Re: [cobalt-developers] RE: 40GB in Qube3

[Jeff Lasman <jblists@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Gerald Waugh wrote:

> > All we have to do in case of failure is "migrate" back to our restored
> > system.
> <snip>
> Yea, well how do you get mysql, php, firewall, logcheck, cobalt updates and on
> and on installed, sounds like just migrating the sites back is a half-ass job.

Second time today I've been caught with a "too simplistic" answer.  My
response was to Tim Hockin, a full-time Cobalter; I was sure he knew the
limitations of CMU.  I just didn't know if he knew people were using it
in the field to "migrate" back to the same system after a restore.

Not speaking for how others do it, but here's how we do it...

Wherever we can, we install products in the userspace of gui-created
users.  We've found that the RaQ restores such products properly.  We've
done this with some mailing list solutions and bulletin-board solutions
for our clients, and we find they get moved properly.

For programs which are NOT stored in userspace we create our own scripts
to back them up, and we write our "wrapper" script to run all of these
scripts.

For Cobalt updates and "pkgmaster" packages, we currently install them
manually, usually from our own local storage, after we rebuild the RaQ
but before we restore the CMU, but we're studying how to integrate them
into our own burns of the Cobalt Restore CDs.

We don't put the systems back on the Internet until they've been fully
rebuilt, resecured, and restored.

Personally I've ALWAYS felt better restoring all system files and
programs as if I were doing a new install, not only on Sun Cobalt RaQs,
but on generic Linux/Unix as well, and then restoring system-data.  As I
recall, that's the original purpose of 'local' directories under
Linux/Unix.

Of course you may do it differently, and I AM willing to learn, even
though sometimes I don't seem to be <smile>.

Jeff
-- 
Jeff Lasman <jblists@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Linux and Cobalt/Sun/RaQ Consulting
nobaloney.net
P. O. Box 52672, Riverside, CA  92517
voice: (909) 778-9980  *  fax: (702) 548-9484