[MacPorts] #60178: Don't use SSDs for buildbot workers

MacPorts noreply at macports.org
Wed Mar 3 07:14:00 UTC 2021


#60178: Don't use SSDs for buildbot workers
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  Reporter:  ryandesign      |      Owner:  admin@…
      Type:  defect          |     Status:  closed
  Priority:  Normal          |  Milestone:
 Component:  server/hosting  |    Version:
Resolution:  wontfix         |   Keywords:
      Port:                  |
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Changes (by ryandesign):

 * status:  new => closed
 * resolution:   => wontfix


Comment:

 Let me follow up on this and close it out. While I appreciate the advice
 and perspective, Fred, I've decided to continue to use SSDs for the build
 machines. You mentioned your experience was from 2013 or earlier, and
 despite your claim that it does not, my hope and assumption is that SSD
 reliability and durability improves over time. Hard disks on the other
 hand are definitely destined to fail as they get older, and the Xserves
 that we use as build servers can only accommodate certain specific hard
 disk models in their internal drive bays—hard disk models which are over
 eleven years old at this point. Even though I have several compatible hard
 disks and most of them still work, I imagine that they will fail
 eventually and that compatible replacement hard disks will get harder to
 find.

 One of the servers has been running off such hard disks (one per VM) since
 its SSD died last year. This does work, but is definitely slower. In
 addition, hard disks use more power and run hot, and I'd like to reduce my
 servers' power consumption and heat generation where I can, so I intend to
 buy a replacement SSD for this server eventually, after other current
 server issues are addressed.

 I did already purchase ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro NVMe PCIe SSDs for the other
 three servers. Turns out Xserve firmware was not incompatible with NVMe;
 it was only incompatible with the NVMe version of the Samsung sm951. I
 have overprovisioned the new SSDs to hopefully increase their life. Each
 VM has reserved its full amount of RAM from the host. (When I first set up
 these servers in 2016 I had overbooked the RAM somewhat, not considering
 the impact it would have on the SSDs.) It's still possible that macOS
 within each VM may need to swap from time to time for extremely large
 builds (i.e. tensorflow). I could purchase more RAM.

 These new SSDs seem to be working fine. They cost a fraction of what the
 sm951s cost in 2016. If they last as long as the sm951s did, by the time
 they need replacing again (if we're even still using the Xserves then) the
 monetary replacement cost will be negligible. The biggest cost is really
 the downtime and the effort to restore each system to a new disk. Maybe I
 can improve my backup process to make restoration easier in the future.

 The last of the old SSDs died in February 2021: the third and final sm951
 died but is still readable and 2 of the 3 VMs have been restored onto the
 new SSD so far, and the old Apple SSD that shipped with the Xserve in 2009
 and housed the buildmaster died and is being temporarily served from a
 hard disk until it can be moved to the new SSD.

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://trac.macports.org/ticket/60178#comment:7>
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