Datasets?

[apb0703]

So setting up my freenas which has 24 TB of space.

I store a lot of videos and music and I am trying to understand the dataset stuff.

Maybe I have read it wrong, but I from what I can tell I need to set up datasets for my different types of media. I see when I create a dataset I need to put in the size when I set it up.

My question is what if I am constantly adding new files to the data set? If I set it at a certain size and need to make it bigger later is that possible?

 

[danb35]

You do not need to set up datasets at all. If you do, they do not need to be divided by types of media, or any other predefined way (though they may be, if you choose). And you do not need to set a quota or space reservation (though you can, if you choose). If you set a quota when you create a dataset, you can change it, up or down, at any time in the future.

 

[apb0703]

Thanks for the quick answer!

 

[pschatz100]

While you don't need to set up datasets, I would create at least one dataset for your media. The various types of media can be set up in folders within the dataset. Using datasets will help with system management tasks such as assigning permissions and managing backups.

Read up on datasets - very useful.

 

[sfcredfox]

The manual for 9.2.1 talks about creating datasets and some of the options available in this table: Table 6.3d: ZFS Dataset Options, page 122.

If you look at the options available, it starts to reveal what capabilities a dataset has and then you can think about why you would or wouldn't need that capability.

The ability to do granular quotas, replication, snapshots, etc. is mostly why people use datasets. While you can categorize your data by it's type (movies, music, etc.), you don't have to follow that scheme. Once you are familiar with the things you can do with datasets, you might want to look at all your data again and see if there is a different way it needs to be organized based on whether you want a reservation for it, a quota on it, individual snapshots separate from everything else, replication, permission

 

[pschatz100]

sfcredfox,
You make several good points. There is also one other very good reason for learning to use datasets: if you mess up the data within a dataset, you don't mess up your entire system. I learned this lesson the hard way when I first set up FreeNAS.

Now, I have two datasets defined in my system: media and backup. All my media goes into folders in the 'media' dataset. Backups from several computers go into folders in the 'backup' dataset. The two datasets have different access permissions and backup strategies. Easy to set up and manage.