OneFS does not automatically select LIN-based jobs to run.

Summary: OneFS does not automatically select LIN-based jobs in situations where it would be more efficient to run them. This Knowledge Base explains when LIN-based jobs are more effective.

This article applies to This article does not apply to This article is not tied to any specific product. Not all product versions are identified in this article.
Check out other resources

Symptoms

On clusters with all SSDs configured for Metadata, jobs such as FlexProtect and AutoBalance would run faster and more efficiently if their LIN-equivalents were selected. FlexProtectLIN and AutotBalanceLIN can leverage the metadata on the SSDs and progress faster.

On clusters with SSDs configured as L3 cache, or with no SSDs present, the normal FlexProtect and AutoBalance jobs are more efficient. 

By default, the regular (non-LIN) versions of the jobs automatically run when required by OneFS.

The White Paper on the OneFS job engine states: 
"Certain jobs such as FlexProtect have a corresponding job provided with a name suffixed by LIN, for example FlexProtectLIN. This indicates that the job will automatically use an SSD-based copy of metadata, where available, to scan the LIN tree, rather than the drives themselves. Depending on the workflow, this often significantly improves job runtime performance."


OneFS Job Engine Whitepaper (Page 30)
https://www.delltechnologies.com/resources/en-us/asset/white-papers/products/storage/h12570-wp-isilon-onefs-job-engine.pdf


Due to a design change, the automatic part of the above statement is not true.
This is a manual configuration using:
# isi_gconfig -t job-config jobs.common.lin_based_jobs=True

Cause

This is due to a OneFS code design. The OneFS Job Engine whitepaper is incorrect and will be updated to correctly reflect this behavior in a future revision.

Resolution

The current setting can be viewed using the following command:

# isi_gconfig -t job-config jobs.common.lin_based_jobs


On clusters with all SSDs configured for Metadata, set the 'jobs.common.lin_based_jobs' parameter to true. The cluster runs AutobalanceLIN or FlexprotectLIN whenever needed.

# isi_gconfig -t job-config jobs.common.lin_based_jobs=true


On clusters with SSDs configured as L3 cache, no SSDs, or with mixed SSD configurations, set the 'jobs.common.lin_based_jobs' parameter to false. The cluster runs Autobalance or FlexProtect when needed. This is the default setting.

# isi_gconfig -t job-config jobs.common.lin_based_jobs=false
 

Note:  Setting this parameter incorrectly does not cause harm to the cluster, but the corresponding jobs may progress slower and less efficiently.

Affected Products

Isilon, Isilon, Isilon Gen6.5, Isilon Gen6, Isilon SmartPools
Article Properties
Article Number: 000212030
Article Type: Solution
Last Modified: 17 May 2026
Version:  6
Find answers to your questions from other Dell users
Support Services
Check if your device is covered by Support Services.