[Gluster-devel] gluster questions

[Jonathan Fine]

I'm thinking about implementing gluster as a possible way of home  
directory server redundancy(using the afr translator), but I have a  
few questions that I can't seem to find the answer to:

-Does installing gluster require a total format of the "bricks" or  
data volumes involved?  Can I just install it over the current system  
and keep data intact? From what I read it just works over the current  
filesystem (ext3, xfs, etc)?

-We currently have a single node w/fibre channel raid (partitioned  
into 7 luns for different user groups) for our home directories.  All  
exported using NFS.  We are getting in a new server and raid unit,  
which will become the primary server once it is setup.  Can I setup  
the new server and raid as a single gluster node, get the data copied  
over (via rsync or something similar), move clients over to the new  
machine, then resetup the old server/raid combo and add it into the  
gluster system?  Or is there a better way to do this?

-Concerning NFS and tied into the above question: we use it for it's  
compatibility with Mac, Linux and Solaris workstations and has worked  
fairly well.  We'd like to stick with it.  Would that require running  
a fuse/gluster client on one of the above nodes and re-exporting it as  
NFS?  That is the way I seem to understand from my searches on the  
mailing lists.    Or can you directly export a gluster brick via nfs?   
And if running the fuse/gluster client on one of the server nodes w/  
exported NFS is necessary, is this a safe way to do things?


Any helpful hints, tips or different ways of thinking about things is  
appreciated.


Jon


p.s. sorry for all of the questions...I'm a bit new at attempting  
filesystem/service redundancy