From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: "H. Peter Anvin" Subject: Re: rm hangs on symlinks to down mount points Date: Tue, 30 Dec 2003 15:57:58 -0800 Sender: autofs-bounces@linux.kernel.org Message-ID: <3FF21106.4000907@zytor.com> References: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Return-path: In-Reply-To: List-Id: List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: autofs-bounces@linux.kernel.org Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format="flowed" To: Paul Raines Cc: autofs@linux.kernel.org Paul Raines wrote: > > Maybe not, but it could be done through autofs. There would probably be > alot more resistance to getting mount's API changed for support of separate > timeout value just for the mount side of things. > > The master automount process could just kill the automount subprocess > spawned to do a mount if it doesn't complete in X number of seconds. > People constantly ask for various kinds of NFS support crap in autofs, and it's *ALWAYS* wrong. There is really no excuse for a feature working from within autofs and not when mounted normally. None. > >>>I am often getting automount processes that are hung and don't die >>>with a simple kill. I can "kill -9" them but that leaves things in >>>a bad state usually (though sometimes I will just hand edit /etc/mtab >>>so I can get something done). >> >>That's why they don't die with a simple kill. > > Which is a pain. Just because some remote server went down I had > automounted should not force me into a reboot of the client. > OK... clue call... *AUTOFS ISN'T INVOLVED.* Autofs *CANNOT* help you when an in-use filesystem has its server removed from underneath it. All autofs does is mount and unmount filesystems... it's not involved in any shape, way or form with the running thereof. All autofs can see is that the filesystem is still in use, and there is nothing it can do about it. If this sort of things happen to you often you may want to consider soft mounts. Of course, you take the risk of data loss, but that is the only possible choice -- if the server cannot be accessed, the only options are to wait (hard mount) or return failure and throw the data away (soft mount.) -hpa