On Wednesday 28 Jan 2004 3:01 pm, Ron Herardian wrote: > Hello, > > When installing everything and allowing for future updates and packages I > am using the following disk layout: > > Mount Point Size > /boot 100MB > / 500MB > /usr 4GB > /var 2GB > swap 2x physical RAM, e.g., 1GB > /home TBD, e.g., 1GB per user > /opt TBD/catchall [3rd party servers will be installed here] > > I want to have enough space on required partitions but not waste space on > infrequently modified filesystems where add-on packages will probably not > go. > > I'd like to get an idea what other folks are doing in terms of disk > layouts. What are the best practices? > > Ron > This is something that I have considered a lot, since I first started using Unix back in 1985. It very much depends on what you are using the system for and how much disk space is available. Generally, you should not let filesystems get more than about 75% full because performance can start to tail off. I use 2.5x physical RAM for swap and have multiple swap partitions for good measure. My layout is / 1GB /boot 256 MB /tmp 4 GB /usr 8 GB /usr/local 8GB (aka /opt) /usr/src 16GB /var 8GB /home 52 GB Never, underestimate how much disk space users use. My 52GB /home has 18GB of data stored on it by 1 user (me). I would recommend allowing at least 16GB per user nowadays. I also link /var/tmp/ -> /tmp so all the true temporary areas are using storage in one place (/usr/tmp is already linked to /var/tmp). What you are trying to avoid is a rogue hog (process) from filling either /usr or /var thus causing instabilities in your system. Hope this helps, I have based my current system design on years of experience, (and no decent LVM, not like AIX anyhow) probably not valid nowadays but old habits ... and having 2x80GB RAID-1 disks helps. The real question you have to answer is what is a good backup/recovery strategy for your system. Disks may be more reliable nowadays but this still break when you least expect ! -- Alan D
