From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Tue Oct 6 21:00:33 2009 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 087AC1065694 for ; Tue, 6 Oct 2009 21:00:33 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from ml@infosec.pl) Received: from v027580.home.net.pl (v027580.home.net.pl [89.161.156.148]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with SMTP id 517C68FC0A for ; Tue, 6 Oct 2009 21:00:32 +0000 (UTC) Received: from localhost (HELO ?172.16.0.2?) (ml.freeside@home@127.0.0.1) by m094.home.net.pl with SMTP; Tue, 6 Oct 2009 21:00:37 -0000 Message-ID: <4ACBBDCD.6030509@infosec.pl> Date: Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:59:41 +0000 From: Michal User-Agent: Thunderbird 2.0.0.23 (X11/20091003) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Subject: zfs on root and zpool.cache importance X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:00:33 -0000 Hello I'm a bit confused about zpool.cache file. I've got a configuration with /boot sitting on a usb drive (UFS) and everything else on internal ZFS hard drive. I'm booting my system off the usb drive so zpool.cache file is there (usb drive). Basic zfs root + ufs boot setup. Everything works like a charm no problems so far and I would like to keep it that way hence my question. I've noticed that zpool.cache on ZFS drive is being updated from time to time and it is different from zpool.cache file on usb drive. Even when I remove zpool.cache file on hard disk then it gets recreated automatically and system still boots and works fine because it starts with zpool.cache on usb drive which is intact. Now how important it is to keep them in sync and what I'm risking by not doing that? Am I stomping on a thin ice? Should I copy zpool.cache from hard drive to usb boot disk every day or should I leave it how it is? I know that zpool.cache is critical to boot and it keeps some informations about pool configuration but don't quite understand implications of having it outside of the pool itself (without zfs even knowing about that). Michal -- "Every man dies, not every man really lives." -William Wallace