Re: reiser4 (was Re: [PATCH] Revised extended attributes interface)

[flar@xxxxxxxx (Brad Boyer)]

Hans Reiser wrote:
> I remember that I used to be a sysadmin with some NetApp boxes that have 
> a .snapshot directory that is invisible, and has special qualities.
> 
> It worked.  There were no namespace collision problems.  None.
> 
> These things can be survived by users.;-)

Yes, these things can be survived, but speaking as someone who currently
has a job involving multiple NetApp boxes, I can say that the .snapshot
directory has some seriously annoying properties that break tar and
other programs that expect things to look normal. The snapshots have
saved my ass a few times, but they're still a pain to work with due
to a few little quirks. In particular, the files in the snapshot keep
the same inode number as the actual file. Just remember that clever
solutions that almost fit the traditional model can have strange
results over time.

        Brad Boyer
        flar@xxxxxxxxxxxxx