GlusterFS

advanced

Scalable network filesystem.

Overview

GlusterFS is an open-source, distributed file system designed to scale to petabytes and handle thousands of clients. Originally developed by Gluster Inc. (later acquired by Red Hat), GlusterFS aggregates storage from multiple servers into a single global namespace, providing high availability and fault tolerance through replication and distribution mechanisms. Unlike traditional network-attached storage solutions, GlusterFS operates without metadata servers, using elastic hashing algorithms to locate files across the cluster. This Docker configuration establishes a two-node GlusterFS cluster using the official gluster-centos containers, each running as privileged containers to access low-level storage operations. The setup creates a replicated volume that maintains copies of data across both nodes, ensuring data redundancy and availability even if one node fails. The configuration isolates GlusterFS traffic on a dedicated Docker network while providing persistent storage for configuration files, logs, and the actual data being served. This stack is ideal for organizations requiring scalable, fault-tolerant storage that can grow horizontally by adding more nodes, making it particularly valuable for cloud-native applications, container orchestration platforms, and distributed computing environments where traditional shared storage becomes a bottleneck.

Key Features

Elastic hash algorithm eliminates metadata servers and single points of failure
Replica 2 configuration ensures data redundancy across both GlusterFS nodes
FUSE-based client mounting allows POSIX-compliant file system access
Self-healing capabilities automatically recover corrupted or missing files
Volume management through native GlusterFS CLI commands for creation and administration
Brick-level storage abstraction enables flexible underlying storage configurations
Online volume operations support adding and removing storage without downtime
Distributed hash table architecture provides linear scalability by adding nodes

Common Use Cases

1Container persistent storage for Kubernetes and Docker Swarm clusters
2Distributed file sharing for development teams working across multiple servers
3Media streaming platforms requiring high-throughput distributed storage
4Backup storage systems with built-in replication across geographic locations
5Web content delivery networks needing synchronized file distribution
6Scientific computing clusters requiring shared datasets across compute nodes
7Home lab environments testing distributed storage before production deployment

Prerequisites

Docker host with privileged container support and sufficient storage space
At least 4GB RAM per node for optimal GlusterFS performance
Understanding of GlusterFS volume types (distribute, replica, stripe)
Network connectivity between containers for brick synchronization
Basic knowledge of FUSE filesystem mounting and troubleshooting
Familiarity with GlusterFS CLI commands for volume management

For development & testing. Review security settings, change default credentials, and test thoroughly before production use. See Terms

docker-compose.yml

1services: 
2  gluster1: 
3    image: gluster/gluster-centos:latest
4    container_name: gluster1
5    privileged: true
6    hostname: gluster1
7    volumes: 
8      - gluster1_data:/data
9      - gluster1_etc:/etc/glusterfs
10      - gluster1_lib:/var/lib/glusterd
11      - gluster1_log:/var/log/glusterfs
12    networks: 
13      - gluster
14
15  gluster2: 
16    image: gluster/gluster-centos:latest
17    container_name: gluster2
18    privileged: true
19    hostname: gluster2
20    volumes: 
21      - gluster2_data:/data
22      - gluster2_etc:/etc/glusterfs
23      - gluster2_lib:/var/lib/glusterd
24      - gluster2_log:/var/log/glusterfs
25    networks: 
26      - gluster
27
28volumes: 
29  gluster1_data: 
30  gluster1_etc: 
31  gluster1_lib: 
32  gluster1_log: 
33  gluster2_data: 
34  gluster2_etc: 
35  gluster2_lib: 
36  gluster2_log: 
37
38networks: 
39  gluster: 
40    driver: bridge

.env Template

.env

1# Configure volume after containers start

Usage Notes

1Create volume: gluster volume create vol1 replica 2 gluster1:/data gluster2:/data
2Start volume: gluster volume start vol1
3Mount on client: mount -t glusterfs gluster1:/vol1 /mnt

Individual Services(2 services)

Copy individual services to mix and match with your existing compose files.

gluster1

gluster1:
  image: gluster/gluster-centos:latest
  container_name: gluster1
  privileged: true
  hostname: gluster1
  volumes:
    - gluster1_data:/data
    - gluster1_etc:/etc/glusterfs
    - gluster1_lib:/var/lib/glusterd
    - gluster1_log:/var/log/glusterfs
  networks:
    - gluster

gluster2

gluster2:
  image: gluster/gluster-centos:latest
  container_name: gluster2
  privileged: true
  hostname: gluster2
  volumes:
    - gluster2_data:/data
    - gluster2_etc:/etc/glusterfs
    - gluster2_lib:/var/lib/glusterd
    - gluster2_log:/var/log/glusterfs
  networks:
    - gluster

Quick Start

terminal

1# 1. Create the compose file
2cat > docker-compose.yml << 'EOF'
3services:
4  gluster1:
5    image: gluster/gluster-centos:latest
6    container_name: gluster1
7    privileged: true
8    hostname: gluster1
9    volumes:
10      - gluster1_data:/data
11      - gluster1_etc:/etc/glusterfs
12      - gluster1_lib:/var/lib/glusterd
13      - gluster1_log:/var/log/glusterfs
14    networks:
15      - gluster
16
17  gluster2:
18    image: gluster/gluster-centos:latest
19    container_name: gluster2
20    privileged: true
21    hostname: gluster2
22    volumes:
23      - gluster2_data:/data
24      - gluster2_etc:/etc/glusterfs
25      - gluster2_lib:/var/lib/glusterd
26      - gluster2_log:/var/log/glusterfs
27    networks:
28      - gluster
29
30volumes:
31  gluster1_data:
32  gluster1_etc:
33  gluster1_lib:
34  gluster1_log:
35  gluster2_data:
36  gluster2_etc:
37  gluster2_lib:
38  gluster2_log:
39
40networks:
41  gluster:
42    driver: bridge
43EOF
44
45# 2. Create the .env file
46cat > .env << 'EOF'
47# Configure volume after containers start
48EOF
49
50# 3. Start the services
51docker compose up -d
52
53# 4. View logs
54docker compose logs -f

One-Liner

Run this command to download and set up the recipe in one step:

terminal

1curl -fsSL https://docker.recipes/api/recipes/glusterfs/run | bash

Troubleshooting

Transport endpoint is not connected: Check if glusterd service is running and volumes are started with 'gluster volume status'
Peer probe failed: Verify container hostnames resolve correctly and use 'gluster peer probe <hostname>' to establish connections
Volume creation fails with brick path error: Ensure /data directory exists and has proper permissions within containers
Split-brain condition detected: Use 'gluster volume heal <volume> info split-brain' to identify and resolve conflicting files
Mount operation hangs: Verify glusterfs-fuse is installed on client and check network connectivity to GlusterFS nodes
Performance degradation on writes: Check replica count and network latency between nodes, consider tuning performance options

Community Notes

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