nfs no longer working under 13.04

[geezer]

deleted - see next post

[geezer]

I changed /etc/fstab and /etc/exports to reflect your post:

Note I have switched to using the respective domain names as listed by the router. I have done this since I found out yesterday that the router has switched the IPs of the two from what they were under Kubuntu 12.xx. The domain names are:

desktop: Home-Net
laptop: Cash-Net

desktop:

/etc/ftsab:

/home/terry /exports/terry none bind 0 0
/home/backup-1 /exports/backup-1 none bind 0 0
/home/backup-2 /exports/backup-2 none bind 0 0
/dos/FAT32 /exports/FAT32 none bind 0 0

Cash-Net:/terry /home/Acer/terry nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto 0 0
Cash-Net:/bin /home/Acer/usr/local/bin nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto 0 0
Cash-Net:/QTAwk /home/Acer/usr/local/share/QTAwk nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto 0 0

/etc/exports:

/exports/ Cash-Net(rw,fsid=0,nohide,insecure,no_subtree_c heck,sync)
/exports/terry Cash-Net(rw,nohide,insecure,no_subtree_check,sync)
/exports/backup-1 Cash-Net(rw,nohide,insecure,no_subtree_check,sync)
/exports/backup-2 Cash-Net(rw,nohide,insecure,no_subtree_check,sync)
/exports/FAT32 Cash-Net(rw,nohide,insecure,no_subtree_check,sync)

laptop:
/etc/fstab:

/home/terry /exports/terry none bind 0 0
/usr/local/bin /exports/bin none bind 0 0
/usr/local/share/QTAwk /exports none bind 0 0

Home-Net:/terry /home/desktop/terry nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto,_netdev 0 0
Home-Net:/backup-1 /home/desktop/backup-1 nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto,_netdev 0 0
Home-Net:/backup-2 /home/desktop/backup-2 nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto,_netdev 0 0
Home-Net:/FAT32 /home/desktop/dos/FAT32 nfs4 rw,hard,intr,noexec,users,auto,_netdev 0 0

/etc/exports:

/exports/ Home-Net(fsid=0,rw,sync,no_subtree_check)
/exports/terry Home-Net(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)
/exports/bin Home-Net(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)
/exports/QTAwk Home-Net(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)

The appropriate 'export' directories have been created on both the desktop and the laptop.

Cannot open the laptop files on the desktop or the desktop files on the laptop. No error messages, when I click on the appropriate disrectory displayed in Dolphin the directory comes up blank.

My further investigations led me to the following:

sudo netstat -tupaN | egrep 'rpc|Active|Proto'
Active Internet connections (servers and established)
Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address Foreign Address State PID/Program name
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:sunrpc 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN 876/rpcbind
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:47635 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN 1117/rpc.statd
tcp6 0 0 :::34637 :::* LISTEN 1117/rpc.statd
tcp6 0 0 :::sunrpc :::* LISTEN 876/rpcbind
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:45549 0.0.0.0:* 1117/rpc.statd
udp 0 0 127.0.0.1:869 0.0.0.0:* 1117/rpc.statd
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:imaps 0.0.0.0:* 876/rpcbind
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:sunrpc 0.0.0.0:* 876/rpcbind
udp6 0 0 :::57685 :::* 1117/rpc.statd
udp6 0 0 :::imaps :::* 876/rpcbind
udp6 0 0 :::sunrpc :::* 876/rpcbind

which shows that rpcbind and rpc.statd are listening, I think. However, the next command seems to indicate otherwise.

However, when I try list the active connections:

sudo netstat -tN
Active Internet connections (w/o servers)
Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address Foreign Address State
tcp 0 0 192.168.0.3:52434 98.136.145.153:http ESTABLISHED
tcp 0 0 192.168.0.3:59328 74.125.226.197:http TIME_WAIT
tcp 0 0 192.168.0.3:43409 74.125.226.200:http TIME_WAIT
tcp6 1 0 ::1:39590 ::1:ipp CLOSE_WAIT

It would appear that lines 1, 2 and 3 indicate something listening to the laptop.

When I repeat the command on the laptop, the only thing displayed is a small variation on the last line (the 39590 is 40802). So maybe the laptop isn't listening to the desktop.

So that leaves me a quandry. nfs version 4 may be working fine, but whatever is suppsed to be listening to the network is maybe not doing so.

Am I missing some vital package or program on both the desktop and laptop or just the laptop?? Is my 13.04 installation on both mucked up somehow, or just the laptop?? Are they mucked up sufficiently that I need to re-install or just somehow find what packages are missing (I have no idea which packages are needed for listening on the network). I installed 13.04 on the desktop from the LiveDVD. The LiveDVD wouldn't install on the laptop, so I dropped back to 12.10, installed from the LiveCD and upgraded to 13.04.

Are the programs there, just not instructed to be active and listening and how do I find you and if they aren't active, how do I make them active??

My printers are hooked up to the desktop via usb and shared. CUPS under firefox found and displays the printers - it even displays each twice just to make sure.

In looking at the output of netstat for both the desktop and the laptop, I am getting the impression that the laptop network thingies are just not working and that the desktop is trying to connect/communicate with the laptop, but the laptop is out to breakfast, lunch and dinner and taking a loong siesta.

Any ideas on this?? The more I investigate, the more confused I get.

[oshunluvr]

Re. the printers: double entries is usually caused by having "Share printers connected to this system" ticked on both computers.

I tried your commands on both my computers and got a ton more lines of output. Here's my client-side:

sudo netstat -tupaN | egrep 'rpc|Active|Proto' Active Internet connections (servers and established)
Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address           Foreign Address         State       PID/Program name
tcp        0      0 0.0.0.0:sunrpc          0.0.0.0:*               LISTEN      1180/rpcbind    
tcp        0      0 0.0.0.0:37022           0.0.0.0:*               LISTEN      1350/rpc.statd  
tcp6       0      0 :::sunrpc               :::*                    LISTEN      1180/rpcbind    
tcp6       0      0 :::35001                :::*                    LISTEN      1350/rpc.statd  
udp        0      0 127.0.0.1:678           0.0.0.0:*                           1350/rpc.statd  
udp        0      0 0.0.0.0:927             0.0.0.0:*                           1180/rpcbind    
udp        0      0 0.0.0.0:47276           0.0.0.0:*                           1350/rpc.statd  
udp        0      0 0.0.0.0:sunrpc          0.0.0.0:*                           1180/rpcbind    
udp6       0      0 :::37708                :::*                                1350/rpc.statd  
udp6       0      0 :::927                  :::*                                1180/rpcbind    
udp6       0      0 :::sunrpc               :::*                                1180/rpcbind

sudo netstat -tNActive Internet connections (w/o servers)
Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address           Foreign Address         State      
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:57686     173.194.33.38:https     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:59887     199.160.162.107:http    ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:33069     192.168.1.250:ipp       TIME_WAIT  
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:51298     192.168.1.250:9091      ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:684       192.168.1.250:nfs       ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:39019     192.168.1.250:2798      ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:49681     173.194.79.125:5223     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:43210     173.194.79.16:imaps     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:39107     192.168.1.250:730       ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:941       192.168.1.250:nfs       ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:57222     91.189.89.114:https     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:34001     74.125.28.147:https     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:33017     198.252.206.25:http     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:46237     74.125.28.147:http      ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:43245     173.194.79.16:imaps     ESTABLISHED
tcp        0      0 192.168.1.199:44737     173.194.79.:xmpp-client ESTABLISHED

It seems something is blocking the NFS/RPCBIND ports. I have scoured my system but can't see any non-default settings I used.

However, it seems to me that if you can click on a mounted folder but no files are listed - that's a permissions problem. Use a terminal and try to ls the files using sudo.

[oshunluvr]

I also believe to mount subdirectories under the main export tree explicitly you must use type nfs not nfs4. You can test via the command line.

In other words:

To mount all the subdirectories under /exports in one entry, the subject mount is only / and use type nfs4. This will mount all subdirectories under the mount location.

To mount a single subdirectory under /exports, like /exports/backups1, mount it using /exports/backups1 and type nfs. This will mount only that subdirectory in the mount location.

[geezer]

Well After many days and many, many, many hours trying to get 13.04 running reliably and consistently, I am finally giving up.

CUPS is erratic. I have all of my printers connected to the desktop via USB and shared. No matter how many times I configure the printers on the laptop, CUPS loses the printers. I can delete the printer and add it again and configure and print a test page successfully. The next time I bring up CUPS on the laptop, it says that the printer cannot be found. I have configured the printers too many times on the laptop and it is wasted time.

Also, no matter how I set up the nfs files on the desktop and laptop, they simply do not show up on the desktop or the laptop. NO error messages nothing. They simply are not there.

I am throwing in the towel and abandoning 13.04. It simply does not work for me on either machine.

I even downloaded 13.04 again on the laptop, put it on a flashdrive and installed. No error messages - everything was supposedly fine. But nothing worked. Programs would start, but never display and simply exit. On the second try they would display and come active.

I will install 12.10 on both and go through the configuration process again. 12.10 was working previously and hopefully will again. I think 13.04 is just too experimental for me to waste any more time.

Well hopefully by 13.10 the failures will have been found and corrected.

[geezer]

Well, Well

It seems that Kubuntu may not have been the problem after all.

I installed 12.10 on both the laptop and the desktop and ------------- got exactly the same result that I had under 13.04. nfs simply does not work. This is with all of the old files: /etc/fstab, /etc/exports, /etc/hosts/allow, /etc/hosts.deny and all of the original directories recreated for mounting. All of that did work, but no longer does.

Then I remembered -- shortly after the 13.04 install and before I did anything to configure it, I logged into the router (Netgear DGN1000) to confirm the IP addresses of the computers. Logging onto the router caused a firmware update check and then an automatic download of new firmware and installation thereof. That was the first firmware update since the router was new - 4/27/2011. I don't log onto the router very often, more like never.

Then I remembered that the IP addresses of the dektop and laptop were reversed from what they had been before the firmware upgrade. Also, when I check the "Attached Devices" on the router site, if I do so right after a boot, the computer names are known and listed. But if I do so after having been running for some length of time, the router no longer knows the names. Fishy.

So I am leaning towards the theory that the real culprit is the new router firmware.

I think it is blocking comms between the laptop and desktop through the router.

I have been in email comms to the Netgear tech support and got a timely reply to my first email. They suggested I depress the reset button - it is actually a reset to factory defaults. I did so and then realised that cleared out all of the login information to the service provider and also prevented me from logging into the router to redo all of the settings - until I remembered most makers set the password to password. I had to rely on my memory (Never a good idea) since the docs that came with the router was non-existent, i.e., there never was any.. I have since learned that all of the documentation is on the bottom of the router.. That got me in and I was able to reset and regain internet access. There were quit a few very anxious minutes until that was resolved. But no closer to resolving the router issues.

It seems that the Netgear people have closed shop for the weekend - their web site will no longer even recognize my login to report on what is happening and get support.

Will have to be patient until Monday when the workers return from the weekend. That renews my theory to NEVER do system work Fri through Mon. Fri they are getting ready for Sat/Sun. Sat/Sun they are gone and Mon they are swamped with all of those requests from people who did system work on Sat/Sun.

My hope is that they have the old firmware still available and that I will be able to download and install it on the router.

If the old firmware resolves the issues, then hopefully I can upgrade from 12.10 to 13.04 after testing the nfs version 4 connectivity first.

[geezer]

Success

Well I have some success. I downloaded and installed an old version of the router firmware. As near as I can tell from the dates, it is probably the original version that the router came with.

I was not able to get immediate success in mounting the nfs files, but just to try and find out what was happening, I pinged the router and the desktop from the laptop and pinged the router and the laptop from the desktop. pinging worked fine.

Checked, rechecked and double rechecked all the router settings. Everything looked fine.

Tried to mount an nfs file manually. No success. 'mount' just hung, no return, no errors. Tried as both 'sudo' and a regular user. Same thing both times.

redid the ping test again. Double checked export, fstab and hosts.allow files.

Noticed that I had used the computer names instead of the numeric IP addresses. Changed the names to the appropriate IP addresses.

Rebooted .................. and ............... the files mounted.

The fstab, export and hosts.allow files are all in the old nfs version 3 syntax. I will absolutely have to archive them on flash drives and rewrite as version 4 syntax and create the export directories. Then see if version 4 works.

A side note on backups. I have 3 hard drives on the desktop.

One has 2 partitions mounted as: '/' and '/home'

the second has 2 partitions: mounted as: '/dos/Vista' and '/home/backup-1'

the third has 2 partitions: mounted as: '/dos/FAT32' and '/home/backup-2'

I have made a habit of running a script to back up everything under '/home' to the 2 backup-x directories. Also, important files in '/etc' and '/usr/local/bin'

That gave me identical redundent backup on 2 independent hard disks.

In addition I have maintained another set of identical backups on 2 (now 4) 32 GB flash drives.

Boy did those flash drives prove that my paranoia wasn't misplaced.

In playing around with the 13.04 LIveDVD, installing 13.04 and 12.10 both hard drive backup partitions got wiped. I had a knowledgable friend check and double check the disk mounting instructions entered during all installations and we both insured that the only partitions to be formatted on installation were '/' and /'home' each time. So how the two heard drive partitions got wiped is still a mystery.

I nearly had a heart attack until I remembered the flash drives. They proved they were very cheap insurance. Having those flash drives as backup insured that there was backup, independent of the computers, no matter what. The hard disk backups got wiped somehow, but the flash drives could Not be wiped since they weren't even in the computer. One flash drive stays in my pocket all the time.

[geezer]

I have converted from nfs version 3 to version 4. Changed the /etc/export and /etc/fstab files for both the desktop and laptop computers and created the appropriate /export directory and subdirectories directories and rebooted.

The nfs files mounted no problem.

I would like to thank the people here for explaining how the nfs version 4 works.

The online docs were a muddle and inconsistent and confusing. I am very sure that the people who wrote them didn't really understand what they were writing about. The necessity for binding the files to export to the export directory if the exported directories were not all in the same directory tree was totally glossed over or totally omitted. All of the on-line examples simply assumed that all directories would be in the same directory tree and never addressed the issue if they weren't. Very confusing. I mean my case isn't really all that complex, but the examples given in the on-line docs were so simple minded as to be almost useless.

So I am convinced the new firmware for the Netgear router was the problem.

I lost a few days trying to get the Netgear tech support people to understand what was happening. They never did.

They kept telling me how to turn on and off the wireless connections. I kept telling them I did not want the wireless connections, that I use only ethernet. They never did understand that.

I asked about downloading the older firmware. They never did seem to know anything about that.

Their final recommendation was to just buy a new router. They admited that they were totally incapable of understanding and trouble shooting the problems !!

I finally just searched the Netgear web site and found the older firmware version myself. Downloaded and installed it.

Problems solved.

Well. Given the level of software quality and the total lack of knowledge by the tech support people, I can at least eliminate Netgear as a future vendor for anything.

[oshunluvr]

Congrats on getting it figured out - finally!

Sucks that Netgear broke your router and couldn't even advise on how to fix it.

It is true that many of the so-called "how to's" for NFSv4 omit the bind mount instructions. I guess those authors never actually tried their own guides!

[geezer]

Okay. I'm hoping that this episode is over.

I thought I had fixed the router problem by reverting to an older firmware version. I did and didn't.

Immediately after rebooting both computers the nfs (version 4) directories were available. But after a few mintes (didn't measure the time lapse), whenever attempting to access any nfs diretory on either computer, the accessing application (Dolphin, Firefox, Jedit, Kate, etc) simply froze. Had to use Ksysguard to terminate the application. Sometimes, if I just waited long enough the desired directory would become avaible.

Broke down today and went to MicroCenter and bought both a new DSL modem and a separate router. I was hoping that I had diagnosed the problem as in the router portion of the NeatGear DSL modem/router combo and the problem was not in one computer or the other.

Setup the DSL modem, then the router. The router was a little tricky to setup and get internet access, but that finally popped in.

The IP addresses for the computers are different in the new router. The final digit is 3 digits instead of only 1. I had /etc/fstab and /etc/export setup to use host names instead of IP addresses. The nfs directories didn't show up. Changed to IP addresses, set the addresses in the router as static, rebooted. And so far the nfs directories are stable and pop right up in Dolphin.

That makes 2 DSL modem/router combos that have gone bad in a little over 2 years on the LAN portion of the router. Actiontec and Neatgear. The DSL modem function in both operated fine even when the LAN function went bad.

I'm hoping that by making the router a separate entity, the LAN function in the router will last more than 2 years. I wonder why the h/w LAN function in both went bad? The only thing I can think of is the line frequency. I had to install and set up a standby generator (kicks on in 30 seconds) - too many power loses lasting too long. I have measured the line frequency of the generator at between 62 and 63 Hz. Measured using the wall clocks that operate off line frequency so didn't bother to get it down to fractions of a hz. Maybe the line frequency plays havoc with the router electronics if it varies from 60 Hz. I read the specs on some of our electronics and they specify the operating range as between 59 and 61 Hz so that 62+ Hz may upset the router. My UPS keeps the line voltage pretty constant, so I'm confident in that, but it doesn't do anything about the frequency. I know the UPS batteries go bad after too many episodes and too many hours on the generator line frequency.