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Configure NFS Exports

Azure CycleCloud provides built-in support for exporting a simple Network File System.

Create an NFS Export

To export a directory from a node as a shared NFS filesystem, provide a mount configuration section with type=nfs and an export path:

[[[configuration cyclecloud.exports.nfs_data]]]
type = nfs
export_path = /mnt/exports/nfs_data

The preceding configuration cyclecloud.exports.nfs_data specifies that you're configuring directory /mnt/exports/nfs_data to be exported as an NFS filesystem named nfs_data. The attributes within the configuration section describe the exported filesystem properties.

You can only have one file server per cluster. Otherwise, the discovery mechanisms interfere.

Creating exports

You can also configure NFS exports in a cluster template. A node can have any number of exports, but only one node in a cluster can be the file server. The following example shows configurations to add to a node to disable the default NFS exports and add a new export named backup. Other nodes can access this export through the mount configurations described in this article.

        [[[configuration]]]
        run_list = recipe[cshared::directories],recipe[cshared::server]
        cyclecloud.discoverable = true
        cshared.server.shared_dir = /shared
        cyclecloud.mounts.sched.disabled = true
        cyclecloud.mounts.shared.disabled = true
        cshared.server.legacy_links_disabled = true

        [[[configuration cyclecloud.exports.backup]]]
        type = nfs
        export_path = /mnt/raid/backup
        options = no_root_squash
        samba.enabled = false

Configuring an NFS server and file share

Most HPC workflows mount a network file system (NFS) to nodes that you can use for shared application data and job results. You can define a file server node in a CycleCloud cluster template. You can set file system properties through the template configs. You define the local filesystem by using volumes and mounts, and you define the NFS service by using exports.

The following example brings these topics together in a single node file share.

    [[node fileserver]]
        Credentials = my-creds
        Region = northeurope
        MachineType = Standard_D16s_v3
        KeypairLocation = ~/.ssh/cyclecloud.pem
        SubnetId = /subscriptions/xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx/resourceGroups/rg1/providers/Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks/vnet1/subnets/subnet1

        [[[configuration]]]
        run_list = recipe[cshared::server]
        cyclecloud.discoverable = true
        cyclecloud.mounts.sched.disabled = true
        cyclecloud.mounts.shared.disabled = true
        cshared.server.legacy_links_disabled = true

        [[[volume v00]]]
        SSD = true
        Size = $VolumeSize
        Mount = all

        [[[volume v01]]]
        SSD = true
        Size = $VolumeSize
        Mount = all

        [[[configuration cyclecloud.mounts.all]]]
        fs_type = ext4
        raid_level = 0
        options = noatime,nodiratime,nobarrier,nofail
        mointpoint = /data

        [[[configuration cyclecloud.exports.nfs_data]]]
        type = nfs
        export_path = /data/export

[parameters NFS]
    [[parameter VolumeSize]]
    DefaultValue = 1024

The configuration section contains automation parameters that the node interprets when it starts. These instructions are necessary to invoke the NFS configuration.

This example defines two SSD volumes, or Azure Premium Disks, which you mount in a RAID 0 configuration to the mount point /data. The two volume sections define the volumes while the cyclecloud.mounts section defines how you mount the volumes.

The exports section specifies which directory to export. Because the export_path is under the RAID volume, the RAID volume handles data written to this export.

Note

You can't use local disks for a file share. The volume section refers to Azure Disk Storage.

Export configuration options

Option Definition
type REQUIRED Set the type attribute to nfs for all NFS exports to differentiate from other shared filesystem types.
export_path Set the local path to export as an NFS filesystem. If the directory doesn't exist, the process creates it.
owner Set the user account that owns the exported directory.
group Set the group of the user that owns the exported directory.
mode Set the default filesystem permissions on the exported directory.
network Set the network interface on which the directory is exported. Defaults to all: *.
sync Set the synchronous/asynchronous export option. Defaults to true.
writable Set the ro/rw export option for the filesystem. Defaults to true.
options Any non-default options to use when exporting the filesystem.

Further Reading