[H-GEN] Warning: potential issue with Linux 2.4 and xfs (SGI's filesystem)

[Jason Parker]

On Fri, May 07, 2004 at 04:21:25PM -0400, Robert Brockway wrote:

> Hi all.  It has been confirmed by SGI staff on the xfs list that if
> you access the device underlying a mounted xfs filesystem (eg,
> /dev/hda1) on a 2.4 or 2.6 kernel (even for read) you can cause
> serious filesystem corruption.  It's the fact that read access can
> cause it that is truly disturbing.

That sounds a bit like the thread about GRUB on that list a few weeks
ago; does this report have anything to do with that?

> First report on the xfs list came from people backing up xfs
> filesystems using dd :)

To be perfectly honest, if you're going to go behind the filesystem's
back like that, what else should you expect?  (I agree that getting
filesystem corruption from a simple read is a bit much, though.)

Of course, I'm no closer to solving my ... issues with xfsdump output
piped directly into xfsrestore to move filesystems, either, mostly
because of an acute lack of disk space.

jason