[squid-users] SMB authentication performance

Hello,

I've been running a squid (2.3STABLE3) for quite a while, and just got
around to adding authentication. I compiled the smb_auth module
and got it working, authenticating against an NT 4.0 PDC. I set it
up with 7 authenticate_children.

This cache is running on an AMD 500mhz box with 128mb of RAM, and
is being used by approximately 100 users (maybe 25 surfing
simultaneously.) Cache size is 4gb, and we are getting hit rates of
above 30%. Prior to adding smb_auth, performance was great.

The NT PDC is a substantial piece of hardware, and is not working
hard at all (minor file and print serving.) The squid box and the
NT PDC are on different ports of the same 10/100 Ethernet switch.

After adding smb_auth authentication, response time of the
cache under load gets really slow. I understood that adding
authentication would add some overhead, but not like this!

My questions:

o What kind of performance hit should I expect with smb_auth?
o Would the "msnt" authentication module be more efficient?
o How can you tell if you have enough authenticate_children?
o Would authentication against a Samba server be faster than
against an otherwise similar NT box?

Thank you,
Jonathan Wilson
jwilson@western-reflections.com
Received on Mon Jun 11 2001 - 13:44:28 MDT