How is storage organized on the CS machines?
User files and home directories are shared among all department Linux systems via NFS (the Network File System protocol) and NIS (the Network Information System protocol). Put more simply, no matter which Linux machine you log into, you will find your same home directory and same set of files.
User files are all located in directories of the form, /s/SERVER/DISK/CATEGORY/NAME, where
| s | is a literal “s,” a parent common to all servers |
| SERVER | denotes the machine acting as file server for the directory |
| DISK | denotes a unique disk partition [a-z] on the server |
| CATEGORY | connotes the type of directory, such as “fac” for faculty, “grad” for graduate, “under” for undergraduate, or “proj” for research project |
| NAME | is the name of the directory (the same as login name in the case of home directories) |
Directories having a CATEGORY of “nobackup,” or “tmp” are not backed up and are available on a “use at your own risk” basis. All other categories are backed up nightly to tape.
You can also map these directories from Windows PCs.
The navigation menu on the left provides more information on the various storage locations.