again examples
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794 from the Multi Disk HOWTO, replace as needed.</emphasis> There is wealth
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795 of information one should go through when setting up a major system,
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796 for instance for a news or general Internet service provider. The
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797 FAQs in the following groups are useful:
\r
800 <!-- Section2: newsgroups -->
\r
802 <sect2 id="newsgroups">
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803 <title>News groups</title>
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806 <primary>disk!information resources!news groups</primary>
\r
809 <para>Some of the most interesting news groups are:
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815 <ulink url="news:comp.arch.storage">Storage</ulink>.
\r
821 <ulink url="news:comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage">PC storage</ulink>.
\r
827 <ulink url="news:alt.filesystems.afs">AFS</ulink>.
\r
833 <ulink url="news:comp.periphs.scsi">SCSI</ulink>.
\r
839 <ulink url="news:comp.os.linux.setup">Linux setup</ulink>.
\r
847 Most newsgroups have their own FAQ that are designed to answer most
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848 of your questions, as the name Frequently Asked Questions indicate.
\r
849 Fresh versions should be posted regularly to the relevant newsgroups.
\r
850 If you cannot find it in your news spool you could go directly to the
\r
851 <ulink url="ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/">FAQ main archive FTP site</ulink>.
\r
852 The WWW versions can be browsed at the
\r
853 <ulink url="http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/FAQ-List.html">FAQ
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854 main archive WWW site</ulink>.
\r
858 Some FAQs have their own home site, of particular interest:
\r
864 <ulink url="http://www.paranoia.com/~filipg/HTML/LINK/F_SCSI.html">SCSI FAQ</ulink>
\r
871 <ulink url="http://alumni.caltech.edu/~rdv/comp_arch_storage/FAQ-1.html">comp.arch.storage FAQ</ulink>.
\r
879 <!-- Section2: maillists -->
\r
881 <sect2 id="maillists">
\r
882 <title>Mailing Lists</title>
\r
885 <primary>disk!information resources!mailing lists</primary>
\r
889 These are low-noise channels mainly for developers. Think twice
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890 before asking questions there as noise delays the development.
\r
891 Some relevant lists are <email>linux-raid</email>,
\r
892 <email>linux-scsi</email> and <email>linux-ext2fs</email>. Many
\r
893 of the most useful mailing lists run on the <Literal
\r
894 remap="tt">vger.rutgers.edu</Literal> server but this is
\r
895 notoriously overloaded, so try to find a mirror. There are some
\r
896 lists mirrored at <ulink url="http://www.redhat.com">The Redhat
\r
897 Home Page</ulink>. Many lists are also accessible at <ulink
\r
898 url="http://www.linuxhq.com/lnxlists">linuxhq</ulink>, and the
\r
899 rest of the web site contains useful information as well.
\r
903 If you want to find out more about the lists available you can send
\r
904 a message with the line <command>lists</command> to the list server
\r
905 at <email>majordomo@vger.rutgers.edu</email>.
\r
906 If you need help on how to use the mail server just send the line
\r
907 <command>help</command> to the same address. Due to the
\r
908 popularity of this server it is likely it takes a bit to time before
\r
909 you get a reply or even get messages after you send a
\r
910 <command>subscribe</command> command.
\r
914 There is also a number of other majordomo list servers that can
\r
915 be of interest such as the EATA driver list
\r
916 (<email>linux-eata@mail.uni-mainz.de</email>)
\r
917 and the Intelligent IO list <email>linux-i2o@dpt.com</email>.
\r
921 Mailing lists are in a state of flux but you can find links to a
\r
922 number of interesting lists from the
\r
923 <ulink url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/">Linux Documentation
\r
928 <!-- Section2: howto -->
\r
931 <title>HOWTO</title>
\r
934 <primary>disk!information resources!HOWTOs</primary>
\r
938 These are intended as the primary starting points to get the
\r
939 background information as well as show you how to solve a
\r
940 specific problem. Some relevant HOWTOs are
\r
941 <Literal remap="tt">Bootdisk</Literal>,
\r
942 <Literal remap="tt">Installation</Literal>,
\r
943 <Literal remap="tt">SCSI</Literal> and
\r
944 <Literal remap="tt">UMSDOS</Literal>. The main site for these is the
\r
945 <ulink url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/">LDP archive</ulink>at
\r
946 Metalab (formerly known as Sunsite).
\r
950 There is a a new HOWTO out that deals with setting up a DPT RAID
\r
951 system, check out the
\r
952 <ulink url="http://www.ram.org/computing/linux/dpt_raid.html">DPT RAID
\r
953 HOWTO homepage</ulink>.
\r
957 <!-- Section2: local-res -->
\r
959 <sect2 id="local-res">
\r
960 <title>Local Resources</title>
\r
963 <primary>disk!information resources!local</primary>
\r
967 In most distributions of Linux there is a document directory
\r
968 installed, have a look in the <filename>/usr/doc</filename>
\r
969 directory. where most packages store their main documentation and
\r
970 README files etc. Also you will here find the HOWTO archive
\r
971 (<filename>/usr/doc/HOWTO</filename>) of ready formatted HOWTOs
\r
972 and also the mini-HOWTO archive
\r
973 (<filename>/usr/doc/HOWTO/mini</filename>) of plain text
\r
978 Many of the configuration files mentioned earlier can be found in
\r
979 the <filename>/etc</filename> directory. In particular you will
\r
980 want to work with the <filename>/etc/fstab</filename> file that
\r
981 sets up the mounting of partitions and possibly also
\r
982 <filename>/etc/raidtab</filename> file that is used for the
\r
983 <Literal remap="tt">md</Literal> system to set up RAID.
\r
987 The kernel source in <filename>/usr/src/linux</filename> is, of
\r
988 course, the ultimate documentation. In other words, <quote>use
\r
989 the source, Luke</quote>. It should also be pointed out that the
\r
990 kernel comes not only with source code which is even commented
\r
991 (well, partially at least) but also an informative
\r
992 <filename>/usr/src/linux/Documentation</filename>. If you are
\r
993 about to ask any questions about the kernel you should read this
\r
994 first, it will save you and many others a lot of time and
\r
995 possibly embarrassment.
\r
999 Also have a look in your system log file
\r
1000 (<filename>/var/log/messages</filename>) to see what is going on
\r
1001 and in particular how the booting went if too much scrolled off
\r
1002 your screen. Using <command>tail -f /var/log/messages</command>
\r
1003 in a separate window or screen will give you a continuous update
\r
1004 of what is going on in your system.
\r
1008 You can also take advantage of the <filename>/proc</filename>
\r
1009 file system that is a window into the inner workings of your
\r
1010 system. Use <command>cat</command> rather than
\r
1011 <command>more</command> to view the files as they are reported as
\r
1012 being zero length. Reports are that <command>less</command> works
\r
1017 <!-- Section2: web -->
\r
1020 <title>Web Sites</title>
\r
1023 <primary>disk!information resources!WWW</primary>
\r
1026 <primary>disk!information resources!web pages</primary>
\r
1030 There are a huge number of informative web sites available. By
\r
1031 their very nature they change quickly so do not be surprised
\r
1032 if these links become quickly outdated.
\r
1036 A good starting point is of course the
\r
1037 <ulink url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/">Linux Documentation
\r
1038 Project</ulink> home page, an information central for
\r
1039 documentation, project pages and much more.
\r
1043 Please let me know if you have any other leads that can be
\r
1050 <!-- Section1: moreinfo: END -->
\r
1053 <!-- Section1: help -->
\r
1056 <title>Getting Help</title>
\r
1059 <primary>(your index root)!assistance, obtaining</primary>
\r
1063 In the end you might find yourself unable to solve your problems
\r
1064 and need help from someone else. The most efficient way is either
\r
1065 to ask someone local or in your nearest Linux user group, search
\r
1066 the web for the nearest one.
\r
1070 Another possibility is to ask on Usenet News in one of the many,
\r
1071 many newsgroups available. The problem is that these have such a
\r
1072 high volume and noise (called low signal-to-noise ratio) that your
\r
1073 question can easily fall through unanswered.
\r
1077 No matter where you ask it is important to ask well or you will
\r
1078 not be taken seriously. Saying just <emphasis remap="it">my disk
\r
1079 does not work</emphasis> is not going to help you and instead the
\r
1080 noise level is increased even further and if you are lucky someone
\r
1081 will ask you to clarify.
\r
1085 Instead describe your problems in some detail that will enable
\r
1086 people to help you. The problem could lie somewhere you did not
\r
1087 expect. Therefore you are advised to list the following information
\r
1088 about your system:
\r
1095 <term>Hardware</Term>
\r
1100 <para>Processor</para>
\r
1112 <para>Chip set (LX, BX etc)</para>
\r
1116 <para>Bus (ISA, VESA, PCI etc)</para>
\r
1121 Expansion cards used (Disk controllers, video, IO
\r
1132 <term>Software</term>
\r
1138 <para>BIOS (On motherboard and possibly SCSI host adapters)</para>
\r
1142 <para>LILO, if used</para>
\r
1147 Linux kernel version as well as possible modifications
\r
1153 <para>Kernel parameters, if any</para>
\r
1158 Software that shows the error (with version number
\r
1170 <term>Peripherals</term>
\r
1177 Type of disk drives with manufacturer name, version and type
\r
1182 <para>Other relevant peripherals</para>
\r
1194 Remember that booting text is logged to
\r
1195 <filename>/var/log/messages</filename> which can answer most of
\r
1196 the questions above. Obviously if the drives fail you might not be
\r
1197 able to get the log saved to disk but you can at least scroll
\r
1198 back up the screen using the <keycap>SHIFT</keycap> and
\r
1199 <keycap>PAGE UP</keycap> keys. It may also be useful to include
\r
1200 part of this in your request for help but do not go overboard,
\r
1201 keep it <emphasis>brief</emphasis> as a complete log file dumped
\r
1202 to Usenet News is more than a little annoying.
\r
1207 <!-- Section1: help: END -->
\r
1210 <!-- Section1: remarks -->
\r
1212 <sect1 id="remarks">
\r
1213 <title>Concluding Remarks</title>
\r
1216 <primary>(your index root)!conclusion</primary>
\r
1220 <emphasis>Just summing up... Also a place for general
\r
1221 recommendations.</emphasis>
\r
1226 <!-- Section1: remarks: END -->
\r
1229 <!-- Section1: faq -->
\r
1232 <title>Questions and Answers</title>
\r
1235 <primary>(your index root)!FAQ</primary>
\r
1238 <primary>(your index root)!frequently asked questions</primary>
\r
1242 <emphasis>Check the newsgroups and try to determine some frequent
\r
1243 problems and cover them here. Again an example from the Multi Disk
\r
1248 This is just a collection of what I believe are the most common
\r
1249 questions people might have. Give me more feedback and I will turn
\r
1250 this section into a proper FAQ.
\r
1257 Q:How many physical disk drives (spindles) does a Linux system need?
\r
1261 A: Linux can run just fine on one drive (spindle). Having
\r
1262 enough RAM (around 32 MB, and up to 64 MB) to support swapping
\r
1263 is a better price/performance choice than getting a second
\r
1264 disk. (E)IDE disk is usually cheaper (but a little slower) than
\r
1271 Q: Are there any disadvantages in this scheme?
\r
1275 A: There is only a minor snag: if even a single partition
\r
1276 overflows the system might stop working properly. The severity
\r
1277 depends of course on what partition is affected. Still this is
\r
1278 not hard to monitor, the command <command>df</command> gives
\r
1279 you a good overview of the situation. Also check the swap
\r
1280 partition(s) using <command>free</command> to make sure you are
\r
1281 not about to run out of virtual memory.
\r
1287 Q: OK, so should I split the system into as many partitions as
\r
1288 possible for a single drive?
\r
1292 A: No, there are several disadvantages to that. First of all
\r
1293 maintenance becomes needlessly complex and you gain very little
\r
1294 in this. In fact if your partitions are too big you will seek
\r
1295 across larger areas than needed. This is a balance and
\r
1296 dependent on the number of physical drives you have.
\r
1303 Greg Leblanc: Depending on how big this FAQ gets, perhaps it
\r
1304 would be worthwhile to have, say, the 5 most FAQ, and put the
\r
1305 rest into an external FAQ. Dunno. Comments?
\r
1308 <emphasis>(rest deleted.)</emphasis>
\r
1313 <!-- Section1: faq: END -->
\r
1316 <!-- Section1: bits-n-pieces -->
\r
1318 <sect1 id="bits-n-pieces">
\r
1319 <title>Bits and Pieces </title>
\r
1322 <primary>disk!miscellaneous</primary>
\r
1326 This is basically a section where I stuff all the bits I have not
\r
1327 yet decided where should go, yet that I feel is worth knowing
\r
1328 about. It is a kind of transient area.
\r
1333 <!-- Section1: bits-n-pieces: END -->
\r
1336 <!-- Section1: examples -->
\r
1338 <sect1 id="examples">
\r
1339 <title>Examples</title>
\r
1342 <primary>(your index root)!examples</primary>
\r
1346 <emphasis>Example designs and sample configuration files and other
\r
1347 relevant details is always handy</emphasis>
\r
1352 <!-- Section1: examples: END -->
\r
1356 <!-- Keep this comment at the end of the file
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1361 sgml-namecase-general:t
\r
1362 sgml-general-insert-case:lower
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1363 sgml-minimize-attributes:nil
\r
1364 sgml-always-quote-attributes:t
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1365 sgml-indent-step:1
\r
1366 sgml-indent-data:nil
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1367 sgml-parent-document:nil
\r
1368 sgml-exposed-tags:nil
\r
1369 sgml-local-catalogs:nil
\r
1370 sgml-local-ecat-files:nil
\r
projects / fspm_howto / blob