[1052] in linux-scsi channel archive
news on dual buslogics with MD
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Ryan Smith-Roberts)
Mon Dec 2 20:39:53 1996
Date: Mon, 2 Dec 1996 16:09:10 -0800 (PST)
From: Ryan Smith-Roberts <rsr@lab.net>
Reply-To: Ryan Smith-Roberts <rsr@lab.net>
To: linux-scsi@vger.rutgers.edu
I realize this is somewhat of a FAQ, but there is no linux-scsi FAQ and no
archives, so unfortunately we are forced to ask the same silly questions
over and over.
I have been asked to set up the be-all end-all news server. A rather
difficult request, but the SCSI subsystem I was thinking of putting in
involved a veryfast 1GB Seagate root/swap disk and 3x 4GB Barracuda news
disks, MDed together on two BusLogic 958 controllers, stuffed into a dual
P200 box.
I would appreciate any feedback anyone, especially Leonard, can provide
about the possible caveats:
- MD has in the past been unstable with SMP; is anyone running SMP MD
news servers?
- Are 958 controllers bus-mastering? Will they play well together in the
same machine?
- Is the FlashPoint DW controller supported?
- Will MD work across two controllers / a FlashPoint DW?
And now some generic SCSI questions...
If one is going to put two or more reasonably fast 4GB drives on one
chain, is F/W SCSI II enough to keep them both hauling data at peak
efficiency, or is Ultra Wide SCSI necessary?
Pursuing this further, would an appropriate architecture be one or two
controllers using Ultra Wide disks, or say three/four controllers using
Fast SCSI II disks, with the cheaper disks offset by the cost of more
controllers and more complex cabling?
Also, in the experience of more-experienced news admins than any of us,
are multiple smaller drives better, WRT seek time, or should one purchase
fewer larger drives? As news is far from mission-critical, excessive
reliability is not a particular concern.
--
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