From owner-freebsd-hackers Thu Aug 8 01:27:20 1996 Return-Path: owner-hackers Received: (from root@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) id BAA21424 for hackers-outgoing; Thu, 8 Aug 1996 01:27:20 -0700 (PDT) Received: from viking.ucsalf.ac.uk (viking.ucsalf.ac.uk [192.195.1.1]) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) with SMTP id BAA21417 for ; Thu, 8 Aug 1996 01:27:16 -0700 (PDT) Received: by viking.ucsalf.ac.uk (Smail3.1.29.1 #4) id m0uoQR0-00036xC; Thu, 8 Aug 96 09:27 BST Message-Id: From: mark@plato.ucsalf.ac.uk (Mark Powell) Subject: Linux async vs. FreeBSD sync To: freebsd-hackers@freebsd.org Date: 8 Aug 1996 09:27:11 +0100 X-Gated-To-News-By: news@ucsalf.ac.uk Xref: viking.ucsalf.ac.uk comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:24193 list.freebsd.hackers:5240 Sender: owner-hackers@freebsd.org X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk A lot has been said about this recently. However, I've used both systems alot and had only ever noticed Linux's "feel of speed" as far as the filesystem is concerned. I recently installed Linux on an Adaptec 7880 chipset based motherboard. Apart from having to go around the houses to even install Linux on such a system (I eventually used redhat with the *unsupported* 1.3.57 kernel) I really discovered the benefits of the sync system. I've been running FreeBSD for around 9 months on a 7880 based chipset and got regular SCSI hangs when the bus was put under load (this is fixed since around June 8th.) However, I never noticed *any* loss of data from any of these crashes. With the linux system I experienced the same scsi bus hangs during rebuilds of the newer Linux kernel 2.0.11. Nearly every single time the linux box hung I completely lost the filesystem. One the occasions that fsck would even fix the damn thing I'd find I'd lost /etc/passwd, login etc. etc. I eventually got the new kernel built by slowing down the build. Now I have the latest scsi code in there I still mount all the filesystems under Linux synchronous. Linux installs are a damn pain. Redhat requires *three* floppy disks for it's install, whereas I only ever use one for FreeBSD. BTW Any chance of BOOTP/DHCP in the install program, that'd be a real treat. Anyway, thought I'd just let you know of my positive experience with FreeBSD. Keep up the good work. I'll save Linux for play and the FreeBSD for the serious work. (I was only installing Linux to play xquake. Now someone tells me FreeBSD-2.2 will run it arrrrgh!!) -- Mark Powell - Senior Network Technician - Room: C806 Computer Services Unit, University College Salford, Salford, Manchester, UK. Tel: +44 161 745 3376 Fax: +44 161 736 3596 Email: mark@ucsalf.ac.uk finger mark@ucsalf.ac.uk (for PGP key) Home Page