Webdisk Storage Anywhere, Anytime for Everyone Presented at Educause, 2003 Copyright 2003, Jeremy...
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Webdisk Storage Anywhere, Anytime for Everyone Presented at Educause, 2003 Copyright 2003, Jeremy Mortis and Harold Esche. This work is the intellectual property of the authors. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author. To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the authors.
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Transcript of Webdisk Storage Anywhere, Anytime for Everyone Presented at Educause, 2003 Copyright 2003, Jeremy...
Webdisk Storage Anywhere, Anytime for Everyone
Presented at Educause, 2003 Copyright 2003, Jeremy Mortis and Harold Esche.
This work is the intellectual property of the authors. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author. To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the authors.
Webdisk
Storage Anywhere, Anytime for Everyone
Harold Esche
Director, Information Technologies
and
Jeremy Mortis
Manager, Web and Email Services
© 2003 The University of Calgary
Outline
• Project objectives• Alternatives• Solutions
– Server– Client
• Demonstration• Lessons learned• Questions
The University of Calgary
• 6th largest University in Canada• Research intensive • 30,000 students, faculty & staff
Project Objective
Provide a better way for students to manage files
• Easy to use• Regularly backed-up (and restorable)• Able to grow with demand• Secure, robust, easy-to-manage• Provide shared storage for group work• Access by multiple clients (Windows, Mac, Linux, etc.)• Standards based• Inexpensive
Project Structure
Small group, broad mandate, short timeframe
• Published terms of reference• Defined objectives• Defined sponsor• Defined resources• Defined milestones and timelines• Appropriate (and dynamic) team
Choices, choices, choices
Protocols: SMB vs FTP vs NFS vs HTTP vs …
Server platform: Windows vs Linux vs AIX vs …
Authentication: Active Directory vs LDAP
Software: proprietary vs open source
Our Solution
Webdisk: A blend of WebDAV, Linux, Apache, and WebDrive
• Store files in a central location• Enable worldwide access via the WebDAV protocol • Provide instructions and/or free client software
The WebDAV Protocol
• An emerging internet standard• Not just for web publishing! • Extends http to facilitate file management• No persistent connection required• No firewall problems
Using WebDAV
• Natively supported by Windows, MacOSX, Linux • Natively supported by DreamWeaver, Mozilla• Variety of clients available for all platforms,
making storage appear as a mapped drive, NFS mount, FTP server, etc.
• Read access via any web browser• Deals with files, not bytes
Rejected Alternatives
• SMB (i.e. Microsoft Networking) is complicated for users and is often blocked by firewalls
• FTP lacks encryption• SFTP and SCP lack choices in client software• Web-based solutions are awkward to use• Proprietary solutions are too expensive
Server Environment
• Open source: Apache + mod_dav• Modified by University of Calgary• Uses normal Linux user directories and files• Uses normal Linux file ownerships• Uses normal Linux user quota• Uses .htaccess to control access • NFS-mounted RAID Storage• LDAP/PAM authentication• Horizontally scalable
Webdisk Sharing
• Facilitates collaboration• Users can share directories with individuals or
groups• Users can make directories public• Shares can be read-only or read-write• Web-based tool for managing shares• WebDAV supports file locking• Functionality developed at University of Calgary
Windows and WebDAV
• Not very functional prior to Windows XP• Inefficient• Difficult to troubleshoot• Only works with UNC-aware software• Requires repeated logons
“Webdisk Client”
• Improves WebDAV support in Windows• Maps storage to a Windows drive letter, e.g. U: • Works with any software that uses drive letters • Is consistent across all Windows versions • Caches files for good performance• Gives good status information• Does not require repeated logons
WebDrive
• Developed by South River Technologies• Affordable site license (~ US$ 5,000)• Site license permits home use• Proprietary• Transitional
Personal vs. Lab Use
• UofC developed two different distros: one for personal workstations and one for shared workstations
• Personal version can be “always connected”• Shared version requires logon/logoff• Can integrate with OS logon/logoff with pGina• Both available to users at no charge
A Successful Project
• Meets project objectives• Easy to use• Extensible design• Uses secure protocols• Works in Windows, Macintosh, and Linux• Robust and easy to manage• Standards based• Inexpensive
• Excellent uptake and feedback
Creative Uses
• Project repositories• Avoid sending documents by email• Laptop backups• Travelling bookmarks and preferences• Moving files between home and office• Personal homepages
… and of course, no more diskettes!
Lessons Learned
Webdisk is a new way of looking at things…
• Everything is a web page• Your files are available everywhere• You are always connected• No worries about backup, synchronization, duplication• Don’t send – share!
Webdisk Future
• Used by all students, faculty, and staff• Grow in conjunction with storage needs• Available in all campus labs• Improved OS integration• WebDAV-enabled applications• Versioning• Document management
