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You can download the install disk from ftp://oss.sgi.com/projects/xfs/download/latest/installer/. i386 is currently the only architecture supported.

Obtaining XFS

XFS isn't included in any of the stable or development kernels. So you'll need to obtain and apply patches from the XFS web site or use CVS to get a prepatched kernel.

Using CVS to obtain a patched kernel

Since XFS is not included with any official kernel releases, CVS is by far the easiest way to obtain an XFS-ready kernel. To obtain a kernel with XFS support using CVS, execute the following commands:

# cd /usr/src

# export CVSROOT=':pserver:cvs@oss.sgi.com:/cvs'

# cvs login

(Logging in to cvs@oss.sgi.com)

CVS password: cvs

# cvs -z3 checkout linux-2.4-xfs

After the cvs command completes, you will be left with the directory /usr/src/linux-2.4-xfs. The linux subdirectory contains the XFS kernel, and the cmd subdirectory contains the user-space programs needed to manage XFS partitions. Skip ahead to the section Compiling the Kernel with XFS Support for instructions on enabling XFS features.

Patching the kernel

If using CVS isn't agreeable, you can download a patch and apply it to a clean kernel. Grab the file that corresponds to your kernel version from ftp://oss.sgi.com/projects/xfs/download/patches. There is also a patch-2.5 directory for those working with development kernels.

Decompress the patch and apply it to your kernel:

# cd /usr/src/linux-2.4.19

# patch -p1 < /usr/src/xfs-2.4.19-all-i386

A list of successfully patched files is printed on the screen. If errors are reported, it's likely that you didn't apply the XFS patch to a clean kernel. Download a new kernel and try to apply the patch again.

Compiling the Kernel with XFS Support

Whether you applied a patch or obtained an XFS kernel using CVS, XFS support (CONFIG_XFS_FS) will already be enabled under the Filesystems submenu. Note that development support is enabled, as indicated by the experimental options that appear. I'm using a 2.4.19 kernel in this example, as it is the kernel currently available via CVS.

File systems --->

[...]

<*> SGI XFS filesystem support

[ ] Realtime support (EXPERIMENTAL)

[*] Quota support

[ ] DMAPI support

[ ] Debugging support (EXPERIMENTAL)

[ ] Pagebuf debugging support (EXPERIMENTAL)

Quota support (CONFIG_XFS_QUOTA) is also enabled by default, but if you don't need disk quotas, you can disable this option. The remaining options provide support for additional features, and many of them are still experimental. If you don't require the specific support that these features provide, it's best to leave them disabled.

Real-time support (CONFIG_XFS_RT) allows the use of a data-only portion of an XFS partition. That means reduced overhead for metaoperations and results in increased data throughput. Real-time support is useful for streaming media. Refer to the xfs(5) manual page for more information.

DMAPI support (CONFIG_XFS_DMAPI) provides an interface for the Data Management API, which allows XFS to support hierarchical storage. (Hierarchical storage is an attempt to provide translucent access between filesystems and backup systems.) For more information on DMAPI and XFS, refer to http://oss.sgi.com/projects/xfs/dmapi.html.

Debugging support (CONFIG_XFS_DEBUG) is intended for developers and should never be used unless you are troubleshooting a problem and have exhausted other attempts at problem resolution. The same caveat applies to pagebuf debugging support (CONFIG_PAGEBUF_DEBUG).

Building the XFS Utilities

Once you have restarted your system with an XFS kernel, you will need to install the XFS tools before you can create and manage filesystems. If you obtained your kernel using CVS, you already have a copy of the XFS utilities.

# cd /usr/src/linux-2.4-xfs/cmd/xfsprogs

# make install

Alternatively, you can download a tarball containing the source code from ftp://oss.sgi.com/projects/xfs/download/cmd_tars/xfsprogs-2.1.2.src.tar.gz. SGI also