24.2 Upgrading the Media Format for Hard Links Support

An enhanced NSS media format is available that provides improved support for hard links. After you install or upgrade your operating system to Novell Open Enterprise Server 2, you can decide whether to upgrade the media format for your NSS volumes to use the new metadata structure; some restrictions apply. For information, see Section 4.1, Guidelines for Upgrading the Media Format of NSS Volumes.

24.2.1 New Metadata Structure Supports Up to 65,535 Hard Links for a File

NSS volumes can support up to 65,535 hard links for a file, regardless of the length of the filename and the number of name spaces used. To use hard links on these operating systems, you must upgrade the NSS volume to use a new metadata structure.

24.2.2 Old Metadata Structure Supports Limited Hard Links for a File

Previously, NSS volumes support only a limited number of hard links for a file. These volumes use a metadata structure that provides limited space for the file’s filenames across all name spaces.

With the old metadata structure, the number of hard links you can use for a file depends on the length of the names you choose for a file, and how those names can be shared across the UNIX, Long, DOS, and Macintosh name spaces. It is also limited by the amount of space available in the metadata structure.

IMPORTANT:The sum total of all metadata for a file cannot exceed 2 KB. In the old metadata structure, this includes all hard link names. The longer the names are, the fewer hard links you can create.

If you reach the 2 KB metadata limit, you cannot create new hard links until you make room for them. Use any of the following methods:

  • Delete one or more hard links for the file.

  • Create hard links for the file with shorter names that can be stored optimally in each name space.

  • Rename the original file with a shorter name that can be stored optimally in each name space.