Thread: Linux Distributions
Friends,
I'm wondering if there is a specific Linux distribution for the x86 that
will provide a better PostgreSQL server than the other ones?
Thanks,
Peter Darley
Yeah, it's called FREEBSD. www.freebsd.org. If you don't like that, go to www.netbsd.org. Sorry, had to do it. Andy On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote: > Date: Wed, 6 Mar 2002 09:49:43 -0800 > From: Peter Darley <pdarley@kinesis-cem.com> > To: Pgsql-Admin <pgsql-admin@postgresql.org> > Subject: [ADMIN] Linux Distributions > > Friends, > I'm wondering if there is a specific Linux distribution for the x86 that > will provide a better PostgreSQL server than the other ones? > Thanks, > Peter Darley > > > ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- > TIP 2: you can get off all lists at once with the unregister command > (send "unregister YourEmailAddressHere" to majordomo@postgresql.org) > -- acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org
Andy,
I've got nothing against FreeBSD, except that I'm familiar with Linux and
not with BSD. What is it about FreeBSD that is going to make it faster than
Linux? Any idea where I can find some comparative benchmarks?
Thanks,
Peter Darley
-----Original Message-----
From: pgsql-admin-owner@postgresql.org
[mailto:pgsql-admin-owner@postgresql.org]On Behalf Of Andy Ruhl
Sent: Wednesday, March 06, 2002 12:23 PM
To: Peter Darley
Cc: Pgsql-Admin
Subject: Re: [ADMIN] Linux Distributions
Yeah, it's called FREEBSD. www.freebsd.org.
If you don't like that, go to www.netbsd.org.
Sorry, had to do it.
Andy
On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote:
> Date: Wed, 6 Mar 2002 09:49:43 -0800
> From: Peter Darley <pdarley@kinesis-cem.com>
> To: Pgsql-Admin <pgsql-admin@postgresql.org>
> Subject: [ADMIN] Linux Distributions
>
> Friends,
> I'm wondering if there is a specific Linux distribution for the x86 that
> will provide a better PostgreSQL server than the other ones?
> Thanks,
> Peter Darley
>
>
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> TIP 2: you can get off all lists at once with the unregister command
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>
--
acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org
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On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote: > Andy, > I've got nothing against FreeBSD, except that I'm familiar with Linux and > not with BSD. What is it about FreeBSD that is going to make it faster than > Linux? Any idea where I can find some comparative benchmarks? > Thanks, > Peter Darley I don't mean to start a flame war here... Actually, I've seen benchmarks (but don't remember where they are) that show that Linux and FreeBSD are amazingly equal at most activities on equivalent hardware. My point is, machines are faster when they are actually running. Andy -- acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org
iirc redhat has been busy optimizing postgresql, but if you take the time and sit down, and configure postgres, you can prolly make it just as speedy on any distro. just my .02 Matrix ----- Original Message ----- From: "Andy Ruhl" <acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org> To: "Peter Darley" <pdarley@kinesis-cem.com> Cc: "Pgsql-Admin" <pgsql-admin@postgresql.org> Sent: Wednesday, March 06, 2002 4:01 PM Subject: Re: Linux Distributions > On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote: > > > Andy, > > I've got nothing against FreeBSD, except that I'm familiar with Linux and > > not with BSD. What is it about FreeBSD that is going to make it faster than > > Linux? Any idea where I can find some comparative benchmarks? > > Thanks, > > Peter Darley > > I don't mean to start a flame war here... > > Actually, I've seen benchmarks (but don't remember where they are) that > show that Linux and FreeBSD are amazingly equal at most activities on > equivalent hardware. > > My point is, machines are faster when they are actually running. > > Andy > > -- > acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org > SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org > > > ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- > TIP 3: if posting/reading through Usenet, please send an appropriate > subscribe-nomail command to majordomo@postgresql.org so that your > message can get through to the mailing list cleanly >
>>>>> "Andy" == Andy Ruhl <acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org> writes: Andy> On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote: >> Andy, I've got nothing against FreeBSD, except that I'm familiar >> with Linux and not with BSD. What is it about FreeBSD that is >> going to make it faster than Linux? Any idea where I can find some >> comparative benchmarks? Thanks, Peter Darley Andy> I don't mean to start a flame war here... Andy> Actually, I've seen benchmarks (but don't remember where they Andy> are) that show that Linux and FreeBSD are amazingly equal at Andy> most activities on equivalent hardware. Andy> My point is, machines are faster when they are actually running. Well... from experience, there are points where FreeBSD has strong advantages. Memory management is an obvious one. NFS is is another. Softupdates (the native file system) also has a small edge. We run a linux binary on a FreeBSD cluster (100-or-so nodes) because the FreeBSD cluster will do about 5% more work than the exact same hardware booted with linux (we actually use a diskless DHCP boot --- so we can quickly swap back and forth to test). 5% isn't a huge difference, but it is a real world application. Dave. -- ============================================================================ |David Gilbert, Velocet Communications. | Two things can only be | |Mail: dgilbert@velocet.net | equal if and only if they | |http://daveg.ca | are precisely opposite. | =========================================================GLO================ ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- TIP 5: Have you checked our extensive FAQ? http://www.postgresql.org/users-lounge/docs/faq.html
On Wednesday 06 March 2002 18:49, Peter Darley wrote: > Friends, > I'm wondering if there is a specific Linux distribution for the x86 that > will provide a better PostgreSQL server than the other ones? > Thanks, > Peter Darley Do you have a more precise definition of "better"? If you mean "better" for a production environment then I would recommend the Linux distribution or [insert other OS name here] that best suits your setup and which you feel most comfortable with. Then build and configure PostgreSQL (and any other major applications you will be relying heavily on, e.g. Apache in a webs server environment) yourself. (Distribution-built applications such as these are usually very nicely done and are suitable if you want to get acquainted with them, but often lag a version or two behind the current release version; and of course the distributors don't know very much about your particular production environment). Ian Barwick
Ian,
By better I guess I mean faster. I'm looking to get the most speed out of
my database without having to invest in new hardware.
Thanks,
Peter Darley
-----Original Message-----
From: Ian Barwick [mailto:barwick@gmx.net]
Sent: Wednesday, March 06, 2002 3:17 PM
To: Peter Darley; Pgsql-Admin
Subject: Re: [ADMIN] Linux Distributions
On Wednesday 06 March 2002 18:49, Peter Darley wrote:
> Friends,
> I'm wondering if there is a specific Linux distribution for the x86 that
> will provide a better PostgreSQL server than the other ones?
> Thanks,
> Peter Darley
Do you have a more precise definition of "better"?
If you mean "better" for a production environment then I would
recommend the Linux distribution or [insert other OS name here]
that best suits your setup and which you feel most comfortable
with. Then build and configure PostgreSQL (and any other
major applications you will be relying heavily on, e.g. Apache in
a webs server environment) yourself.
(Distribution-built applications such as these are usually very nicely done
and are suitable if you want to get acquainted with them,
but often lag a version or two behind the current release version;
and of course the distributors don't know very much about
your particular production environment).
Ian Barwick
On Thursday 07 March 2002 01:02, Peter Darley wrote: > Ian, > By better I guess I mean faster. I'm looking to get the most speed out of > my database without having to invest in new hardware. > Thanks, > Peter Darley Then I don't think the PostgreSQL binaries provided in any given distribution will have any significant bearing on the matter; what will play a role is 1) how well does the distribution support your hardware; 2) whether your hardware is tuned optimally (BIOS, HD parameters etc.); 3) how PostgreSQL is built and configured 1 and 2 are beyond the scope of this list. How the PostgreSQL binaries were built (self-built or distribution-supplied) will probably have less of an effect on speed than the configuration (although as mentioned distributions often lag behind a version or two; the newer the version, the better the support), which very much depends on you and your hardware. HTH Ian Barwick
> I'm wondering if there is a specific Linux distribution for the x86 that > will provide a better PostgreSQL server than the other ones? > Thanks, > Peter Darley Dear Peter, PostgreSQL will only be PostgreSQL and there is no real difference, except compilation choices and RPM package names. I have been using Mandrake distros for 18 months now. PostgreSQL binaries are provided with multi-byte (i.e. you can create a Unicode database, which is not the case of most 7.1.x binaries I guess) and all server-side languages. Mandrake 8.1 is provided with PostgreSQL 7.1.2 but you can download the latest 7.2 binaries from : http://fr2.rpmfind.net/linux/RPM/mandrake/cooker/cooker/i586/Mandrake/RPMS/PByName.html If some extra RPMs are needed, just follow the links on http://fr2.rpmfind.net/ and download them. Furthermore, Mandrake is provided with ReiserFS journalizing system, which coupled to PostgreSQL WAL system garantees a fast startup in case of power failure without data loss. Cheers, Jean-Michel
On Thu, 2002-03-07 at 00:02, Peter Darley wrote: > Ian, > By better I guess I mean faster. I'm looking to get the most speed out of > my database without having to invest in new hardware. > Thanks, > Peter Darley You would be better off building your own. Debian, at least, configures PostgreSQL with locales and multibyte, which make it more useful to international community but which slow it down to some extent. -- Oliver Elphick Oliver.Elphick@lfix.co.uk Isle of Wight http://www.lfix.co.uk/oliver GPG: 1024D/3E1D0C1C: CA12 09E0 E8D5 8870 5839 932A 614D 4C34 3E1D 0C1C "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you; and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." Matthew 28:19,20
At 12:55 PM 3/6/02 -0800, Peter Darley wrote:
>What is it about FreeBSD that is going to make it faster than Linux? Any
>idea where I can find some comparative benchmarks?
There are a lot of comparative benchmarks that show FreeBSD as much faster
than Linux in real-world load mixes.
-crl
--
Chad R. Larson (CRL22) chad@eldocomp.com
Eldorado Computing, Inc. 602-604-3100
5353 North 16th Street, Suite 400
Phoenix, Arizona 85016-3228
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>>>>> "Andy" == Andy Ruhl <acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org> writes: Andy> On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote: >> Andy, I've got nothing against FreeBSD, except that I'm familiar >> with Linux and not with BSD. What is it about FreeBSD that is >> going to make it faster than Linux? Any idea where I can find some >> comparative benchmarks? Thanks, Peter Darley Andy> I don't mean to start a flame war here... Andy> Actually, I've seen benchmarks (but don't remember where they Andy> are) that show that Linux and FreeBSD are amazingly equal at Andy> most activities on equivalent hardware. Andy> My point is, machines are faster when they are actually running. Well... from experience, there are points where FreeBSD has strong advantages. Memory management is an obvious one. NFS is is another. Softupdates (the native file system) also has a small edge. We run a linux binary on a FreeBSD cluster (100-or-so nodes) because the FreeBSD cluster will do about 5% more work than the exact same hardware booted with linux (we actually use a diskless DHCP boot --- so we can quickly swap back and forth to test). 5% isn't a huge difference, but it is a real world application. Dave. -- ============================================================================ |David Gilbert, Velocet Communications. | Two things can only be | |Mail: dgilbert@velocet.net | equal if and only if they | |http://daveg.ca | are precisely opposite. | =========================================================GLO================ ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- TIP 5: Have you checked our extensive FAQ? http://www.postgresql.org/users-lounge/docs/faq.html
At 12:55 PM 3/6/02 -0800, Peter Darley wrote:
>What is it about FreeBSD that is going to make it faster than Linux? Any
>idea where I can find some comparative benchmarks?
There are a lot of comparative benchmarks that show FreeBSD as much faster
than Linux in real-world load mixes.
-crl
--
Chad R. Larson (CRL22) chad@eldocomp.com
Eldorado Computing, Inc. 602-604-3100
5353 North 16th Street, Suite 400
Phoenix, Arizona 85016-3228
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The fact "about FreeBSD that is going to make it faster than Linux" notes in B.Tiemann Michael C. Urban "FreeBSD" (see part "Linux and FreeBSD") ----- Original Message ----- From: "David Gilbert" <dgilbert@velocet.ca> To: <dwbear75@gmail.com> Cc: "Peter Darley" <pdarley@kinesis-cem.com>; "Pgsql-Admin" <pgsql-admin@postgresql.org> Sent: Thursday, March 07, 2002 1:54 AM Subject: Re: [ADMIN] Linux Distributions > >>>>> "Andy" == Andy Ruhl <acruhl@sdf.lonestar.org> writes: > > Andy> On Wed, 6 Mar 2002, Peter Darley wrote: > >> Andy, I've got nothing against FreeBSD, except that I'm familiar > >> with Linux and not with BSD. What is it about FreeBSD that is > >> going to make it faster than Linux? Any idea where I can find some > >> comparative benchmarks? Thanks, Peter Darley > > Andy> I don't mean to start a flame war here... > > Andy> Actually, I've seen benchmarks (but don't remember where they > Andy> are) that show that Linux and FreeBSD are amazingly equal at > Andy> most activities on equivalent hardware. > > Andy> My point is, machines are faster when they are actually running. > > Well... from experience, there are points where FreeBSD has strong > advantages. Memory management is an obvious one. NFS is is another. > Softupdates (the native file system) also has a small edge. We run a > linux binary on a FreeBSD cluster (100-or-so nodes) because the > FreeBSD cluster will do about 5% more work than the exact same > hardware booted with linux (we actually use a diskless DHCP boot --- > so we can quickly swap back and forth to test). > > 5% isn't a huge difference, but it is a real world application. > > Dave. > > -- > ============================================================================ > |David Gilbert, Velocet Communications. | Two things can only be | > |Mail: dgilbert@velocet.net | equal if and only if they | > |http://daveg.ca | are precisely opposite. | > =========================================================GLO================ > > ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- > TIP 5: Have you checked our extensive FAQ? > > http://www.postgresql.org/users-lounge/docs/faq.html > > > ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- > TIP 6: Have you searched our list archives? > > http://archives.postgresql.org >