[comp.unix.questions] file system fragmentation

goer@sophist.uucp (Richard Goerwitz) (02/09/90)

I have run into some file system fragmentation after long and hard
use of a hybrid SysV file system (Xenix/386 2.3.3).  Certainly
I could purchase a degragmenter (or obtain packdisk), but for
many purposes this is not necessary (say a basically smooth
file system with just a handful of annoyingly fragmented files).
I've been told that rebuilding the free list (fsck -S) is a good
way to keep things from getting worse (after moving the offending
files out of the file system).  My only question is whether there
is any reason not to run fsck -S on the root file system.

   -Richard L. Goerwitz              goer%sophist@uchicago.bitnet
   goer@sophist.uchicago.edu         rutgers!oddjob!gide!sophist!goer

davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (Wm E. Davidsen Jr) (02/12/90)

  You don't want to run fsck on ANY mounted filesystem. This is why
xenix provides the -rr (recover root) option to sync, unmount, clean,
and remount in one swell foop.

  I don't know if you can use the -S option with -rr, but I would not
run fsck on root without the -rr option, or the in core tables can get
out of phase with the disk.
-- 
	bill davidsen - sysop *IX BBS and Public Access UNIX
davidsen@sixhub.uucp		...!uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen

"Getting old is bad, but it beats the hell out of the alternative" -anon