USENIX Technical Program - Abstract - USENIX Annual
Conference, Freenix Session - June 2000
Swarm: A Log-Structured Storage System for Linux
Ian Murdock and John H. Hartman, The University of Arizona
Abstract
Swarm is a storage system for Linux that provides scalable, reliable,
and cost-effective data storage. At its lowest level, Swarm implements a
log-structured interface to a cluster of storage devices. Above the log,
Swarm provides an infrastructure that allows high-level abstractions and
functionality to be implemented easily and efficiently. This paper
describes the design and implementation of Swarm, paying particular
attention to the Swarm infrastructure and how it has been used to
construct two storage systems: Sting, a log-structured file system for
Linux, and ext2fs/Swarm, a Swarm-based version of the Linux ext2 file
system that runs unmodified above a block device compatibility layer.
The paper concludes with a discussion of our experiences using Linux as
a platform for research.
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