I'm finally putting lsyncd into production to synchronize web site mirrors. After I work out any kinks, I'll put it to use for some configuration files, too.
Its a small piece of software that connects inotify (the file watching component of the linux kernel) with rsync in a very manageable way. More specifically, it enables systems administrators and computer enthusiasts to easily mirror files and directories across multiple servers with ease - and perhaps more importantly - near immediate mirroring speed.
Lsyncd works like this:
I don't want to always start lsyncd manually from the command line. In my opinion, it should always be running. I could add an init script, or I could manage it with daemontools. Which one do you recommend?
Rsync has a great method of excluding files, simply create a list of globs in a file, and then tell rsync about it.
With lsyncd, I use this line:
<exclude-from filename="/root/rsync_virtual_tools/constant_excludes" />In it I have these entries:
*.new */wiki svnlog .git svnlogs .ikiwiki dnu
The *.new file exclusion is important because Movable Type creates an example.html.new file as it publishes, and I just noticed as I first published this entry, lsyncd was transferring, then deleting those files!
Yes, its that fast!
Hmm... still seems to be triggered by the *.new files... so I'll turn off temp files in the mt-config.cgi file:
NoTempFiles 1
Yup! That worked. I bet there are plenty of situations where some tweaks are needed.