Ubuntu server 10.04 - filesystem choice

[aminfovi]

Hi folks,

i'm new to Zimbra and to fast-testing i decide to install it on a Ubuntu server 10.04 distro...
Zimbra's wiki suggests to stay with ext3 filesystem whereas Ubuntu comes with ext4 as default. What is the best (stable and safer) solution?


Thanks,
aminfovi

[phoenix]

Originally Posted by aminfovi

i'm new to Zimbra and to fast-testing i decide to install it on a Ubuntu server 10.04 distro...
Zimbra's wiki suggests to stay with ext3 filesystem whereas Ubuntu comes with ext4 as default. What is the best (stable and safer) solution?

You can use any filesystem that is stable and you feel comfortable with, I use xfs on all my servers and workstations without problems.

[aminfovi]

Thanks phoenix for fast-replying :-)
I'm wondering if Zimbra folks feel more comfortable with ext3 instead of the younger ext4, and what performance issues i'd have if i put a production server to handle ~100 accounts...
Hah, i never use XFS :-P

[phoenix]

Originally Posted by aminfovi

Thanks phoenix for fast-replying :-)

You're welcome.

Originally Posted by aminfovi

I'm wondering if Zimbra folks feel more comfortable with ext3 instead of the younger ext4,

The reason ext4 isn't mentioned in that wiki article is that it was written before it became stable and ext3 is the de-facto standard.

Originally Posted by aminfovi

..... and what performance issues i'd have if i put a production server to handle ~100 accounts...

I don't think you'd notice much difference between the two filesystems with that number of users but if you do use ext4 you should make sure that write barriers are enabled (I don't know what the default is in Ubuntu) for safety. That does have an impact on performance but, IMO, it's necessary.

Originally Posted by aminfovi

Hah, i never use XFS :-P

Perhaps you should give it a try, I believe it to be superior in performance and scalability, I think ext4 is still playing catch-up. You could always have a look around the internet for some comparisons but you have to make sure you're comparing benchmarks that reflect your set-up.

[aminfovi]

Hi phoenix,

damn me and the outdated wiki :-D
Ok, i think i'm going for ext3 to test how Zimbra is, after that i could easily convert the filesystem to ext4 and in the meanwhile i read somwething about XFS ;-)

Thanks for hints, have a nice day!
aminfovi