Chapter 2.
15
System Requirements
Before configuring the default Red Hat Directory Server 8.1 instances, it is important to verify that the
host server has the required system settings and configuration:
• The system must have the required packages, patches, and kernel parameter settings.
• DNS must be properly configured on the target system.
• The host server must have a static IP address.
This chapter covers the software and hardware requirements, operating system patches and settings,
and system configurations that are necessary for Directory Server to perform well. It also includes
information on a Directory Server tool,
dsktune
, which is useful in identifying required patches and
system settings for Directory Server.
NOTE
The requirements outlined in this chapter apply to
production
systems. For evaluating or
prototyping Directory Server, you may choose not to meet all of these requirements.
Directory Server is supported on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and 5 (x86 and x86_64) and HP-UX 11i
(IA 64). The specific operating system requirements and kernel settings, patches, and libraries are
listed for each.
2.1. General Hardware Requirements
Red Hat recommends minimum of 4 GB of disk space for a typical installation, while directories with
more than a million entries can require 8 GB or more. Red Hat suggests 1 GB of RAM.
Table 2.1, “Hardware Requirements Based on Number of Entries”
contains guidelines for Directory
Server disk space and memory requirements based upon on the number of entries that your
organization requires. The values shown here assume that the entries in the LDIF file are
approximately 100 bytes each and that only the recommended indices are configured (since indexing
is resource-intensive).
Number of Entries
Required Memory
Disk Space
10,000 - 250,000 entries
1 GB
2 GB
250,000 - 1,000,000 entries
1 GB
4 GB
1,000,000 + entries
1 GB
8 GB
Table 2.1. Hardware Requirements Based on Number of Entries
2.2. Using dsktune
Along with meeting the required operating system patches and platforms, system settings, like the
number of file descriptors and TCP information, should be reconfigured to optimize the Directory
Server performance.
After the packages for Directory Server are installed there is tool called
dsktune
which can scan a
system to check for required and installed patches, memory, system configuration, and other settings