Multiple TrueNAS storage on single Interface

[sukarechhe]

Hello Folks,

Hope everyone doing well & safe here.

I am using multiple TrueNAS and it is difficult to create shared path with different hostname or IPs, is there any way, where I can use all the NAS on single interface and can share using main server IP ?

Thanks in advanced, stay healthy & safe.

Best regards,

 

[sretalla]

Maybe you're looking for TrueNAS SCALE (and glusterfs)

 

[Patrick M. Hausen]

You are probably looking into something like Windows DFS?

DFS Namespaces overview

This article describes DFS Namespaces, which is a role service in Windows Server enabling you to group shared folders located on different servers into one or more logically structured namespaces.

docs.microsoft.com

This should be available in Samba, but I have not tried (not having more than one TrueNAS CORE at a single location) and I don't know if support is compiled in and if it's supposed to work.

Distributed File System (DFS) - SambaWiki

wiki.samba.org

@anodos, any helpful comment? Thanks!

 

[Heracles]

Other than @sretalla and @Patrick M. Hausen options, you can create share1 on NAS1, share2 on NAS2 and share3 on NAS3. You then map share2 and 3 from NAS1, share1 and 3 on NAS2 and share 1 and 2 on NAS3. Then, each NAS can re-share the content it already mapped from the others, plus its own. You will end up with a nightmare for managing users and ACLs but it will be possible.

Maybe a more structured solution like Nextcloud would serve you better ?

 

[Patrick M. Hausen]

@Heracles How will you be mapping the shares from one NAS to the next? The smbclient in FreeBSD is to my knowledge dysfunctional and NFS does not provide the same semantics as local ZFS storage. Does that really work?

 

[Heracles]

The OP did not mentioned the sharing protocol he is using. As such, if he is using NFS, then inter-Nas sharing over NFS is what needs to be done and will be compatible with the clients.

If he is sharing over SMB, he may faces some complications according to what you said. Here, I moved away from SMB for so long that I do not have experience with limitations that would exist. In theory it would work but if you said that in practice it does not, I trust you on that one.

But again, a structured service like Nextcloud and its federation would be much better for such a service.

 

[ChrisRJ]

How many NAS instances and shares are we talking about? You about things being "difficult", but what exactly does that mean?

What I am going towards is that hardly anything in life comes for free. If you want to "simplify" things that are currently not like you want them to be, chances are that you are trading them for additional complexity somewhere else. Just a thought ...

 

[Samuel Tai]

DFS is the way to go. See @Basil Hendroff's blog article here: https://hendroff.wordpress.com/2019/03/19/freenas-and-samba-standalone-dfs/.

 

[Basil Hendroff]

@anodos This has popped up on a number of occasions. I wonder if it's worth exposing DFS in the UI?

@Samuel Tai I'm in the process of decommissioning the old site. It's costing me annually to continue to redirect from the old site to the new. This is the equivalent new site reference https://blog.udance.com.au/2019/03/19/freenas-and-samba-standalone-dfs/

 

[sukarechhe]

Oh! I'm overwhelmed with many quick response and this is happening very first time on any community or forum with me. :)

Thank you : @sretalla @Patrick M. Hausen @Heracles @ChrisRJ @Samuel Tai @Basil Hendroff

Well, my scenario is like :
I have 7 system with TrueNAS.
while sharing for AD users I have to create share as per storage requirement. So, here issue is what, people has to remember IP or name of certain freenas system and which is difficult for them.

This is the reason I'm looking for some solution if I can manager shared path with 1 main truenas system and rest of truenas system would be used as pool with main truenas.

Hope this has clear some idea about my need

 

[Patrick M. Hausen]

DFS then ...

 

[sukarechhe]

DFS then ...

This will need Windows I guess, I don't want to go with Windows due to licensing issue.

 

[Samuel Tai]

This will need Windows I guess, I don't want to go with Windows due to licensing issue.

TrueNAS supports DFS. See above.

 

[sukarechhe]

TrueNAS supports DFS. See above.

@Samuel Tai Ok thanks, let me try as per link.

 

[sukarechhe]

TrueNAS supports DFS. See above.

Did it and works, Thank you @Samuel Tai . I have another question, will this work with AD user's sharing permission too ? I just tested with local user, yet to test with AD user.

 

[Samuel Tai]

I have another question, will this work with AD user's sharing permission too ? I just tested with local user, yet to test with AD user.

I expect it does, but I've never tried it myself. @Basil Hendroff, would you know one way or the other?

 

[Basil Hendroff]

@Samuel Tai Neither have I. I don't use AD. The DFS setup is independent of user accounts so there's no reason why it shouldn't work with AD. Maybe the OP can advise further once he's completed testing.

 

[sukarechhe]

@Samuel Tai Neither have I. I don't use AD. The DFS setup is independent of user accounts so there's no reason why it shouldn't work with AD. Maybe the OP can advise further once he's completed testing.

@Samuel Tai @Basil Hendroff well let me try and update you soon. Thank you !!

 

[sukarechhe]

It is working fine with AD user's permission. Test in progress with different requirement, will post soon about each criteria while testing different parameter. Thank you everyone for help

 

[sukarechhe]

It works fine with permission we set on folder. Just a question. if my pc isn't in a domain then it doesn't ask for credentials to connect linked folder.. can we set any option here ?