Overview

DRBD (Distributed Replicated Block Device) is an open-source software solution designed for high performance and high availability storage replication on the Linux platform. For over two decades, DRBD has been actively developed and regularly updated, incorporating bug fixes, performance improvements, and new features. It is implemented as a kernel driver, several user space management applications, and shell scripts. DRBD is traditionally used in high availability (HA) computer clusters, but with version 9, it can also create larger software-defined storage pools with a focus on cloud integration.

Features

• Kernel Driver: The DRBD kernel driver presents virtual block devices to the system, reading and writing data to optional local backing devices.
• Peer Nodes: Mirrors data writes to one or multiple peers, ensuring data replication and high availability.
• Data Plane Efficiency: Efficient data path within the DRBD kernel driver, with no user space components involved, reducing network traffic.
• DRBD Utilities: Includes tools like drbdadm, drbdsetup, and drbdmeta for configuration, management, and meta-data preparation.
• Networking Options: Supports TCP/IP and RDMA/Verbs for enhanced performance and reduced CPU load.
• Disaster Recovery: Mitigates issues with varying bandwidth and latency on WAN links through buffering and compression.
• Windows Driver: WinDRBD extends DRBD's advantages to Windows, with regular updates and comprehensive documentation.

Benefits

• High Performance: Suitable for applications with frequent small write operations, backing HA databases and messaging queues.
• High Availability: Ensures data replication and availability across nodes, preventing data loss.
• Cloud Integration: Focuses on cloud integration, making it ideal for modern cloud environments.
• Open Source: Community-driven improvements and customization opportunities.
• Versatile Deployment: Can be used independently of cloud, virtualization, or container platforms to manage large DRBD clusters.
• Expert Support: LINBIT offers enterprise support and additional software utilities for enhanced functionality.