NSS Components

During file system operation, the traditional NetWare file system makes use of NetWare partitions, volumes, directories, and files. NSS makes use of NSS partitions, storage groups, NSS volumes, directories, and files.

NSS and the traditional NetWare file system run side-by-side. You can create as many NetWare volumes or NSS volumes as you need with your available space. The choice is yours as long as one NetWare partition exists on the server containing volume Sys.

NSS also provides support for mounting CD-ROMs as volumes. Through NSS, mounting CD-ROMs is simpler and faster than ever before.

After reading this section, use the NWCONFIG utility to create NSS volumes. Use NWCONFIG or the NSS Administration menus to reconfigure storage groups and NSS volumes as your data storage requirements grow or change (see Configure NSS Using NWCONFIG and Using the NSS Administration Menus).


What Free Space NSS Can Use

NSS scans each of your devices to find free space for NSS to use, and lists the free space as a separate storage deposit. From this pool of storage deposits, you can select how much space you want NSS to claim ownership of. When NSS claims the free space on a device, it becomes an NSS managed object. From NSS managed objects, you can create storage groups and NSS volumes.

In NetWare 5, free space is recognized in two forms:

IMPORTANT:  We suggest that you do not mix NetWare volume free space with unpartitioned free space when creating your NSS volumes, as unpredictable results may occur. When you create an NSS volume from NetWare volume space, NSS creates an NSS volume within the NetWare volume.


Unpartitioned Free Space

When NSS claims ownership of unpartitioned free space, it creates an NSS partition on each device. (An NSS partition is identified as type 0x69.)

NOTE:  IBM* partitions defined on hard disks can only contain four partitions. An NSS partition is considered a different operating system type than a NetWare partition. If a disk already contains four partitions, NSS cannot acquire any free space on that disk because it cannot have its own partition. If the number of partition areas exceeds four, an error message appears.


Free Space Inside a NetWare Volume

NSS can use up to 100 percent of available free space inside a NetWare volume. Once NSS takes free space out of a NetWare volume and owns it, the traditional NetWare file system recognizes the NSS-owned space as a file. NSS takes the free space in 2 GB segments or less, depending on how much space is available in the NetWare volume. NetWare then acknowledges the reduced amount of free space available in the NetWare volume. With the NSS-owned space, NSS creates an NSS volume within the NetWare volume. Both volumes must be mounted to use the NSS volume.

NOTE:  NSS cannot use free space in a NetWare partition unless the space is inside an existing NetWare volume.

WARNING:  If you delete the NetWare volume, the NSS volume is also deleted.


NSS Volumes and NSS Storage Groups

Once NSS has claimed ownership of free space and created a managed object, you can create NSS volumes and/or storage groups.

NSS gives you three ways to create NSS volumes:


Automatically Creating a Single NSS Volume

All available NSS space can be configured automatically from a pool as a single NSS volume. This option is available during NetWare 5 installation, or any time afterwards. Only unpartitioned free space is used to create a single NSS Volume.

Figure 1
Creating One NSS Volume


Manually Creating NSS Volumes

Available NSS space can also be manually divided into one or more NSS volumes. To do this, you first create NSS storage groups comprised of one or more managed objects.

When NSS claims ownership of free space, a list of managed objects is displayed. The managed objects are the NSS partitions or NetWare volumes with available NSS space. A storage group is created by selecting the managed object that you want for the storage group. One or more NSS volumes can be created out of a storage group.

Figure 2
Creating Multiple NSS Volumes

You can customize your storage groups and NSS volumes: you can merge two storage groups together, or you can add a storage group to the end of an NSS volume to increase the volume's size.


Mounting CD-ROMs as NSS Volumes

When NSS recognizes free space on the devices attached to your server, it also recognizes CD-ROMs and creates a Read-Only NSS volume for that CD-ROM. In NetWare 5, this is done automatically when the CD-ROM NLM is loaded. This volume is not added to NDS® however.


Mounting DOS FAT Partitions as NSS Volumes

When the DOSFAT.NSS module is loaded, DOS FAT partitions can be recognized as NSS Volumes. This means you can perform tasks such as use DOS commands, change DOS attributes, use NetWare utilities such as the MAP command, access to DOS FAT partitions from Java, and access local partitions.

See Other Volumes That NSS Creates for more information on NSS volumes that are created.


How NSS Sets Up Volumes

When you create NSS volumes, you are setting up access to NSS data. Based on your choices, the following general steps explains how to prepare and set up an NSS volume. Use the NWCONFIG utility to set up new NSS volumes. See Configure NSS Using NWCONFIG for information.

NOTE:  The following general steps only apply if you are using the NWCONFIG utility. (This example creates one storage group and two NSS volumes.) You can also use the NSS Administration menus to configure or reconfigure NSS. To add or reconfigure other NSS volumes, see Configure NSS Storage Groups and Volumes.

NOTE:  CD-ROMs are not added to NDS automatically. Use NWCONFIG to add them.

  1. You select Update Provider Information. NSS providers scan your devices to find free space for NSS to own, and include any devices that have been hot swapped in and out of the server. One provider searches for free space on devices for IBM* partition types; another provider searches for free space on NetWare volumes. (See Media Access Layer for more information on providers.)
  2. The free space on storage devices and Read-Only objects (NSS recognizes them as a storage deposit) is deposited in to the object bank by the provider. Not all objects can be used by NSS for data input (such as a Read-Only CD-ROM), but the free space that can be used appears in a managed objects list after NSS takes ownership.
  3. You select Assign Ownership to have NSS own the available free space you want from the storage deposits. The free space then becomes an NSS partition. Assign Ownership means that NSS gathers the amount of free space you designate and initializes it for NSS use.
  4. You choose to create a storage group using the Storage Group or Create a New Storage Group option. NSS lists blocks of NSS-owned free space as Managed Objects. You select a Managed Object. The storage group is created with the total amount of NSS space indicated in the Managed Object. You can return to the Storage Group or Create a New Storage Group option and create other storage groups in one session if preferred.
  5. You choose to create the first NSS volume using the Create an NSS Volume option. You select the storage group, enter the size you want the volume to be (to create two volumes, you will enter an amount less than that shown so you have enough space to add the second volume), and name the NSS volume. NSS then creates the NSS volume. You then create the second NSS volume using the same storage group, and following the same procedure.

    If you have only one storage group, NSS automatically uses that storage group for the NSS volumes you are creating. If more than one storage group is created, you must choose from a list of storage groups.

  6. You now mount the NSS volume. The volume is automatically added to NDS if you use NWCONFIG.


A Concept of NSS Configuration

The following illustration shows a real-world comparison of what happens in the creation of NSS storage groups and NSS volumes.

Compare the storage group and NSS volume creation process with a banking process as follows: