[LUG Merseyside] Liverpool Linux User Group Meeting - 2nd Dec 2009

[Andrew Williams]

Liverpool Linux User Group Meeting - December 2009
Date Wed December 2nd, 2009 from 7:00pm - 8:00pm 
Location: Liverpool Social Centre, 96 Bold Street, Liverpool, England L1 4HY 
Speaker: Tom Hall - RAID and LVM: Why you want them, what they do, how to do it in Linux. 

Liverpool Linux User Group are a group of Linux and open source software users that meet on the first Wednesday 
of the month. If no talk is organised then we will usually organise a “open stage” for people to discuss 
projects, current news, or just to rant. 

Main Talk
Tom Hall will be giving a talk; RAID and LVM: Why you want them, what they do, how to do it in Linux.

This talk introduces the block device (the abstraction that most filesystems expect to consume), and two useful 
ways of creating them.

Tom will explain how devices can be combined for performance and redundancy, including a discussion of the 
performance characteristics of RAID 0, 10, 5 and 6, a good rule of thumb for provisioning storage, how linux does 
it, RAIDs failings (and how smart hardware tries to avoids them). Tom will also explain how LVM works, go though 
some examples (including mirroring and striping and using it for KVM disks). He will try to also talk about 
network block protocols like iSCSI and AoE, Distributed Replicated Block Device and the Network Block Device.

In the new year (or the pub) Tom will be talking about how the ZFS/btrfs filesystems collapse the stack and do 
something like what RAID/LVM do by (depending on your view) telescoping some complexity or rampantly violating 
layers.

Open Stage
As per usual, time will be allocated to the end of the talk for anyone to give a five minute talk on any subject. 
If you want some time just drop me a mail or grab me on the day. 

Doors are usually open before 7:00pm if people want to meet up in the centre, The Liverpool Social Centre is two 
doors up from Forbidden Planet and is the right-hand door at the front of “News From Nowhere”. Check the window 
for a handy Liverpool LUG sign, which will indicate we are there and not still at the pub. Press the white 
doorbell for access (the one marked basement) and someone will come up and open the door for you. 

Be aware that we also share the LSC with a book group, so when someone answers the door just ask for the Linux 
User Group in the basement and you should be OK. Accordingly, the centre is having issues with the doorbell so if 
no one answers give one of the contacts a call to let you in, the number will be posted on the poster in the 
window.

After any talks are finished will usually stay in the meeting area until 8:00pm then head out to a local pub, The 
pub varies from month to month and usually depends on the size of the crowd. If you arrive late and unsure of 
where we are then give one of the contacts a ring.

Website: http://livlug.org.uk/ 
Meeting Details: http://livlug.org.uk/meetings:2009_december 
Upcoming.org: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/4878734
Geekery.in: http://www.geekery.in/liverpool/events/2009/12/02/liverpool-linux-user-group-meeting