Complete Ubuntu VM Setup with LVM Storage and NFS Shares

Introduction

Setting up an Ubuntu virtual machine (VM) with Logical Volume Management (LVM) storage and Network File System (NFS) shares can enhance your system’s flexibility and scalability. This guide provides a step-by-step approach to configuring an Ubuntu VM with LVM for efficient storage management and NFS for sharing files across the network.

PrerequisitesBefore you begin, ensure you have the following prerequisites:

A preferred virtualization platform (e.g., VirtualBox, VMware, KVM).
An Ubuntu ISO image for installation.
Basic knowledge of Linux command line and system administration.

Server Setup

Installing Ubuntu VM

Create a new virtual machine in your chosen virtualization platform.
Allocate sufficient resources (CPU, RAM, Disk Space) based on your requirements.
Mount the Ubuntu ISO image and start the VM.
Follow the on-screen instructions to install Ubuntu, ensuring you set up a user account and password.
In the installation process keep the unallocated or free space as it is.
Complete the installation and reboot the VM.

Enable remote root access

Open a terminal in your Ubuntu VM and use the below command to set the root password:

sudo passwd root

Command to enable remote root login

sudo sed -i 's/#PermitRootLogin prohibit-password/PermitRootLogin yes/' /etc/ssh/sshd_config
sudo systemctl restart ssh

Step 3: Install root CA certificates in the trust store

Copy the root CA certificate file (e.g., my-ca.crt) to the /usr/local/share/ca-certificates/ directory.

sudo cp my-ca.crt /usr/local/share/ca-certificates/

Update the CA certificates:

sudo update-ca-certificates

Step 4: Setting Up LVM Storage

Show the availabls space using below command

vgs

you will see the free space in the VG like below:

   VG        #PV #LV #SN Attr   VSize    VFree
  ubuntu-vg   1   1   0 wz--n- <498.00g <398.00g

to see the absolute free space use below command

pvs

you will see the free space in the PV like below:

  PV         VG        Fmt  Attr PSize    PFree
  /dev/sda3  ubuntu-vg lvm2 a--  <498.00g <398.00g

Create a new logical volume (LV) using the free space:

sudo lvcreate -L 300G -n nfs-share ubuntu-vg # Replace '300G' with the desired size and 'nfs-share' with your LV name

It will create a LV named nfs-share with 300GB size. give the terminal output like below:

  Logical volume "nfs-share" created.

Format the new LV with a filesystem (e.g., xfs):

sudo mkfs.xfs /dev/ubuntu-vg/nfs-share # Replace with your LV path

you will see the terminal output like below:

meta-data=/dev/ubuntu-vg/nfs-share isize=512    agcount=4, agsize=19660800 blks
         =                       sectsz=512   attr=2, projid32bit=1
         =                       crc=1        finobt=1, sparse=1, rmapbt=1
         =                       reflink=1    bigtime=1 inobtcount=1 nrext64=0
data     =                       bsize=4096   blocks=78643200, imaxpct=25
         =                       sunit=0      swidth=0 blks
naming   =version 2              bsize=4096   ascii-ci=0, ftype=1
log      =internal log           bsize=4096   blocks=38400, version=2
         =                       sectsz=512   sunit=0 blks, lazy-count=1
realtime =none                   extsz=4096   blocks=0, rtextents=0
Discarding blocks...Done.

Create a mount point and mount the LV:

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/nfs-share
sudo mount /dev/ubuntu-vg/nfs-share /mnt/nfs-share

To make the mount persistent across reboots, add an entry to /etc/fstab:

echo '/dev/ubuntu-vg/nfs-share /mnt/nfs-share xfs defaults 0 0' | sudo tee -a /etc/fstab

It will append the fstab file with the new entry. and command output like below:

/dev/ubuntu-vg/nfs-share /mnt/nfs-share xfs defaults 0 0

Step 5: Setting Up NFS Shares

Install NFS server packages:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nfs-kernel-server -y

Check the status of NFS server:

sudo systemctl status nfs-kernel-server

Configure NFS exports by editing the /etc/exports file:

echo '/mnt/nfs-share 192.168.12.0/255.255.255.0(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)' | sudo tee -a /etc/exports

This command will append the exports file with the new NFS share configuration. The output will be:

/mnt/nfs-share 192.168.12.0/255.255.255.0(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)

Apply the export changes:

sudo exportfs -ra
sudo systemctl restart nfs-kernel-server

Adjust firewall settings to allow NFS traffic (if applicable):

sudo ufw allow from 192.168.12.0/24 to any port nfs

Verify NFS exports:

showmount -e localhost

You should see output similar to:

Export list for localhost:
/mnt/nfs-share 192.168.12.0/255.255.255.0

Set proper permissions on the NFS share directory:

sudo chown -R nobody:nogroup /mnt/nfs-share
sudo chmod 777 /mnt/nfs-share

Connect from Client Machine

On the client machine, install NFS client packages:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nfs-common -y

check avaiable shares from the NFS server:

showmount -e <NFS_SERVER_IP>

You should see the exported shares from the server. 3. Create a mount point on the client machine:

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/nfs-client

Mount the NFS share from the server:

sudo mount <NFS_SERVER_IP>:/mnt/nfs-share /mnt/nfs-client

To make the NFS mount persistent across reboots, add an entry to /etc/fstab on the client machine:

echo '<NFS_SERVER_IP>:/mnt/nfs-share /mnt/nfs-client nfs defaults 0 0' | sudo tee -a /etc/fstab

This command will append the fstab file with the new NFS mount entry. The output will be:

<NFS_SERVER_IP>:/mnt/nfs-share /mnt/nfs-client nfs defaults 0 0

Unmount the NFS share when done:

sudo umount /mnt/nfs-client

Mount using autofs (optional)

We dont need to add directory in the fstab file. Instead we will use autofs to mount the NFS share on demand.
Install autofs package:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install autofs -y

Check the status of autofs service:

sudo systemctl status autofs

Edit the autofs master configuration file /etc/auto.master to add a new map file:

echo "/mnt/nfs /etc/auto.nfs --ghost --timeout=60" | sudo tee -a /etc/auto.master

This command will append the auto.master file with the new map file entry. The output will be:

/mnt/nfs /etc/auto.nfs --ghost --timeout=60

For docker swarm it will be better if we add below permissions:

nfs-share -fstype=nfs,rw,nolock,soft,tcp,intr 192.168.12.14:/mnt/nfs-share

sudo systemctl restart autofs

Why these extra flags matter for Docker:

nolock: Prevents the NFS client and server from trying to coordinate file locks, which often fail when multiple containers or nodes access the same share.
soft: If the NFS server goes down, the client will eventually report an error instead of hanging the entire Linux process (and your Docker service) forever.
tcp: Forces the use of TCP, which is more stable for Docker traffic than UDP.
intr: Allows NFS requests to be interrupted if the server stops responding.

Create the map file /etc/auto.nfs with the NFS share details:

echo "nfs-share -fstype=nfs,rw <NFS_SERVER_IP>:/mnt/nfs-share" | sudo tee /etc/auto.nfs

This command will create the auto.nfs file with the NFS share configuration. The output will be:

nfs-share -fstype=nfs,rw <NFS_SERVER_IP>:/mnt/nfs-share

Restart the autofs service to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart autofs

check the mounts:

mount | grep autofs

You should see output similar to:

autofs on /mnt/nfs type autofs (rw,relatime,fd=XX,pgrp=XXXX,timeout=60,minproto=5,maxproto=5)

Access the NFS share:

ls /mnt/nfs/nfs-share

watch the autofs logs for any issues:

sudo tail -f /var/log/syslog | grep autofs

If you have UFW enabled on your Ubuntu VM, you need to allow the IP address or subnet of the client machines to access the NFS share. Use the following command to allow access:

sudo ufw allow from
sudo ufw allow from
sudo ufw reload

Replace <CLIENT_IP_OR_SUBNET> with the actual IP address or subnet of the client machines.

Extend the LVM Storage (if needed)

If you need to extend the LVM storage in the future, follow these steps:

Ad disk to the VM through your virtualization platform.
Run lsblk to identify the new disk (e.g., /dev/sdb).

lsblk

You should see output similar to:

root@nfs:~# lsblk
NAME                      MAJ:MIN RM  SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
sda                         8:0    0  500G  0 disk
├─sda1                      8:1    0    1M  0 part
├─sda2                      8:2    0    2G  0 part /boot
└─sda3                      8:3    0  498G  0 part
  ├─ubuntu--vg-ubuntu--lv 252:0    0  100G  0 lvm  /
  └─ubuntu--vg-nfs--share 252:1    0  300G  0 lvm  /mnt/nfs-share
sdb                         8:16   0  500G  0 disk
sr0                        11:0    1 1024M  0 rom

Create a physical volume (PV) on the new disk:

sudo pvcreate /dev/sdb

You should see output similar to:

  Physical volume "/dev/sdb" successfully created.

Extend the existing volume group (VG) to include the new PV:

sudo vgextend ubuntu-vg /dev/sdb

You should see output similar to:

  Volume group "ubuntu-vg" successfully extended

Extend the logical volume (LV) to use the additional space:

sudo lvextend -r -l +100%FREE /dev/ubuntu-vg/nfs-share # Replace with your LV path

You should see output similar to:

Size of logical volume ubuntu-vg/nfs-share changed from 300.00 GiB (76800 extents) to 897.99 GiB (229886 extents).
  Logical volume ubuntu-vg/nfs-share successfully resized.
meta-data=/dev/mapper/ubuntu--vg-nfs--share isize=512    agcount=4, agsize=19660800 blks
         =                       sectsz=512   attr=2, projid32bit=1
         =                       crc=1        finobt=1, sparse=1, rmapbt=1
         =                       reflink=1    bigtime=1 inobtcount=1 nrext64=0
data     =                       bsize=4096   blocks=78643200, imaxpct=25
         =                       sunit=0      swidth=0 blks
naming   =version 2              bsize=4096   ascii-ci=0, ftype=1
log      =internal log           bsize=4096   blocks=38400, version=2
         =                       sectsz=512   sunit=0 blks, lazy-count=1
realtime =none                   extsz=4096   blocks=0, rtextents=0
data blocks changed from 78643200 to 235403264

Verify the new size of the LV:

sudo lvs

You should see output similar to:

  LV        VG        Attr       LSize   Pool Origin Data%  Meta%  Move Log Cpy%Sync Convert
  nfs-share ubuntu-vg -wi-ao---- 897.99g                                                    
  ubuntu-lv ubuntu-vg -wi-ao---- 100.00g                                                    

Troubleshooting

If you encounter issues during the setup process, consider the following troubleshooting steps:

Check NFS server status:

sudo systemctl status nfs-kernel-server

Verify NFS exports:

showmount -e localhost

Review system logs for errors:

sudo tail -f /var/log/syslog

Ensure firewall rules are correctly configured to allow NFS traffic.
Verify LVM configuration:

sudo lvdisplay
sudo vgdisplay
sudo pvdisplay

Conclusion

By following this guide, you have successfully set up an Ubuntu virtual machine with LVM storage and NFS shares. This configuration provides a flexible and scalable storage solution that can be easily managed and expanded as needed. Enjoy your new Ubuntu VM setup!

Documentation Index

​Introduction

​Server Setup

​Step 3: Install root CA certificates in the trust store

​Step 4: Setting Up LVM Storage

​Step 5: Setting Up NFS Shares

​Connect from Client Machine

​Mount using autofs (optional)

​Allow ip to access NFS share through firewall

​Extend the LVM Storage (if needed)

​Troubleshooting

​Conclusion

Introduction

Server Setup

Step 3: Install root CA certificates in the trust store

Step 4: Setting Up LVM Storage

Step 5: Setting Up NFS Shares

Connect from Client Machine

Mount using autofs (optional)

Allow ip to access NFS share through firewall

Extend the LVM Storage (if needed)

Troubleshooting

Conclusion