Parallel NFS (pNFS) Flexible File Layout Version 2

Parallel NFS (pNFS) allows a separation between the metadata (onto a metadata server) and data (onto a storage device) for a file. The Flexible File Layout Type Version 2 is defined in this document as an extension to pNFS that allows the use of storage devices that require only a limited degree of interaction with the metadata server and use already-existing protocols. Data protection is also added to provide integrity. Both Client-side mirroring and the Erasure Coding algorithms are used for data protection.