Description of problem: When copying many SMALL files from a mounted NFS file system, the copy process will copy some files, then pause indefinitely, then copy some more, then pause again. Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable): 2.6.20-1.2944.fc6 How reproducible: all the time. DOES NOT HAPPEN WITH ORIGINAL 2.6.18-1.2798.fc6 KERNEL Steps to Reproduce: 1. mount nfs file system 2. copy a directory with hundreds of small files 3. Reverting to old kernel, no problems appear. Actual results: Expected results: Additional info:
The pauses are VERY long, so much so that NFS is unusable for copying a large directory full of small files. Copying one large file however does not cause any problem. It seems to be related to the number of files, not the size.
Further investigation reveals that this behaviour is dependant on the type of ethernet NIC. Changing to another card type (e100) clears the problem. The faulty behaviour occurs with the "forcedeth" driver for nVidia NIC nForce 2 ethernet controller. Should I file another bug?
If the problem continues to exist, Yes.