Product Notes for Linux Systems

• Supported kernel versions

  The release of OpenAFS 3.6 supports Red Hat Software's Linux 6.0 (which incorporates kernel version 2.2.5-15) and Linux 6.1 (which incorporates kernel version 2.2.12-20). The distribution also includes AFS kernel extensions for kernel versions 2.2.10, 2.2.12, 2.2.13, and 2.2.14. The AFS initialization script included in the OpenAFS distribution automatically selects the appropriate kernel extensions for the kernel version in use on the local machine. Red Hat Linux 6.0 and 6.1 include a compiled kernel, but for the other supported kernel versions you must obtain kernel source and compile the kernel yourself. In this case, you must use version 2.7.2.3 or higher of the gcc program, which is part of the Linux distribution. Do not use other compilers. The Linux kernel-building tools by default create a symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) kernel, which can run on both uniprocessor and multiprocessor machines. However, a uniprocessor machine generally performs best with a uniprocessor kernel. You can obtain Linux kernel source via the UNIX File Transfer Protocol (ftp) at ftp.kernel.org or one of its mirror sites. There is also kernel upgrade information at http://www.kernel.org.

• AFS requires libc6

  For correct AFS performance, the operating system must use the C library called libc6 (or glibc2), rather than libc5 (glibc1).

• Modified insmod program required with some kernels

  If using an SMP kernel or a uniprocessor kernel configured to use more than 1 GB of memory, you must use a modified version of the insmod program. You do not need the modified program if using a standard uniprocessor kernel. You can download the modified insmod program at the following URLs:

  • http://www.transarc.com/Support/afs/index.html. See the Downloads section of the page. To comply with the GNU Public License (GPL), the download site also makes available the complete modified insmod.c source file and a source-code patch against the original insmod.c file.

  • http://www.pi.se/blox/modutils/index.html. Select the file listed at the top of the index. This is a site for Linux modutils source code.

• No support for the NFS/AFS Translator

  AFS does not support the use of Linux machines as NFS/AFS Translator machines.

• No AuthLog database

  The Authentication Server running on a Linux machine creates and writes messages to the /usr/afs/logs/AuthLog file, just as on other system types. However, it does not create or use the two files which constitute the auxiliary AuthLog database on other system types (AuthLog.dir and AuthLog.pag). The kdb command is therefore inoperative on Linux machines. The auxiliary database is useful mostly for debugging and is not required for normal operations.

• Curses utility required for monitoring programs

  For the afsmonitor, scout and fms programs to work properly, the dynamic library /usr/lib/libncurses.so must be installed on the machine. It is available in most Linux distributions.