The Sysadmin’s Daily Grind: Zsync

VIVE LA DIFFERENCE

Article from Issue 72/2006
Author(s):

Zsync handles a special case: large volume download files that change frequently but not drastically. Charly shows how this handy file fetcher can save you time and bandwidth.

Zsync – the name is reminiscent of Rsync, the Swiss Army knife of file transfers. The Rsync algorithm is at Zsync’s core, but Zsync has a different purpose. Whereas Rsync synchronizes whole filesystem trees, Zsync focuses on downloading single, bulk files. Imagine a company has tailored a Linux distribution to suit its own needs. They upload an ISO file of the distribution to their Intranet server. Whenever an administrator needs to set up a new PC, they just download the distribution from the server. This is something that occurs quite regularly, as the distribution is updated continually.

Buy this article as PDF

Express-Checkout as PDF
Price $2.95
(incl. VAT)

Buy Linux Magazine

SINGLE ISSUES
Print Issues
Digital Issues
 
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Print Subs
Digisubs
 
TABLET & SMARTPHONE APPS
Get it on Google Play

US / Canada

Get it on Google Play

UK / Australia

Related content

  • Parted Magic 4.9: New Device Names

    Parted Magic, a Live Linux with programs for partitioning and data rescue, is available in version 4.9. Apart from bug fixes, it includes a few new features.

    more »
  • Charly's Column

    Charly may be a traditionalist with sync-unfriendly duplicate home directories, but a little utility called Unison helps keep his data consistent . This month you’ll learn why Rsync sometimes isn’t enough.

    more »
  • Charly's Column

    The principle behind Rsnapshot is nothing new: use Rsync and SSH to back up files to another computer. What sets Rsnapshot apart is its simple setup and its rich collection of features.

    more »
  • Charly's Column

    Leafnode is a Usenet server for small sites where just a few users need access to a large number of groups. The Leafnode server is designed to recover from errors autonomously and needs very little attention.

    more »
  • Charly's Column

    Without TinyURL.com and similar URL shortening services, many Twitter postings would only have enough space left for “Look at this.” But if you run a web server yourself, you might prefer to grow your own shortener.

    more »
comments powered by Disqus

Visit Our Shop

Trial Subscription

Digital Subscription

Subscribe

Direct Download

Read full article as PDF:

Charly_Column.pdf (90.66 kB)

Linux Administration

News

Tag Cloud

Administration Community Events Hardware Linux Linux New Media Linux Pro Magazine Mobile Programming Software Ubuntu Web Development Windows free software open source