It is based on OpenSolaris, it is based on Debian/GNU, it features ZFS root/boot configuration, transactional apt-get dist-upgrade side by side with zpool snapshot.

And if I’m not mistaken it is the first commercial product based on OpenSolaris and not being produced by Sun Microsystems.

The audience was very open asking a lot of questions and discussing with smile on their faces various aspects of open development of OpenSolaris.

At let me say it straight, no matter how much we all expect big things from Indiana, we all agreed that the way it is communicated and developed is not very community like. Did I hear someone say something about Sun throwing the source code over the wall?

Let’s hope this will change as more and more code becomes available for the public to see.

Here are the pictures I captured, and there is the rest from Milan.

Step 1: Creating fully populated zone on your SXCE box

root@sxce# zonecfg -z sxce68 '
create -b; set zonepath=/zones/sxce68; commit'
root@sxce# zoneadm -z sxce68 install
root@sxce# zoneadm -z sxce68 detach

Step 2: Transfering zone to your Nexenta box

Use whatever mechanism is comfortable for you. I have chosen to create my zone on ZFS pool created on USB flash disk that I can just zpool export and zpool import later.

Step 3: Fooling zonecfg and booting

root@nexenta# zonecfg -z sxce68 '
create -b; set zonepath=/zones/sxce68; commit'
# instead of using 'zonecfg attach' we just
# manually change /etc/zones/index
# to indicate that sxce68 is installed
root@nexenta# vi /etc/zones/index
root@nexenta# zoneadm -z sxce68 boot

Networking, services, etc. are left to the reader as a homework.

# apt-get snapshot
Cloning the root file system
to syspool/backup-2007-06-26:17:50
Please use /sbin/update-grub to refresh
the list of available boot environments


…when I found the post about playing with the ZFS boot on NexentaCP envisioning the very same idea.

Guys, we are actually very close to implementing this on Nexenta Operating System. Allmost all the bits and pieces are in place.

The only thing that is missing for me is the ability to override the bootfs property from the GRUB bootloader, so that you don’t need to specify where to boot from as the pool’s property:

zpool set bootfs=syspool/myrootfs syspool


Anyways, this is going to be very exciting, because it will solve the non-existence of the backout option that I have been hearing about many times as being the major drawback of the Debian’s package management system.

I have met here a lot of really interesting (and famous - in the world of Debian/GNU Linux) people. My impression is that the atmosphere was just amazing, very friendly, open, productive, …. Well, we had some discussions about various license related issues, but as long as we behave as rational people and as long as there exists a common sense I’m not worried.

The picture above shows Tom Marble of Sun and Mathias Klose of Canonical talking about how to best package various Java upstreams available on the market for Debian/GNU Linux, Ubuntu, and later I hope even for Nexenta.

I have taken a chance to present some nice OpenSolaris features like zoneadm clone smoothly integrated within Nexenta.

It’s a pitty I had no more time to spend at DebConf2007, but I’m already looking forward the DebConf2008. The videos of the presentations are becoming available one after one.

The new flash demos about pbuilder running on top ZFS powered OpenSolaris Zones (that are able to host the Debian/4.0 Etch and other Linux distros thanx to BrandZ extension) are all available at my Nexenta Pages.

There is also new flash demo available for Nexenta/Debian/Ubuntu newbies that will teach you how to modify existing Debian Package and install it from your custom private APT Repository. Check it out on my Nexenta pages.

The reason was that immediately after the conference, I flew to Havana, Cuba and have been traveling around the beautiful island with very friendly people and talented musicians. I love Cuba and I hate to see the current political situation there with the people suffering no matter who caused it.

I hope you will enjoy the presentation as did the people at the conference…

Show me the presentation…