The hdfs_stale_nodes
alert is triggered when there is at least one stale DataNode in the Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS) due to missed heartbeats. A stale DataNode is one that has not been reachable for dfs.namenode.stale.datanode.interval
(default is 30 seconds). Stale DataNodes are avoided and marked as the last possible target for a read or write operation.
Run the following command to generate a report on the state of the HDFS cluster:
hadoop dfsadmin -report
Inspect the output and look for any stale DataNodes.
Connect to the identified stale DataNode and check the log of the DataNode for any issues. Also, check the status of the system services.
systemctl status hadoop
If required, restart the HDFS service:
systemctl restart hadoop
After resolving issues identified in the logs or restarting the service, continue to monitor the HDFS cluster to ensure the problem is resolved. Re-run the hadoop dfsadmin -report
command to check if the stale DataNode status has been cleared.
To protect against data loss or unavailability, HDFS stores data in multiple nodes, providing fault tolerance. Make sure that the replication factor for your HDFS cluster is set correctly, typically with a factor of 3, so that data is stored on three different nodes. A higher replication factor will increase data redundancy and reliability.
Examine the HDFS cluster's configuration settings to ensure that they are appropriate for your specific use case and hardware setup. Identifying performance bottlenecks, such as slow or unreliable network connections, can help avoid stale DataNodes in the future.