Re: FTP - Download Problem

From: Michael Heiming (michael+USENET_at_www.heiming.de)
Date: 08/02/05 

Date: Tue, 2 Aug 2005 14:34:49 +0200

In alt.os.linux Mike <spamdump@fensoft.co.uk>:
> Enkidu wrote:
>> Mike wrote:
>>
>>> I'm trying to download a DVD .iso for Mandriva. The file size is
>>> 2200223744 bytes but the download fails at 2147483520 bytes (just
>>> under 2 gigs) with a message "short write". I've tried a couple of
>>> mirror sites but the result is the same and I suspect it's something
>>> at my end.
>>>
>> The file system may only support file to 2gb. 2GB is 2147483648 bytes so
>> your failure point is almost exactly 2GB.

Linux fs support since ages files >2GB.
 
> I considered that and there was some evidence pointing to its being right -
> but it isn't. <g>.

> Quick update. I tried wget but that failed on *exactly* 2GB so a file
> system limit seemed very likely. I'm presuming the "short write" message I
> got from the plain ftp client meant that, if it succeeded in writing the
> data it was about to write, it would have gone over a 2GB limit. That could
> cause it to appear to fail at a little under the 2GB (as it did). The ext2
> file system *should* be able to handle >2GB files but I was planning to
> investigate that, and a possible kernel limit, later (it was getting rather
> late at night). Just as a double check, I tried downloading the file using
> ncftp (as suggested by Michael Heiming) and left that running. I was
> expecting it to fail at 2GB but, at least, it would confirm suspicions about
> the file system and give me a chance to see ncftp running (I haven't used it
> before). It worked !! :) The entire 2.05GB was downloaded successfully so
> there can't be a problem with a file system limit.

Glad to hear you got it working!

> I'm still none the wiser as to why ftp and wget failed but I am better
> informed. :)

Simply because your versions of ftp/wget are not compiled to
support filesizes >2GB, thought I had already pointed this out,
but I might be wrong. Fill in a bug report to your distro, likely
it wasn't a problem some years ago, but with today dvd .iso it's
easily reached.

Good luck 

-- 
Michael Heiming (X-PGP-Sig > GPG-Key ID: EDD27B94)
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