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Old 14th January 2010
Jago Jago is offline
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Default glabels and GPT

What is considered the "proper" way to combine using glabel to label disks and GPT partitioning? If I do it like this:

Code:
glabel label -v disk00 /dev/ad1
gpart create -s GPT /dev/ad1
<create partitions>
Then I am guessing that writing out the partition table will overwrite the last sector, deleting the glabel metadata, correct?

So should I instead do this:

Code:
gpart create -s GPT /dev/ad1
<create partitions>
glabel label -v disk00 /dev/ad1
But won't the label overwrite a part of partition data? Or, should I instead do this:

Code:
glabel label -v disk00 /dev/ad1
gpart create -s GPT /dev/label/disk00
<create partitions>
And from that point on, always avoid ever dealing with the disk device directly, only ever accessing and modifying it through the label?
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Old 14th January 2010
Jago Jago is offline
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Additionally, the gpart manpage refers to "logical blocks" in a couple of places. Am I right in thinking these parts actually refer to "sectors", because both seem to be 512 bytes?
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Old 14th January 2010
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Just the -L option for newfs isn't enough?
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Old 14th January 2010
Jago Jago is offline
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That's for labelling filesystems, not for labelling disks.
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Old 15th January 2010
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Start at the outer (largest) layer, and work your way in from there.

IOW, you label the disk. Then you partition the label. Then you format the partitions. Finally, you use the filesystems.
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Old 26th January 2010
DNAeon DNAeon is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by phoenix View Post
Start at the outer (largest) layer, and work your way in from there.

IOW, you label the disk. Then you partition the label. Then you format the partitions. Finally, you use the filesystems.
That is not exactly true.

If I do it this way, the data is being overwritten actually.

Code:
# glabel label -v disk_ad4 ad4
Metadata value stored on ad4.
Done.

# ls /dev/label
disk_ad4
Now if I do a gpart, see what happens:

Code:
# gpart create -s gpt label/disk_ad4
GEOM: ad4: the secondary GPT table is corrupt or invalid.
GEOM: ad4: using the primary only -- recovery suggested.
label/disk_ad4 created.
And if I do a freebsd-boot partition for example on ad4.

Code:
# gpart add -s 64K -t freebsd-boot ad4
ad4p1 added.
Then I lose the glabel from /dev/label
Code:
# ls /dev/label
#
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Old 27th January 2010
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Hrm, in that case, I guess GPT overrides disk-level glabels.

I've never used GPT, just MBR-style partitioning, and I've always done it by labelling the disk (glabel label disk00 da0), slicing the label (fdisk -i /dev/label/disk00), partitioning the slice *bsdlabel -e /dev/label/disk00s1), formatting the partition (newfs /dev/label/disk00s1a), and mounting the filesystem.

I guess I'll leave it up to those with more experience with GPT to chime in.

I do know that GPT includes label support, which is accessed via glabel, so perhaps you can use that? Although, then it's partition-level labelling instead of disk-level labelling.
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Old 27th January 2010
DNAeon DNAeon is offline
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Using glabel together with fdisk and bsdlabel should work without issues, since only glabel is actually writing to the providers last sector.

The problem comes when you try to combine glabel with gpart and gmirror for example

- I've tried labeling a disk and then slicing it with gpart, but then I lose the labels.

- I've tried labeling the filesystem with the -L flag of newfs, when I create the filesystem, but when I use them with gmirror to create a raid-1, then I lose the entries in /dev/ufs

You can label the partitions using gpart, this way:

Code:
# gpart add -s <size> -t freebsd-ufs -l <your-label> <provider>
And then the labels go to /dev/gpt, but if you then use again those labels with gmirror again, you lose the labels.

Currently I cannot think of a good and clean way to put those labels in place, without losing them, after re-using them with gmirror of other GEOM tool.

Regards,
DNAeon
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