Linux mount command example

the challenge of being a reviewer, reporter, and columnist on the network storage beat is in identifying and locating value for administrators and users. The fun part is being able to write about how valuable optically stored data can be to the enterprise in one month and demonstrate it by finding a company that's captured that vision.

That's what's happening with Riverside, California-based Luminex. Long a player in the pre-press market, Luminex has taken a bold next step toward creating high value with stored optical data in its Power 100 DVD-RAM library. The library itself is an award-winner, but what distinguishes its latest iteration is Luminex's new Linux-based software tool HOTfolders, which runs with its Fire Series management software.

For the most part, the Fire Series software provides services similar to Windows-based jukebox management software packages from the likes of Smart Storage, PoiNT, and Tracer [See "Enterprise Storage Made Easy," December 1999 pp. 51-56--Ed.] However, the combination of the intuitive user interaction in HOTfolders and the Linux chassis make the DVD Power 100 product a significant innovation in the market.

Also, Luminex differs somewhat from other vendors in that it bundles all its hardware and software together rather than selling the HotFolders or the Fire Series software as standalone packages. (Note that NSM is just now offering this approach with its PoiNT software integration. See review, March 2000, pp. 50--Ed.)They also focus more on the archiving capabilities of the DVD-RAM library rather than positioning it primarily as a publishing tool.

why linux?

Luminex has versions of its software for most flavors of UNIX, including SGI Irix, Sun Solaris, HP/UX, and IBM AIX. So Linux is a natural outgrowth of that experience. For the general market, the interest in Linux is fueled by a few advantages it provides over a Windows NT solution. For instance, Linux offers a highly dependable OS for host services, such as working with a DVD-RAM archiving library. While Windows NT 4.0 boasts a reliability rating of 97.4 percent, Linux enjoys 99.3 percent average uptime. Translated into annual unanticipated downtime, the differential means a typical Linux system is up and running seven more days per year. This reliability makes a Linux host about as close as you can get to an ever-operative NAS system without the attendant limitations of NAS.

Since many sites already use UNIX, adding in a Linux box is not a stretch for administration. Linux is a low-cost license, often with unlimited users. (RedHat 6.1 is under $150 for unlimited users.) This compares with several thousand dollars for a standard NT server license.

By nature, Linux is a more heterogeneous operating system than NT. It is equally adept at supporting UNIX, Mac, and PC clients, while NT clearly favors Windows workstations only. (In fact, the Windows 2000 Advanced Server requires that workstations also be Windows 2000 in order to indirectly assign rights.)

However, there are also some caveats to be considered when contemplating a switch to Linux: For example, on sites with networked PCs only, the Linux platform is not going to be as manageable using the same tools as for Windows NT or Windows 2000. Also, you will need to have a third-party package loaded on the Linux box (such as Samba) in order for Windows and Macintosh clients to access the server. On the plus side, this type of software is rock solid today (at least up to Windows 98) and shouldn't present any difficulty once loaded.

working with HOTfolders

The key to HOTfolders is that the logic is on the server, not the workstation. This means that the user's workstation doesn't need to run any kind of proprietary tool to record DVD or CD. The user interface in HOTfolders is reduced to its simplest form: a folder on the desktop.

HOTfolders allows network users simply to copy and move files and folders from within their application or file manager to a network archiving directory (called a HOTfolder in Luminex-speak). The HOTfolders software works with the Fire Series management software to manage transparently the process of creating and duplicating CDs or DVD-RAM discs.

The HOTfolders system also knows when the amount of data the user places in the folder will fill more than one disc. In that case, it will automatically span multiple discs with the data in a single image as required.

Running Linux software is quite different from running a Windows application. Fortunately, as an old hand in the DOS world, I found the Linux command line syntax not too difficult to master. For those less familiar with the use of command-line instructions and tools, the process for setting up HOTfolders is still fairly straightforward:

* Establish the type of recording trigger you want to use--watermark, immediate, or scheduled recording.

* Establish the four directories you want to use to hold data to be archived, work in progress, completed work, and error logs.

* If you want, you can also set up email notification so one or more users can receive logs, show discs completed, or any errors encountered, as well as the number of blanks remaining in the system.

* Specify the capacity of the media in the jukebox (650MB for CD-R or 2.6GB for DVD-RAM.)

* Finally, mount the volume so client workstations can access it.

HOTfolders does not require premastering software on the client workstation even for CD-R files. Thus, from the user perspective, it's even simpler to archive files: First, you create a folder on the desktop pointing to the HOTfolder directory on the server. Then you drag-and-drop files or directories as desired onto the HOTfolder, and record to CD-R or DVD-RAM at will.

This might not seem very different from mapping a drive to the DVD-RAM disc, or going through the file manager to drag-and-drop data to the jukebox. What is different here is the underlying logic capability at the server. The automatic spanning of discs and, as we'll mention in a second, multiple copy capability, go beyond merely providing drive-letter access to DVD-RAM.

more WORMs, more UDF

Like some other DVD-RAM jukebox offerings, the Luminex solution does not treat DVD-RAM discs as file-rewritable. Instead, it treats them as erasable discs. You can erase data on the DVD-RAM disc, but only as a whole disc, not the individual file.

This is primarily due to Luminex' decision to create IS09660 formatting on its DVD-RAM discs and not support the UDF file that is typical. While this seems like a drawback, it has one brilliant advantage in disaster recovery: any DVD-RAM-compatible drive can read the IS09660 formatted disc. So if for some reason there's a catastrophic failure in the jukebox, the discs can still be read outside of the system. This is a distinct advantage, given that discs written with other solutions can only be read using the same type of jukebox and jukebox management file system within which they were recorded.

In addition to IS09660, the software can also include the Macintosh HFS, Joliet, or Rock Ridge formatting required for Apple or UNIX clients and supports long filenames as well.

ease of management

Luminex has also implemented a browser-based management tool for the Fire Series software. Compared with having to locate, install, launch, and learn a proprietary tool, jukebox management via a browser is intuitive and time-saving. Luminex is a bit different in that you don't have to specify an IP address to run the tool. Instead, you specify the server name and the port number you gave to the Fire Series software when you loaded it.

At that point, the management tool's login page pops up in the browser. After logging in, users can perform any of the following tasks:

* View and change any of the system preferences.

* Load and remove blank and recorded media from the jukebox. [This would be through the magazines in the DVD Power 100, as it doesn't have a mail slot.) Record discs on demand.

* List all the available blank or recorded media in the system.

* View the system log files. One enhancement I'd like to see is a simple charting tool for the log files. While it is possible to extract data from the system and incorporate it into a spreadsheet, this is an awkward endeavor. OTG offered this feature, which allowed administrators quick viewing of peak usage times, title usage, user access, and other statistics. Having those benchmarks makes working with an optical jukebox easier (as well as easier to justify to upper management once it realizes how often archived data may be accessed).

filename caching

All jukebox management software packages support caching to speed up performance in accessing optical media. Luminex goes a step further in letting you cache files by extension. This is an outgrowth of the needs of the prepress industry, but should also find significant value in most online use.