Hierarchical Replication Control in a Global File System

Abstract

We develop a consistent mutable replication extension for NFSv4 tuned to meet the rigorous demands of large-scale data sharing in global collaborations. The system uses a hierarchical replication control protocol that dynamically elects a primary server at various granularities. Experimental evaluation indicates a substantial performance advantage over a single server system. With the introduction of the hierarchical replication control, the overhead of replication is negligible even when applications mostly write and replication servers are widely distributed.