Removing a GlusterFS geo-replication session is useful when retiring a secondary site, switching to a new target volume, or cleaning up a failed replication pairing. Deleting the session prevents further synchronization attempts and removes the session entry from management commands.
GlusterFS geo-replication runs an asynchronous file-level sync from a primary volume to a secondary volume using gsyncd over SSH between clusters. Each session is identified by the primary volume name and a secondary target in the format user@host::volume, tracked as session metadata on the primary cluster.
Deleting a session removes only the replication configuration and tracking state, leaving data on both volumes untouched. Replicated files on the secondary remain as-is, and any geo-replication SSH user/key setup on the secondary is typically left behind for manual cleanup. Use the reset-sync-time option only when the next session creation must force a full resync from scratch.
$ sudo gluster volume geo-replication status MASTER VOL SLAVE STATUS gvol-primary geoaccount@snode1.example.com::gvol-secondary Active
$ sudo gluster volume geo-replication gvol-primary geoaccount@snode1.example.com::gvol-secondary stop geo-replication: stop: success
Stopping a session halts gsyncd for that pairing without removing any data.
$ sudo gluster volume geo-replication gvol-primary geoaccount@snode1.example.com::gvol-secondary delete geo-replication: delete: success
Use either the normal delete or the reset-sync-time delete variant, not both.
$ sudo gluster volume geo-replication gvol-primary geoaccount@snode1.example.com::gvol-secondary delete reset-sync-time geo-replication: delete: success
Resetting sync time forces a full resync if the session is recreated.
$ sudo gluster volume geo-replication status No active geo-replication sessions found.