[linux-lvm] Problems with booting after changing certain volumes

[linux-lvm] Problems with booting after changing certain volumes

[Frank Bagehorn]

Recently I had problems on a SuSE SLES 8 install.
When I created two more logical volumes in the rootvg, the machine would 
hang during boot stating
        ERROR 2 - writing volume group backup file 
/etc/lvmtab.d/rootvg.tmp in vg_cfgbackup
        unable to do a backup of volume group "rootvg"
        removing volume group "rootvg" from /etc/lvmtab
I tried to increase the root file system from 512MB to 1GB but that didn't 
help.
So I removed the two lvs (and assumed I run into a strange bug that allow 
not more than 7 lvs..)
Instead I increased one of the other lvs and put the data in those.
Now I rebooted again (first time since I increased the lv) and get the 
same error.

Question:
How much space is necessary to do the volume group backup ?
Shall I increase the rootlv even further (e.g. to 2GB) ?
Or is the problem more than just not enough space ?
The lv in question is about 60GB. I have another lv in a second volume 
group that is the same size.
(i.e. a copy of the same data is held on an external disk.) And that 
doesn't seem to make a problem.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr. Frank Bagehorn
IBM Zurich Research Lab.
Saeumerstr. 4
CH-8803 Rueschlikon 
Switzerland
----------------------------------------------------------------------
SMTP: fba@zurich.ibm.com
Notes: Frank Bagehorn/Zurich/IBM@IBMCH
phone: ++41 (01) 724 83 23  fax: ++41 (01) 724 89 59

Re: [linux-lvm] Problems with booting after changing certain volumes

[Heinz Mauelshagen]

Frank,

The size of the VG backups depends on the amount of metadata which
depends on the amount of PVs and their size and LVs in a VG.

Typically in the range of 100 - 500KB.

If you boot with an initrd (SuSE 8 uses one to boot) and vgscan runs
with that as root before the switch to the real root (the one you tried
resizing to solve the problem) happens, that initrd is likely to
run out of space.

Create a larger initrd to cope with that.


Regards,
Heinz    -- The LVM Guy --



On Fri, Jan 16, 2004 at 08:56:50AM +0100, Frank Bagehorn wrote:
> Recently I had problems on a SuSE SLES 8 install.
> When I created two more logical volumes in the rootvg, the machine would 
> hang during boot stating
>         ERROR 2 - writing volume group backup file 
> /etc/lvmtab.d/rootvg.tmp in vg_cfgbackup
>         unable to do a backup of volume group "rootvg"
>         removing volume group "rootvg" from /etc/lvmtab
> I tried to increase the root file system from 512MB to 1GB but that didn't 
> help.
> So I removed the two lvs (and assumed I run into a strange bug that allow 
> not more than 7 lvs..)
> Instead I increased one of the other lvs and put the data in those.
> Now I rebooted again (first time since I increased the lv) and get the 
> same error.
> 
> Question:
> How much space is necessary to do the volume group backup ?
> Shall I increase the rootlv even further (e.g. to 2GB) ?
> Or is the problem more than just not enough space ?
> The lv in question is about 60GB. I have another lv in a second volume 
> group that is the same size.
> (i.e. a copy of the same data is held on an external disk.) And that 
> doesn't seem to make a problem.
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> Dr. Frank Bagehorn
> IBM Zurich Research Lab.
> Saeumerstr. 4
> CH-8803 Rueschlikon 
> Switzerland
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> SMTP: fba@zurich.ibm.com
> Notes: Frank Bagehorn/Zurich/IBM@IBMCH
> phone: ++41 (01) 724 83 23  fax: ++41 (01) 724 89 59
> 
> _______________________________________________
> linux-lvm mailing list
> linux-lvm@sistina.com
> http://lists.sistina.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-lvm
> read the LVM HOW-TO at http://tldp.org/HOWTO/LVM-HOWTO/

*** Software bugs are stupid.
    Nevertheless it needs not so stupid people to solve them ***

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Heinz Mauelshagen                                 Sistina Software Inc.
Senior Consultant/Developer                       Am Sonnenhang 11
                                                  56242 Marienrachdorf
                                                  Germany
Mauelshagen@Sistina.com                           +49 2626 141200
                                                       FAX 924446
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