Have you ever had the need to allow web access to files on a samba or windows fileserver and really did not want to deal with setting up a VPN for the users (some of whom need access to just see a single file) or keep track of permissions on the file server and it…
Do we do a disservice to young sysadmins by teaching them important rules of thumb as if they were incontrovertible truth? When I was starting out, I heard a lot of these, especially in security. For example, “a login server is always crackable”. I was dubious, because I didn’t understand the complex thought being expressed….
While waiting for my delayed flight, I had a chance to try out some of the new Pre Applications. Infopedia is one that allows you to quickly search wikipedia for any term or for fun you can look up a random page. Another feature I like is the Current Events link as it leads to…
[Reposted from my work blog.] There are four basic things you need to do when attempting to set up encrypted MySQL connections. Make sure your MySQL installation is configured with SSL. Create a set of certificates for your master, your slave, and your client(s). Configure your master and slave my.cnf with the correct ssl-* options….
I was asked recently to find a low cost setup for a small software development company (about 30 people) for their infrastructure that had growth potential. I came up with the following: – One server running Open-E DSS software SAN/NAS: This holds 12 1TB disks in a raid 10 mirror and shares out the disks…
The Palm Pre continues to amaze me. It took 15 minutes to tether my laptop (I am tethered as I write this) to the Pre. The key application is http://forums.precentral.net/homebrew-apps/191213-my-tether-tether-over-wifi-usb-bt.html which enables you to tether the laptop to the Pre via the Pre’s Wifi (open access point or via USB (a lot more secure and…
Shell scripting is one of the offerings as Fall semester is almost upon us. Time to sign up for classes :). I will be teaching the shell scripting community college class. This is in person, so only relevant to those willing to be in Mesa two nights a week for 8 weeks. We also have…
[http:www.ABLEconf.com/|ABLEconf] has [http:www.ABLEconf.com/press_releases/2009Jul29.html|announced] its 2009 Phoenix date and location. The Arizona Business and Liberty Experience ([http:www.ABLEconf.com/|ABLEconf]) is a conference organized to promote ways to leverage the use of free and open source software, such as Linux, Firefox and OpenOffice.org, in wide variety of settings. Planned tracks will discuss how to use open source in SMBs,…
A while back I wrote about using Apache as a dynamic reverse proxy. Anyone who has done even minimal research into web servers knows that Apache is the swiss army knife. It trys to be everything for everyone, and like a swiss army knife may not be as good as a more refined too at…
System performance analytics seems to be a frequent question on forums and mailing lists. Finding out why something is slow is generally nontrivial as there are many factors to consider. I have found the sysstat package to be an invaluable tool when looking at system performance. Specifically the command sar gives a wealth of information….