How to setup NFS service on Linux (SuSE)

Server part:

1. First you need to install/enable all NFS related services (client and server). In case
server is not available, go to Yast/System and select system services. In this list,
ensure that the various NFS services are installed and set up to start every reboot.

2. Start up Yast/Network Services and NFS Server on the system you want to serve
up files. Ensure "Start up" is enabled.

3. Define your NFS-exports in /etc/exports, e.g.

/export/home /
192.168.1.0/255.255.255.0(rw,sync,no_root_squash,no_all_squash,subtree_check)
/export/home2 *(rw,sync,no_root_squash, no_all_squash,subtree_check)

Let the NFS-server use the new config

exportfs –r

Also, you may restart the service (service nfsserver restart)

You can view your NFS-exports issuing the commands: exportfs and showmount.
In case showmount mentions problems, also configure /etc/hosts.allow (and
optionally /etc/hosts.deny)
#
ALL: 255.255.255.255 0.0.0.0
#

4. Finally, make sure that you have changed the access rights and user/group
ownership in order to be able to write in the mount.
Client part:

1. You can just give:

mount –t nfs ip-or-name-of-server:/path /local_path

2. In order to make the mount permanent (valid after reboot as well), edit the
/etc/fstab file and add the line:

ip-or-name-of-server:/path /local_path nfs auto,noexec,rw,intr 00

Then restart the nfs service.

Appendix:

Link to fstab parameters: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fstab

Helpful sources: http://hannibal.solstice.nl/hannibalwiki/doku.php?id=hannibal:fileserver