View source for CXFS

{{Short description|Clustered file system}}
{{Infobox Filesystem |
name = CXFS |
full_name = CXFS |
developer = [[Silicon Graphics Inc.]] |
introduction_os = [[IRIX]] v5.3 |
introduction_date = {{Start date and age|1994}} |
partition_id = |
directory_struct = [[B+ tree]]s|
file_struct = extent based|
bad_blocks_struct = |
max_filename_size = 255 [[byte]]s|
max_files_no = |
max_volume_size = 17 [[exabyte]]s | 
max_file_size = 8.5 [[exabyte]]s |
filename_character_set = All bytes except NUL |
dates_recorded = Yes |
date_range = |
forks_streams = Yes (called extended attributes)|
attributes =  |
file_system_permissions = Yes |
compression = No |
encryption = No (provided at the block device level) |
OS = Server: [[IRIX]], [[Linux]], Clients: [[IRIX]], [[Solaris (operating system)|Solaris]], [[Linux]], [[Mac OS X]], [[AIX operating system|AIX]], [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]
}}
The '''CXFS file system''' (Clustered [[XFS]]) is a [[proprietary software|proprietary]] [[shared disk file system]] designed by [[Silicon Graphics]] (SGI) specifically to be used in a [[storage area network]] (SAN) environment.

A significant difference between CXFS and other shared disk file systems is that data and [[metadata]] are managed separately from each other. CXFS provides direct access to data via the SAN for all hosts which will act as clients. This means that a client is able to access file data via the fiber connection to the SAN, rather than over a [[local area network]] such as [[Ethernet]]  (as is the case in most other distributed file systems, like [[Network File System (protocol)|NFS]]). File metadata however, is managed via a ''metadata broker''. The metadata communication is performed via TCP/IP and Ethernet.

Another difference is that file locks are managed by the metadata broker, rather than the individual host clients. This results in the elimination of a number of problems which typically plague distributed file systems.

Though CXFS supports having a heterogeneous environment (including [[Solaris (operating system)|Solaris]], [[Linux]], [[Mac OS X]], [[AIX operating system|AIX]] and [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]), either SGI's [[IRIX]] Operating System or [[Linux]] is required to be installed on the host which acts as the metadata broker.

== See also ==
* [[List of file systems]]
* [[Shared disk file system]]

== External links ==
* [http://www.sgi.com/products/storage/software/cxfs.html SGI info about CXFS]

{{File systems}}

[[Category:Distributed file systems supported by the Linux kernel]]
[[Category:IRIX]]
[[Category:Shared disk file systems]]