Block level file sync

[Gilbert Standen_1]

Hi, is there a linux utility which will sync copies of files across a WAN? When I say sync, I mean a utility that will only send the changed BLOCKS over the WAN and write those changed blocks to the copy of the file at the other end, NOT xfer the entire changed file. I'm thinking of the situation where you have a very large file say 80Gb that has to be replicated across a WAN every x hrs but this very large file doesn't change much, the hourly block changes might be only say 10Mb per hour. What I want to do either with a linux utility or a third-party product is send the block level changes from fileA across the WAN to fileB and have those block changes applied to fileB. Linux utilities seem the first choice, third-party second. Thanks, Gil

[Court Campbell · Accepted solution]

look at rsync.

[Gilbert Standen_1]

thanks

[macosta]

Depending on your needs, DRDB may work. I'm not sure about performance over WAN, but I've been wanting to try it out for a while now.

http://www.drbd.org/

[Gilbert Standen_1]

Mr. Acosta, yes I had been looking at DRBD also. Thanks for your reply. Based on what I have been able to learn DRBD probably only works over a LAN although I am also not sure about that. I guess the only way to know for sure will be to hope I get some time to test it out.