[Setup] plone versus blobs

[Ken Manheimer]

hi, all.  i'm equipping a customer with a plone-based CMS site, currently
based on plone 2.5.3 (on a redhat linux host).  i have a question about the
best way to handle large files on the site.

we want to handle mediafiles - from pdf-formatted academic-journal style
papers to podcasts and video clips.  i don't immediately expect a large
number, but i do expect them to increasingly use the site for disseminating
and archiving this kind of thing over time.  i want to avoid bloating of
the Data.fs to minimize backup overhead, growth management headaches, and
just not have to worry about potential performance impact.  it looks to me
like the blob handling integrated in recent ZODB releases would be ideal.

i struggled painfully with an alternative approch, tramline, for a while,
thwarted by an insidious apache/mod_python/tramline bug.  that would be all
for the better, since it redirected me to blobs, but i'm quite confused
about how to get blob handling incorporated in my system.

it's looking to me like blobs are not in the version of ZODB that comes
with either Plone 2.5.3 or Plone 3.0.  am i mistaken?  migrating to 3.0 at
this point may be a decent option.  the plone 3.0 release announcement is
vague on the subject, but seems to suggest that blob handling is included.
my examination of the ZODB directory contradicts that, however.

if blobs are not already there, i'm clueless about whether or how i could
drop in a later version of ZODB that includes blobs - or whether i should
install an entire later version of zope.  or something else.  what's the
compatibility story here?  i figure this is somewhat charted territory, but
am at a loss to find my own way in it.  suggestions?

once i know the best way to make the jump to blobs (if any!), i'm faced
with the question of incorporating that version in my plone site.  i've
become quite dependent on the linux unified installer, and loathe the
prospect of going back to, eg, hooking up ZEO manually.  is there any guidance
on upgrading the underlying zope/ZODB without disruption?  keeping the
Data.fs small and efficient would be a real boon.

thanks for any guidance!

ken manheimer
--
ken.manheimer at gmail.com
http://myriadicity.net