ZFS Read/Write Developer Beta for Leopard

[drlunanerd]

I'm not so sure about that. Support for booting an OS from a drive formatted as ZFS doesn't just magically appear as soon as the filesystem appears.

Actually it does. You just need a boot loader that understands the file system(s) you want to boot from. "Supported by Apple" is something else.

 

[Sbrocket]

Actually it does. You just need a boot loader that understands the file system(s) you want to boot from. "Supported by Apple" is something else.

Ok, that's my point. You have to wait for someone with a bootloader that supports booting from ZFS, it doesn't just magically appear.

 

[Krevnik]

No, it wouldn't. You can boot an Intel Mac with file systems other than HFS+ right now. Nothing to do with firmware. You're confusing BIOS emulation in EFI I think

Not really... the reason why BIOS can boot different FS formats so readily is because it uses a master boot record on the drive. (Windows still uses this)
This master boot record contains the core bootloader that BIOS runs. In EFI, there is no such replacement. Instead, you have modules that load that understand how to read the bootloader off a partition. Now, it isn't entirely impossible to get ZFS working without flashing new firmware, but it would require writing an EFI module that is loaded before it goes hunting for the kernel.

With Apple having access to the firmware, they would very likely just have people flash a new EFI image with the ZFS module included, as it helps preserve more of the Apple experience during boot that EFI doesn't provide on its own.

If you want to know about the specifics of booting using EFI, the guy who worked on the initial Windows booting hacks wrote up some good information which I think still floats around OnMac.net

 

[toke lahti]

I wouldn't expect any GUI tools for ZFS until 10.6 or beyond. Probably not the default boot volume until 10.7 if ever.

I'd be a bit more optimistic: write 10.5.2, boot & GUI 10.5.6 and default boot 10.6.0 (2009/2010?).

 

[drlunanerd]

Ok, that's my point. You have to wait for someone with a bootloader that supports booting from ZFS, it doesn't just magically appear.

And my point is that you don't have to wait: ZFS booting is here already.

 

[kiko69]

And my point is that you don't have to wait: ZFS booting is here already.

Seeing as Sun is still having issues being able to boot from zfs filessystems, I would really doubt that the current EFI could boot a zfs filesystem.

Sun is trying to hash out the problem of how to determine what is the boot disk when zfs is in use, since /etc/vfstab is not used for zfs.

 

[notsofatjames]

You can easily set up MacFUSE from Google to NTFS read/write support. Just because Apple doesn't jump the gun and add buggy closed-source filesystem support to the core OS doesn't mean that it is impossible.

I didn't say it was impossible. I was just referring to the previous post that said why include zfs read but not write. Merely showing him that it definitely wouldn't be something that apple wouldn't do. confused: double negative).
I do agree though how it is an open source file system, apple could implement it in 10.5

 

[cluster2600]

testing ZFS

hello all,

I downloaded the beta package and i am testing:

sh-3.2# zpool upgrade -v
This system is currently running ZFS version 6.

The following versions are supported:

VER DESCRIPTION
--- --------------------------------------------------------
1 Initial ZFS version
2 Ditto blocks (replicated metadata)
3 Hot spares and double parity RAID-Z
4 zpool history
5 Compression using the gzip algorithm
6 bootfs pool property and OSX directory type
For more information on a particular version, including supported releases, see:

http://www.opensolaris.org/os/community/zfs/version/N

Where 'N' is the version number.
sh-3.2# chmod -R 777 /Volumes/piszkos/
sh-3.2# zpool history piszkos
History for 'piszkos':
2007-10-06.12:35:16 zpool create piszkos disk1s1
2007-10-06.12:37:35 zfs set compression=on piszkos

so i checked an i can tell you that version 6 cannot boot on x86 even in solaris but version 8 can be patient guys

i formated my external firewire drive in zfs and activated compression just to see what is happening i am copying some films on it about 90 GB.

the disk is now recognized as a volume tho.

I will keep you updated.

 

[72930]

I'd be a bit more optimistic: write 10.5.2, boot & GUI 10.5.6 and default boot 10.6.0 (2009/2010?).

That would be awesome...default to coincide with Time Machine 2 to take advantage of the new stuff

 

[cluster2600]

zfs testing

Update:
Time machine is NOT compatible with ZFS :-( i will go cry now.
Unfortunatly i am beginning to think that 10.5 is a much ado about nothing, like W_ _ _ _ _s vista there is a lot of new cosmetic and a backup software for users. Thats it! imaybe they are going to announce the "secrets" at the end of october we'll see.

M.

 

[mack3r]

Update:
Unfortunatly i am beginning to think that 10.5 is a much ado about nothing, like W_ _ _ _ _s vista there is a lot of new cosmetic and a backup software for users. Thats it! imaybe they are going to announce the "secrets" at the end of october we'll see.

M.

That's a patently stupid comment. Merry Christmas!

 

[MikeTheC]

My two hopes for ZFS are as follows:

1. Apple fully adopts it;
2. OSS/FSF fully adopts it.

If these two things happen, it'll possibly trigger another nail to be fired into Microsoft's coffin. Though I might be just a wee bit premature at this point to think that.