HOW TO: Manage File Locking on Server for NFS

Network File Service (NFS) servers process and assign locks on files based on requests from NFS client computers. The server waits for a designated time when a connection is broken for the client to reestablish the connection. If the client does not reconnect in that time period, Server for NFS releases the lock. If you are the administrator, you can manually release all of the locks that are held by a client. This article describes how to use either Services for UNIX Administration Microsoft Management Console (MMC) or the NFSAdmin.exe utility to perform locking tasks.

Configuring Server for NFS Locking

You can use Services for UNIX Administration MMC to configure the locking wait period and to release the locks that are held by a client.

To configure locking on a Server for NFS computer:

1. Log on to the Server for NFS computer by using an administrative level account.
2. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Services for UNIX, and then click Services for UNIX Administration.
3. Click the Server for NFS pane, and then click the Locking tab.
4. Enter a time (in seconds) for the waiting period that the server holds a lock for a disconnected client. The default value is 0.
5. Click Apply to apply the change.

Managing Locks by Using NFSAdmin

If you use the Nfsadmin.exe command-line utility, you can control any locks that are held by the server. You can use Nfsadmin to view the current locking status and to release the locks that are held by individual clients.

To manage locks by using NFSAdmin:

1. Log on to the Windows server by using an administrative level account.
2. Click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
3. From the command prompt, run the following command to list the existing locks held by all clients:
   nfsadmin server -l
4. From the command prompt, run the following command to release the locks that are held by a client:
   nfsadmin server -r client_name
5. From the command prompt, run the following command to release all of the locks that are held by all clients:
   nfsadmin server -r all

NOTE: For more information about the Nfsadmin utility, see the "man nfsadmin" pages in an Interix shell.

For additional information about performing maintenance tasks after a UNIX to Windows migration, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: