Sophie: coda-doc-5.2.0-4mdk noarch

coda-doc-5.2.0-4mdk.noarch.rpm

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2 Final//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
 <META NAME="GENERATOR" CONTENT="SGML-Tools 1.0.9">
 <TITLE>Coda File System  User and System Administrators Manual: Preface                                        </TITLE>
 <LINK HREF="manual-2.html" REL=next>

 <LINK HREF="manual.html#toc1" REL=contents>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<A HREF="manual-2.html">Next</A>
Previous
<A HREF="manual.html#toc1">Contents</A>
<HR>
<H2><A NAME="Preface"></A> <A NAME="s1">1. Preface                                        </A></H2>

<P>Welcome to Coda!  Whether you are at Carnegie Mellon or elsewhere, 
we hope that this manual will help you make effective use of the Coda
File System.  The manual is written from two different perspectives:
end user and system administrator.  Chapters 
<A HREF="manual-2.html#GettingStarted">GettingStarted</A>

through 
<A HREF="manual-4.html#TroubleShooting">TroubleShooting</A>
 are intended for end users, while
Chapters 
<A HREF="manual-3.html#SystemOverview">SystemOverview</A>
 through 
<A HREF="manual-13.html#ReinitCoda">ReinitCoda</A>
 are
intended for system administrators.  Also, 
<A HREF="manual-14.html#SourceLayout">SourceLayout</A>

gives an overview of the Coda source tree layout.  The Unix-style man
pages in Appendix 
<A HREF="manual-19.html#ManPages">ManPages</A>
 provide the gory details of
Coda commands and file formats.
<P>In writing this manual, we have assumed that you are an experienced
Unix user, familiar with the broad concepts of distributed file
systems.  If you are a system administrator, we assume that you are
familiar with administering Unix systems.  You will find Coda
especially easy to use if you are already fluent in using AFS.
<P>We have also assumed that you are familiar with the design goals and
architecture of Coda.  The best way to learn about these is to read
the overview and design rationale papers on Coda </I>], </I>], </I>].  We urge you to obtain copies of these papers and to
read them before attempting to use Coda.  Those papers provide context
and information upon which this manual relies and does not repeat.  
<P>Since Coda is an experimental system and not a commercial product, you
will inevitably encounter rough edges.  Within the limits of our
resources, we will do our best to fix these problems and to improve
the system over time.  But we do ask that you try to characterize the
problem as accurately as possible, and to try and obtain a repeatable
and concise instance of it.
<P>We encourage you to talk to other Coda users and to share your
experience.  If you are at CMU-SCS, you should subscribe to the Coda
bulletin boards.  The three most important ones for you as an end user
are <CODE>cmu.cs.proj.coda.{general,laptops,bugs}</CODE>.
Report bugs that you find to the latter bboard.  System administrators
should also subscribe to the
<CODE>cmu.cs.proj.coda.{changelog,backuplogs}</CODE>.
<P>After you have taken the time to learn the system well, please give us your
feedback.  We would like to improve the system and this manual.
<P>
<P>
<H2><A NAME="ss1.1">1.1 Further Reading </A>
</H2>

<P>
<P>Besides the three papers mentioned above, there are a number of papers that 
address specific aspects of Coda.  These include:
<UL>
<LI>A description of the MiniCache, which allows the client manager to
reside outside the kernel without excessive loss of performance </I>].</LI>
<LI>A description and performance analysis of the technique used in Coda for 
transparent directory resolution </I>].</LI>
<LI>A manual on the remote procedure call, <EM>RPC2,</EM> and threading,
<EM>LWP,</EM> mechanisms used in Coda </I>].</LI>
<LI>A paper and manual on the transactional facility, <EM>RVM,</EM> used
on Coda clients and servers </I>],
</I>].</LI>
<LI>A detailed description of support for disconnected operation in
Coda </I>].  Chapter 4 of this document offers an
excellent overview of the implementation structure of clients and
servers.</LI>
<LI>A discussion of relevant security issues and mechanisms to address
them </I>].  This paper discusses security in
AFS-2, but the mechanisms in Coda are virtually identical.</LI>
</UL>
<P>
<P>
<H2><A NAME="ss1.2">1.2 Acknowledgements </A>
</H2>

<P>
<P>Coda is the work of many individuals.  Contributors to the design and
implementation of various aspects of the system include: Jay Kistler,
Puneet Kumar, David Steere, Lily Mummert, Maria Ebling,
M. Satyanarayanan, Hank Mashburn, Brian Noble, Lu Qi, Josh Raiff,
Ellen Siegel, Anders Klemets, and Kudo Masahi.  Many of these
individuals have also contributed to the writing of this manual.  The
system has improved considerably in response to feedback from users
outside the Coda project.  The earliest of these users (Tom Mitchell,
Manuela Veloso, and Matt Zekauskas) deserve special thanks for their
willingness to sail into uncharted waters!
<P>
<P>
<H2><A NAME="ss1.3">1.3 Reading List </A>
</H2>

<P>
<P>
<HR>
<A HREF="manual-2.html">Next</A>
Previous
<A HREF="manual.html#toc1">Contents</A>
</BODY>
</HTML>