Introduction
Multi-node(cluster) implementation of Sisense requires shared storage to be supplied externally for the solution to work. One of the options for the shared storage is NFS.
This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to configure a basic NFS storage as a single NFS server on an Ubuntu Server instance. This information, also, can serve as a solid foundation, primed for further expansion of your NFS utilization with Sisense.
Prerequisites
- Ubuntu Server 20.04 (or higher)
- Server located within the same network as the clients to ensure best performance and network connectivity.
- A secondary partition with a minimum of 400GB available or free space on the primary partition. (Note: This requirement can be disregarded if you are configuring the NFS server for testing purposes.)
Steps
1. On the prepared instance update repositories and install nfs-kernel-server package which allows configure an NFS share:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install nfs-kernel-server
2. Prepare a directory for NFS sharing. In our example, we are going to configure a shared storage at /opt/storage/. Use the following commands to set the appropriate permissions:
sudo chown nobody:nogroup /opt/storage/
sudo chmod 775 /opt/storage/
3. Edit the /etc/exports file to define a shared directory and specify the allowed clients. Use the following command to open the file in a text editor:
sudo vi /etc/exports
An example configuration in the file as shown below:
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# /etc/exports: the access control list for filesystems which may be exported
# to NFS clients. See exports(5).
#
# Example for NFSv2 and NFSv3:
# /srv/homes hostname1(rw,sync,no_subtree_check) hostname2(ro,sync,no_subtree_check)
#
# Example for NFSv4:
# /srv/nfs4 gss/krb5i(rw,sync,fsid=0,crossmnt,no_subtree_check)
# /srv/nfs4/homes gss/krb5i(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)
/opt/storage 10.50.0.0/16(rw,sync,no_root_squash,no_all_squash)
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- - `/opt/storage` is the directory to be shared.
- - `10.50.0.0/16` is the subnet where the client is hosted. You can also define specific IP addresses.
- - `rw`: Allows read and write access.
- - `sync`: Writes are carried out synchronously on the server.
- - `no_root_squash`: Allows the root user on the client to have root access on the server.
- - `no_all_squash`: Prevents squashing all UIDs and GIDs to the anonymous user.
To apply the changes, restart the NFS server using the following command:
systemctl restart nfs-kernel-server.service
4. To verify the NFS server's status and see detailed information, use the following command:
systemctl status nfs-kernel-server.service && nfsstat -o all
5. Sisense is recommended to be used with NFSv4, however, base installation of NFS-server is configured to use both NFSv3 and NFSv4 which may cause issues in future. To determine which NFS versions are currently enabled, execute the following command:
rpcinfo -p localhost
Example output:
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program vers proto port service
100000 4 tcp 111 portmapper
100000 3 tcp 111 portmapper
100000 2 tcp 111 portmapper
100000 4 udp 111 portmapper
100000 3 udp 111 portmapper
100000 2 udp 111 portmapper
100005 1 udp 40086 mountd
100005 1 tcp 37397 mountd
100005 2 udp 49598 mountd
100005 2 tcp 36581 mountd
100005 3 udp 43194 mountd
100005 3 tcp 52629 mountd
100003 3 tcp 2049 nfs
100003 4 tcp 2049 nfs
100227 3 tcp 2049
100003 3 udp 2049 nfs
100227 3 udp 2049
100021 1 udp 49651 nlockmgr
100021 3 udp 49651 nlockmgr
100021 4 udp 49651 nlockmgr
100021 1 tcp 46377 nlockmgr
100021 3 tcp 46377 nlockmgr
100021 4 tcp 46377 nlockmgr
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In this output, if you see lines like 100003 3 tcp 2049 nfs or 100003 4 tcp 2049 nfs, it means both NFSv3 and NFSv4 are enabled.
6. To disable NFSv3, you need to update the configuration file. Open the /etc/default/nfs-kernel-server file and add the following line at the end:
RPCNFSDOPTS="--no-nfs-version 2 --no-nfs-version 3"
7. To verify that only NFSv4 is now enabled, re-run the command:
rpcinfo -p localhost
Example output:
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program vers proto port service
100000 4 tcp 111 portmapper
100000 3 tcp 111 portmapper
100000 2 tcp 111 portmapper
100000 4 udp 111 portmapper
100000 3 udp 111 portmapper
100000 2 udp 111 portmapper
100005 1 udp 43740 mountd
100005 1 tcp 59499 mountd
100005 2 udp 52291 mountd
100005 2 tcp 51011 mountd
100005 3 udp 58003 mountd
100005 3 tcp 44191 mountd
100003 4 tcp 2049 nfs
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Now, you should only see NFSv4 enabled in the output.
Conclusion
In summary, by following the step-by-step instructions outlined in this article, you will establish a basic NFS server. Additionally, there are ways to achieve high availability within production storage, it's worth noting that there are methods for configuring NFS server redundancy with disk replicas. However, these advanced configurations are beyond the scope of this article, as they warrant separate research and individual consideration, tailored to the specific infrastructure requirements.
