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Index path pointing to something like a CIF share on Isilon?
Networker 8.2.3.8, on Windows 2012r2
Hi all.
I find surprisingly little information online about this, given how large indexes can grow. I have one particular client index that is 505gb alone. Im trying to test a different client, while pointing its index path to a folder I have created on an Isilon cif share. i have added the share as a mapped drive on my Networker server (I: drive), and can access anything in the share, as expected. But, when I place that drive letter in the index path, it errors with "failed to create index directory I:\ : No such file or directory."
So, i thought it may not like translating that drive letter, so I entered the full path. When i do that, I get "access denied." Thats more promising, but the credentials should already be in place.
I would be surprised if there is no way to do this. Anyone successfully been able to pull this off? And if so, are there any downsides to doing that, like maybe a performance hit, because the index repository would be somewhere else?
Thanks!
Todd
wlee
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April 12th, 2017 11:00
It is recommended to store the NetWorker databases on a different volume from the operating system. SAN volumes are an excellent choice because they allow for higher I/O loads along with advanced features like cloning and replication. NAS storage is not recommended for the NetWorker databases.
Th reason why it did not work when you use "I:\ " is because the mapped drive I:\ was local to your login process, and this resource is not shared or accessible to other processes (e.g. nsrindexd) running on Windows.
Networker runs using a specific start-up account, and that account would need adequate permissions and privileges to access a network share - such as a CIFS. When NetWorker is installed, the service is configured to use the local system account to start up the service. This local system account does not have networking privileges, and therefore in this scenario NetWorker would not be able to access the CIFS. This is the most likely reason why you are getting "Access denied" error.
I definitely would not advise restarting NetWorker server with a different account. Doing so can cause a lot of problems that you may not anticipate, and undoing the problems is very painful.
There is a performance hit when accessing data on a network storage... compared to SAN storage or local disk storage.
Workaround: use larger local or SAN disk volumes. Shorten your client's browse time to reduce the index size.
Supplemental information:
How to Move a Client File Index to a New Location
https://support.emc.com/kb/336097
For a video demonstration see:
How to move a client file Index to an alternate location:
https://support.emc.com/media49097_How_to_move_a_client_file_Index_to_an_alternate_location.mp4?language=en_US