[p4] (no subject)

[Richard Geiger]

Oct 2000 08: 51:56 PDT.
             <20001009085156.B6239 at pico.apple.com> 
Date: Mon, 09 Oct 2000 09:59:47 -0700
From: Richard Geiger <rmg at cranford.eng.netapp.com>


> I have read through the webpages on how Perforce likes to have all of it's
> data locally accessable and how they don't recommend using NFS.
> 
> 
> Our perforce server is a Sun E250 (2 cpus, 512MB of RAM) and a max of 83
> licensed users.  We would like to move all of the perforce data to a 
> NetApp F760 filer.  The NetApp and the E250 are using the same switch 
> (Cisco 5500 10/100/1000Mb switch).  We could upgrade the E250 to a 
> 1000Base-SX ethernet card if that would make Perforce happier.
> 
> 
> Has anyone out there run Perforce over NFS?  Any performance issues?

To keep it short:

Yes, various people have run Perforce with P4ROOT on an NFS-mounted
volume. We, Network Appliance, have been doing this for three years,
the NFS server being (of course) one of our own (an F740, if I
remember right). We have not noticed any significant reliability or
performance effects that we can attibute to P4ROOT on the the filer.

Caveats: Some client NFS implementations seem to be problematic at
this time. In particular, Linux seems to have problems, based on
anectdotal (to me) evidence. I believe that Perforce themselves are
interested in tracking this down now, and seem to be taking steps in
that direction.

In particular, though, we have run Perforce on both Solaris/Sparc and
Compaq (nee DEC) alpha/OSF1 boxes (our current production Perorce
server) with no ill efects. We've been on the OSF1 platform for about
two years now.

We obviously like the idea of keeping our Perforce data on our own
product. If you have any further questions about our experience doing
this, and some of the benefits we beleieve we gain from it, please
send me email directly.

Thanks,

 - Richard