MooseFS 4 Community Edition is Here!
We are thrilled to announce the release of the highly anticipated MooseFS 4.x Community Edition!
As an open-source solution, this new version brings an impressive array of exciting new features and enhancements that our community has been eagerly asking about. MooseFS 4.x introduces significant improvements over the previous 3.x version, offering powerful new capabilities and more efficient data storage solutions that address the needs of modern data environments.
We have a long-standing and strong commitment to the open-source community. Since 2005 we have been passionately involved in supporting and contributing to open-source initiatives. Our philosophy is to provide this superb tool to everyone who wants to use it, as we firmly believe in the power of open-source software and the strength of the community. By making MooseFS 4.x available to all, we continue to uphold our dedication to openness, collaboration, and the shared pursuit of technological innovation.
Erasure Coding and Space Optimisation
One of the most notable new features in MooseFS 4.x is the introduction of Erasure Coding (EC) in an 8+1 as well as 4+1 format. This innovative coding approach allows for significant space savings without compromising data integrity or protection. In traditional replication methods, data chunks are typically stored in multiple copies, which can occupy a substantial amount of space; for example, storing a chunk in 2 copies would normally use 200% of the required storage capacity. With the new EC8+1 coding format, you can achieve a comparable level of data protection while using only about 112.5% of the space needed for the actual data, and with EC4+1, 125%. This approach allows for more efficient data storage with significantly reduced overhead compared to non-Erasure Coding solutions, making MooseFS 4.x an excellent choice for data-intensive open-source applications.
New features and enhancements in MooseFS 4.x
The new chunk format includes better handling of control sums, which enhances data integrity and system reliability. We have also revamped the web-based interface, providing more detailed information, numerous new charts for monitoring, and an overall improved charting system that offers better insights into system performance. MooseFS 4.x introduces new multilan configuration options that allow clients in different LANs to communicate with the master within their IP class, enhancing network efficiency and performance.
The IP remapping feature in MooseFS 4.x has been significantly enhanced with the introduction of a more flexible remap file. This new configuration allows for full custom IP-to-IP remapping, enabling users to define completely custom mappings between IP addresses rather than being limited to the fixed remapping of leading bits as in previous versions. This improvement provides greater control over network configurations, making it easier to adapt MooseFS to complex network environments and specific infrastructure needs.
MooseFS 4.x also includes new configuration options that allow users to define flags and set limits for disks storing chunks, particularly when these disks are shared with other processes. This improvement enables more accurate calculation of occupied and available space, optimizing storage efficiency. Additionally, a new tool has been introduced for offline searching of metadata files based on conditions like chunk IDs, inodes, and attributes, greatly enhancing the ability to manage and locate specific data within the system.
The logging system in MooseFS 4.x has been significantly improved to enhance clarity and control. Log messages are now categorized by severity levels, allowing users to configure what should be logged and how these logs are reported to syslog. Additionally, there are numerous other new features and improvements in this version, such as enhanced tools for ACL handling, a new chunk format with better control sum management, and a variety of updates to existing algorithms that make MooseFS faster, more efficient, and less prone to errors in edge cases. With improvements in metadata handling, a new web-based interface for better monitoring, and expanded configuration options, MooseFS 4.x is designed to deliver a more powerful and flexible storage solution for our community. These enhancements are just the tip of the iceberg, with many other quality-of-life improvements aimed at making your data management experience smoother and more efficient.
More details
For more detailed information, be sure to check the release notes for the latest version, which include updates, new features, and bug fixes. You can explore the complete project code, contribute to development, or report issues directly on the project’s GitHub repository.
Looking Ahead
MooseFS 4.x represents a significant leap forward in our ongoing commitment to delivering robust, efficient, and user-friendly distributed file system solutions to our community. This new version not only introduces cutting-edge features and enhancements but also maintains the exceptional stability, ease of use, and manageability that users have come to rely on from previous versions. MooseFS continues to offer a dependable and intuitive solution for managing data storage, combining advanced capabilities with a user-friendly experience.
We are excited to see how these new features and improvements will empower our users to better manage their data storage needs. As always, we welcome feedback and encourage our community to explore these new capabilities to their fullest potential. Your input helps us to continually refine MooseFS and ensure it meets the evolving demands of our users.
MooseFS PRO
If you are looking for high availability (HA) for master servers, improved disk space management with enhanced data protection through EC configurations with higher redundancy levels, and dedicated support, we also offer the MooseFS PRO version. This version is designed for enterprise environments where uptime and data integrity are critical, providing features like automatic failover for master servers, more advanced erasure coding for greater resilience against hardware failures, and professional support services to ensure smooth operation and rapid issue resolution. MooseFS PRO adds an extra layer of reliability and optimisation for those managing large-scale, mission-critical storage systems.
Stay tuned!
Stay tuned for upcoming updates! Where we’ll continue to enhance the project with new features, improvements, and fixes. Be sure to follow the repository to receive notifications on the latest changes.