Transfer files between AIX boxes via named pipe

Cerephim · 07-05-2016, 09:34 AM

Hi.
I am trying to do a refresh of an environment from "server A" (source) to "server B" (target). Server B has very little room, otherwise I'd tar up the files and move the tarball over.

I'd like to copy files from A to B, replacing the current files on B with the up to date files on A via named pipe. I did something like this a good ten years ago, but I've forgotten any of the details.

Any ideas?

Thank you in advance!

TB0ne · 07-05-2016, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cerephim

Hi.
I am trying to do a refresh of an environment from "server A" (source) to "server B" (target). Server B has very little room, otherwise I'd tar up the files and move the tarball over.

I'd like to copy files from A to B, replacing the current files on B with the up to date files on A via named pipe. I did something like this a good ten years ago, but I've forgotten any of the details.

Rsync is the way to go here. While this is a Linux utility, it is supported on AIX:

http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/ai...y/au-filesync/
http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/ai...u-rsyncfamily/

cliffordw · 07-06-2016, 09:40 AM

Hi,

I second the rsync suggestion. You can find AIX binaries for it at https://www-03.ibm.com/systems/power...box/alpha.html or http://www.perzl.org/aix/index.php?n=Main.Rsync.

NevemTeve · 07-10-2016, 12:09 PM

With nameless pipe:

Code:

tohost# cd /topath
tohosr# ssh someuser@fromhost 'cd /frompath; tar czf - somedir' | tar xzvf -

Edit: If you have AIX!tar instead of GNU!tar, you might have to leave out the 'z'

jpollard · 07-17-2016, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cerephim

Hi.
I am trying to do a refresh of an environment from "server A" (source) to "server B" (target). Server B has very little room, otherwise I'd tar up the files and move the tarball over.

I'd like to copy files from A to B, replacing the current files on B with the up to date files on A via named pipe. I did something like this a good ten years ago, but I've forgotten any of the details.

Any ideas?

Thank you in advance!

Technically pipes are only internal structures to a single system. A pipe cannot be used to provide a network connection to another system. For that you have to use something else to provide the network transfer - NFS mounts, ssh tunnels (scp or ssh), rsync (client and server), ftp... (and some ftp servers can create a tar file, pass the tar data across the net for storage, though I don't remember any that allowed tar on both sides).

A named pipe is a FIFO file - it has a file name reference, but that just allows independent connection to the pipe.

A named socket is closer - but it is still a structure for one system, and does not provide network transfers. A named socket is a generalized merger between a socket (two-way communication rather than a one way pipe) and a FIFO file.

Michael AM · 08-29-2016, 02:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cliffordw

Hi,

I second the rsync suggestion. You can find AIX binaries for it at https://www-03.ibm.com/systems/power...box/alpha.html or http://www.perzl.org/aix/index.php?n=Main.Rsync.

I would like to say I also maintain a repository for AIX Tools, but as I do not wish to break any 'posting rules' - I will not post the URL here. Instead I'll only mention I package my tools in installp format, rather than RPM - and do my best to be sure they can co-exist with what you have already - AND - never create a situation that you cannot uninstall - as a few of the RPM package scripts do, as well as a need for a second runtime environment to support the gcc compiler dependencies (i.e., I build using the IBM vac compiler).

And thanks for the reminder - I built rsync last March - and forgot about it. But I'll have it accessible in about 10 minutes.