Placeholder page for btrfs info and usage instructions.
What is btrfs
Basic description of btrfs. Strengths, weaknesses, why is this important, etc.
Features:
- Extent based file storage (2^64 max file size)
- Space efficient packing of small files
- Space efficient indexed directories
- Dynamic inode allocation
- Writable snapshots
- Subvolumes (separate internal filesystem roots)
- Object level mirroring and striping
- Checksums on data and metadata (multiple algorithms available)
- Compression
- Integrated multiple device support, with several raid algorithms
- Online filesystem check
- Very fast offline filesystem check
- Efficient incremental backup and FS mirroring
- Online filesystem defragmentation
How to install
Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid
NOT ACTUALLY WORKING YET |
btrfs wiki getting started page
Kernel Module Dependencies
8.10 Kernel 2.6.27-9-generic
- CONFIG_LIBCRC32C=m
- CONFIG_ZLIB_INFLATE=y
- CONFIG_ZLIB_DEFLATE=m
- build-essential: make, compiler, etc
- linux-headers-2.6.27-9-generic: latest kernel headers
- linux-source: Meta package dependent on latest kernel source
sudo apt-get install build-essential linux-headers linux-source
Download and compile code:
wget http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/people/mason/btrfs/btrfs-0.17.tar.bz2 tar -jxvf btrfs-0.17.tar.bz2 cd btrfs-0.17 make
Ensure modules are up and running, and insert btrfs module into kernel.
sudo modprobe libcrc32c zlib_inflate zlib_deflate sudo insmod btrfs.ko
btrfs progs dependencies
sudo apt-get install e2fsprogs uuid-dev
wget http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/people/mason/btrfs/btrfs-progs-0.17.tar.bz2 tar -jxvf btrfs-progs-0.17.tar.bz2 make
Ubuntu 9.04 Jaunty
How to use
- How to format disk as btrfs
- How to grow/shrink file system
- How to create snapshots
- How to access snapshots
- How to convert ext2/3(/4?) partitions to btrfs
- How to create an image of a btrfs file system
- How to restore from an image of a btrfs file system
- How to recover from a failed device
- How to add another device to file system
btrfs wiki documentation category
Troubleshooting
Alternatives
- Tux3?
- ZFS over Fuse?