Enhancement Request: Using /dev/$blockdevice path instead of id for storage commands

[Gabriel Ramirez]

This is an enhancement request re internal SF case 00289854 for adding the ability to use /dev/$blockdevice instead of the block device id for MaaS CLI commands

For example, executing

maas $profile machine set-storage-layout $machineid storage_layout=blank root_disk=$id

Requires the use of the id of the block device as retrieved from

maas $profile block-devices read $machineid

The customer would like to specify the block device path such as /dev/sda in this command as well as other MaaS CLI storage commands

Thanks

[khb (khbkhb)]

Please note this, along with 1893870, are ideally done together AND should be executable from the node being commissioned (so possibly some special $proifle so that works without extra login steps).

The fundamental use case stems from MAAS not correctly dealing with the DELL BOSS drives (but this facility would be generally useful), it is critical that the OS is installed on the "right" disk, and that the disk is configured correctly. Where correct is trivially knowable from identifying the hardware.

[Lee Trager (ltrager)]

MAAS avoids using the block device name because there is no guarantee block device names will be the same over reboots. The Linux kernel generates disk names based on the order they are discovered. When disks are enumerated they can came up in different order. A common reason for this is the disk firmware for one drive takes a little more time then another. So sda during commissioning may be sdb in a deployed environment.

From a make the API easier to use point of view I have no problem doing this. I just want to clarify what is modeled may not match the deployed environment.

[Alberto Donato (ack)]

As this is a feature request, could you please post in on our Discourse (https://discourse.maas.io/) under the "Feature" category?

We currently track feature requests there as it makes it easier to have long-running conversations.

Thanks