On Sun, 18 Feb 2007 14:25:57 +0100 Michel Talon <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Of course it is none of my business, but i have always wandered about the > real usefulness of a clustering OS in the context of free systems, <snip> > Small installations are the natural target of free > systems, and in this context i remain convinced that the clustering ideas > have an utility next to null. Well personally I can see uses for a clustering OS mostly for the purpose of minimising the impact of hardware failures so that instead of running each service and environment I need on a different machine I can run them on different clusters supported by redundant resources on several machines. Right now I mirror data among machines to prevent loss but if one machine is down then everything I do on that machine is unavailable until I either replace that machine or bring it's services and so forth up on another machine. With clusters providing an abstraction between machines and computing environments and bringing some degree of redundancy I hope to be able to do better. Spreading one big environment over a huge number of machines is indeed something that those with money to burn can do, spreading several small environments over a few machines is something that would be nice to be able to do. -- C:>WIN | Directable Mirror Arrays The computer obeys and wins. | A better way to focus the sun You lose and Bill collects. | licences available see | http://www.sohara.org/