Hello all, I'm building an Ubuntu Server box. It will host web/mail/file server/backup. I've got 3 HDD's in there: 80GB HDD -- Main 80GB HDD -- Backup 250GB HDD -- Fileserver How should I partition / format / mount this machine? Thanks I'll be using the LAMP Server Install method w/ Ubuntu 6.06.
There are millions of possibilities... Maybe like this? /boot - 100MB / - the rest of the first HDD /backup - the second HDD /home - the third HDD You can also configure software RAID with HDD1 and 2.
Ubuntu doesn't normally make a separate partition for /boot, what are the benefits with making one? Also, where would swap go? on the 1st drive?? or on my File Storage drive (250GB)? Also, if I am to make /etc or /usr/local or /var or any other individual partitions in drive #1, how much space should I allocate for? I want to be able to hold a fairly good amount of clients on that webspace and e-mail exchange. Finally, my server box has onboard Hardware IDE RAID that has the 250GB plugged into it. I don't know much about RAID outside of that, should I do anything special with that? (motherboard is MSI KT4Ultra)
/etc isn't going to take up much space. run 'du' in that dir if you have a setup now and see how much and give yourself a few extra bytes. If a half-meg give yourself a meg to cover anything installed later on. /usr/local; eh, I don't know. That depends on if you plan on compiling and installing a lot of extra software. If you're not, don't worry about it. The main reason I mentioned these two is if for some reason, the main install gets hosed, all your config files and extra crud you add-on doesn't get trashed along with it. I've been through it; it ain't fun replicating something you spent six months building on. (Years ago, when I was an idiot and didn't backup.)
lawl, but if I have 80GB #2 as a backup (I guess dd?) -- then I don't really need to worry if main gets hosed cuz' exact duplicate has been backed up as an image, roite? Then I don't really need those additional partitions, roite? also, check this out: Code: admin@server:/etc$ du 4 ./mdadm 16 ./network/if-up.d 8 ./network/if-post-down.d 8 ./network/if-pre-up.d 8 ./network/if-down.d 48 ./network 92 ./default 16 ./skel 24 ./bash_completion.d 32 ./belocs 12 ./apt/apt.conf.d 4 ./apt/sources.list.d 40 ./apt 8 ./dpkg/origins 28 ./dpkg 8 ./alternatives 28 ./logrotate.d 52 ./cron.daily 352 ./init.d 24 ./security 108 ./pam.d 4 ./lsb-base 8 ./terminfo 20 ./python2.4 4 ./rc0.d 4 ./rc1.d 4 ./rc2.d 4 ./rc3.d 4 ./rc4.d 4 ./rc5.d 4 ./rc6.d 8 ./rcS.d 60 ./udev/rules.d 68 ./udev 4 ./opt 8 ./console 12 ./apm/scripts.d 4 ./apm/resume.d 4 ./apm/suspend.d 12 ./apm/event.d 36 ./apm 8 ./modprobe.d/arch 48 ./modprobe.d 12 ./console-tools 8 ./dhcp3/dhclient-enter-hooks.d 8 ./dhcp3/dhclient-exit-hooks.d 36 ./dhcp3 20 ./lvm 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/init-premount 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/init-bottom 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/local-bottom 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/init-top 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/local-premount 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/local-top 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/nfs-bottom 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/nfs-premount 4 ./mkinitramfs/scripts/nfs-top 40 ./mkinitramfs/scripts 4 ./mkinitramfs/hooks 8 ./mkinitramfs/conf.d 64 ./mkinitramfs 24 ./iproute2 8 ./ldap 8 ./vim 12 ./logcheck/ignore.d.workstation 32 ./logcheck/ignore.d.server 8 ./logcheck/ignore.d.paranoid 20 ./logcheck/violations.ignore.d 76 ./logcheck 8 ./pcmcia 20 ./cron.weekly 28 ./wpa_supplicant 12 ./devfs/conf.d 16 ./devfs 12 ./modutils 16 ./cron.monthly 8 ./calendar 8 ./cron.hourly 12 ./cron.d 12 ./groff 4 ./perl/CPAN 4 ./perl/Net 12 ./perl 12 ./chatscripts 164 ./ssh 20 ./ppp/ip-down.d 8 ./ppp/peers 20 ./ppp/ip-up.d 4 ./ppp/ipv6-up.d 4 ./ppp/ipv6-down.d 4 ./ppp/resolv 108 ./ppp 12 ./w3m 12 ./resolvconf/update-libc.d 16 ./resolvconf 8 ./emacs/site-start.d 12 ./emacs 468 ./ssl/certs du: `./ssl/private': Permission denied 484 ./ssl 20 ./mysql 8 ./postfix/sasl 24 ./postfix/ssl 124 ./postfix 8 ./gamin 4 ./X11/Xresources 12 ./X11 44 ./php5/apache2 44 ./php5/cli 92 ./php5 64 ./courier 4 ./apache2/mods-enabled 4 ./apache2/ssl 8 ./apache2/sites-available 4 ./apache2/sites-enabled 220 ./apache2/mods-available 12 ./apache2/conf.d 4 ./apache2/vhosts 348 ./apache2 32 ./defoma/hints 56 ./defoma 28 ./fonts/conf.d 56 ./fonts 8 ./pear 20 ./Bastille 8 ./ha.d/resource.d 12 ./ha.d 3972 . I'm not sure how to decipher that -- what's the purpose of making /etc it's own partition?
Having /etc as an own partition makes sure that you configuration files are not lost if your systems screws up. If you want to ensure that you data isn't lost, why don't you use (software) RAID 0 instead of dd? Would be much faster. But probably you want regular backups, so use something like an rsync tool and run it with cron (sorry can't remember the exact name so google). Try Code: du -h /etc ... 19M /etc -h means human readable on most unix commands. 19M means 19 MB (in my case), which seems a lot. :-$ So, the number in your case means it's using 3972 KB ~= 4 MB. Backups: There are many nice open source tools available that make hard links and even save space with incremental backups...
this is different. if you have only /boot, swap and / paritions, then / must be bigger than extra partitions with /var, /home and /usr. more partitions are better for security (/usr mount as read-only, /tmp with no setuid etc.) and your users cannot fill your complete hdd if they have a extra /home partition and you did not configure quota right... if you have a server, /usr must not so big than a desktop system. but a server need a big /var partition for many logs, mail and web folders etc.
lawl, would it just be best/easiest to do 80GB = / + swap? and then the 2nd 80GB will just backup that first drive? (or should swap be on the 250GB filestorage drive?)
swap parition is for example 1-2gb big, which hdd you take is your individual decision. whatever you take, it is only the hdd place interesting. take this hdd, where you didn't need the space.
