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File synchronization with rsync

File synchronization with rsync

This section explains how to set up rsync, a file synchronization program. rsync can synchronize asset files between a Commerce Manager and storefront located on different servers. If the Commerce Manager and storefront are located on the same server, or if they are on a shared drive (with an identical mount point or drive name), rsync is not required.

We recommend configuring a central location for storefront template and template resource files, or choosing a master storefront node from the cluster. Synchronizing these files with rsync will allow storefront changes to be instantly replicated in other cluster nodes.

  1. Download and install rsync from http://samba.anu.edu.au/rsync/download.html. If the source code is downloaded, enter the following commands to build it: 
    {RSYNC_SRC_DIR}/configure
{RSYNC_SRC_DIR}/make
{RSYNC_SRC_DIR}/make install
  2. Set up the rsync daemon on the Commerce Manager server. Replace SF1_SERVER_IP and SF2_SERVER_IP with the IP addresses of the servers that will be the nodes in the cluster, EP_ASSETS_PATH with the path to the asset directory, and EP_TEMPLATES_PATH with the path where templates will be stored. 
    motd file = /etc/rsyncd.motd
log file = /var/log/rsyncd.log
pid file = /var/run/rsyncd.pid
lock file = /var/run/rsync.lock
hosts allow = SF1_SERVER_IP, SF2_SERVER_IP
exclude = .svn .svn/* *.bak

[PD:assets]
   path = EP_ASSETS_PATH
   comment = assets

[PD:templates]
   path = EP_TEMPLATES_PATH
   comment = view templates
  3. Create a new file named \etc\rsyncd.motd with the following: 
    Welcome to rsyncd server.
  4. Start the rsync daemon with the following: 
    rsync --verbose  --progress --stats --compress --rsh=/usr/local/bin/ssh \
      --recursive --times --perms --links --delete \
      -daemon

Setting up the rsync client on the storefront servers

  1. Create a new file named \sbin\rsync_ep. Replace CM_SERVER_IP with the IP address of the server hosting the Commerce Manager, EP_ASSETS_PATH with the path to the asset directory, and EP_INSTALL_PATH with the path to the root of the Elastic Path code base. 
    #!/bin/bash

rsync --verbose  --progress --stats --compress --recursive --times --perms
  --links --delete
  CM_SERVER_IP::assets/*  EP_ASSETS_PATH

rsync --verbose  --progress --stats --compress --recursive --times --perms
  --links --delete
  CM_SERVER_IP::templates/*  EP_INSTALL_PATH/com.elasticpath.sf/WEB-INF/templates
  2. Change the file permissions of \sbin\rync_ep to allow anyone read access. 
    chmod 744 /sbin/rsync_ep
  3. Create a new cron job \etc\cron.d\rsync with the following: 
    # run rysnc every 10 minutes
*/10 * * * * root /sbin/rsync_ep
    Note:

    If a large number of files need to be replicated, it may take some time to transfer them to each storefront. If you are planning on importing many products into a live production catalog, you should first upload the media files to the Commerce Manager and let the replication finish before running the import.

For more information on rsync, see http://everythinglinux.org/rsync/.