From owner-freebsd-geom@FreeBSD.ORG Wed Jan 19 14:28:30 2005 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-geom@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id F269116A4CE; Wed, 19 Jan 2005 14:28:29 +0000 (GMT) Received: from gromit.dlib.vt.edu (gromit.dlib.vt.edu [128.173.49.29]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 97BE643D5D; Wed, 19 Jan 2005 14:28:29 +0000 (GMT) (envelope-from paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu) Received: from zappa.Chelsea-Ct.Org (pool-151-199-113-125.roa.east.verizon.net [151.199.113.125]) by gromit.dlib.vt.edu (8.13.1/8.13.1) with ESMTP id j0JESSsr076058 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA bits=256 verify=OK); Wed, 19 Jan 2005 09:28:28 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu) Received: from zappa.Chelsea-Ct.Org (localhost.Chelsea-Ct.Org [127.0.0.1]) by zappa.Chelsea-Ct.Org (8.13.1/8.13.1) with ESMTP id j0JESMSY062074 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=DHE-RSA-AES256-SHA bits=256 verify=OK); Wed, 19 Jan 2005 09:28:22 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu) Received: (from paul@localhost) by zappa.Chelsea-Ct.Org (8.13.1/8.13.1/Submit) id j0JESM3R062073; Wed, 19 Jan 2005 09:28:22 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu) X-Authentication-Warning: zappa.Chelsea-Ct.Org: paul set sender to paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu using -f From: Paul Mather To: "Ralf S. Engelschall" In-Reply-To: <20050110163634.GA47526@engelschall.com> References: <20050110163634.GA47526@engelschall.com> Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 09:28:21 -0500 Message-Id: <1106144901.40972.11.camel@zappa.Chelsea-Ct.Org> Mime-Version: 1.0 X-Mailer: Evolution 2.0.3 FreeBSD GNOME Team Port cc: freebsd-geom@freebsd.org Subject: Re: [HOWTO] FreeBSD system disk mirroring with GEOM X-BeenThere: freebsd-geom@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list List-Id: GEOM-specific discussions and implementations List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 14:28:30 -0000 On Mon, 2005-01-10 at 17:36 +0100, Ralf S. Engelschall wrote: > FYI: I've prepared a detailed step-by-step command list on how to > establish a RAID-1 (mirror) for the system partitions with GEOM and > gmirror(8). You can find the resulting HOWTO document under > http://people.freebsd.org/~rse/mirror/ Congratulations on a useful and comprehensive HOWTO! I have only one question: in the first approach ("Whole Disk, Acceptable, Less Flexible"), why do you create a slice if you are using the whole disk anyway? Is this simply because it's good form to put a valid partition table on a bootable PC disk? The reason I ask is because when I set up my bootable gmirror (using a technique similar to the one you describe) I omitted the fdisk step and used bsdlabel on (my equivalent of) /dev/mirror/gm0 (not gm0s1). I've not had any problems booting the mirror, nor in using it. It also means one less GEOM layer to go through, right? Cheers, Paul. -- e-mail: paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu "Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid." --- Frank Vincent Zappa