1. Managing ZFS File Systems in Oracle Solaris 11.4
  2. Managing the ZFS Root Pool
  3. Requirements for Configuring the ZFS Root Pool
  4. ZFS Root Pool Space Requirements

ZFS Root Pool Space Requirements

The size of the swap dump volumes depend on the amount of physical memory. The minimum amount of pool space for a bootable ZFS root file system depends upon the amount of physical memory, the disk space available, and the number of BEs to be created.

The 7GB to 13GB minimum disk space recommended in Hardware and Software Requirements is consumed as follows:

  • Swap area and dump device – The default sizes of the swap and dump volumes that the installation program creates vary based on variables such as the amount of system memory. The dump device size is approximately half the size of physical memory or greater, depending on the system's activity.

    You can adjust the sizes of your swap and dump volumes during or after installation. The new sizes must support system operation. See Adjusting the Sizes of ZFS Swap and Dump Devices.

  • Boot environment – A ZFS BE is approximately 4 GB-6 GB. Each ZFS BE that is cloned from another ZFS BE does not need additional disk space. The BE size will increase when it is updated, depending on the updates. All ZFS BEs in the same root pool use the same swap and dump devices.

  • Oracle Solaris Components – All subdirectories of the root file system except /var that are part of the OS image must be in the root file system. All Oracle Solaris components except the swap and dump devices must reside in the root pool.