headers
Roger Oberholtzer | 2 May 2011 00:05
Picon
Gravatar

Re: Virtualization Question ...

On Saturday 30 April 2011 20:59:50 Lonni J Friedman wrote:

> Our build jobs are managed by an internally created test harness,
> which is little more than a deamon which polls a database for work.
> The database is PostgreSQL running on completely separate dedicated
> server (with plans, if/when I have the time to setup a hot spare or
> some sort of load balancing).

This is the sort of thing Hudson helps with. As you probably already know, it 
lives here: http://hudson-ci.org/  We also use STAF 
(http://staf.sourceforge.net/) as part of the solution. But it is all pretty 
much only the host os that gets all the testing. This is what we want to 
extend.

Although speed is always good, it is more important that we can gaurantee that 
as many tests as possible on as many supported plaftorms as possible are run. 
I won't go in to the automated GUI testing desires that have been made. We are 
saving that fun for 'later'.

Roger
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
Rick | 7 May 2011 19:14
Picon

OT: Verizon network problems

Hi guys,
 
It's been quiet for a while here so I thought I'd ask "the experts" here for some advice.
 
My girlfriend has Verizon DSL Internet service (in MA, US) and has been having service problems. I've tested/placed the wireless adapter and tested/replaced the wireless router. Those were not the problem.

Last night and this morning I did some tracert (Windows XP) tests and got the following results:
Tracing route to verizon.com [192.76.85.245]
over a maximum of 30 hops:
  1     1 ms     1 ms     1 ms  10.0.0.1
  2     2 ms     2 ms     1 ms  dslrouter [192.168.1.1]
  3  1434 ms  1447 ms  1447 ms  10.9.45.1
  4   502 ms   762 ms  1124 ms  so-0-3-3-0.BOS-CORE-RTR2.verizon-gni.net [130.81.4.69]
  5  1169 ms  1205 ms  1221 ms  so-0-2-0-0.BOS-BB-RTR2.verizon-gni.net [130.81.20.86]
  6   965 ms   684 ms   888 ms  0.so-0-2-0.XL4.BOS4.ALTER.NET [152.63.16.141]
  7  1080 ms  1103 ms  1114 ms  0.so-5-1-0.XT2.SAC1.ALTER.NET [152.63.146.82]
  8  1104 ms  1104 ms  1105 ms  GigabitEthernet7-0-0.GW9.SAC1.ALTER.NET [152.63.55.77]
  9     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 10     *        *     ^C
 
I've run this about a dozen times over the past day with the same results. If I try a different destination, like google.com, the network follows a different path and succeeds. Once I get a sucessful connection, all is well for a while. Then it all drops back to failing connections.
 
I've called Verizon support and tried to tell them they have a failing router in their network but they insist on telling me to power off and reset my router, DSL modem and computer. Then they run their tests and say everything is working fine. It isn't, obviously. They won't take my tracert information to locate the problem and insist on running their own tests. I'm sure they will be fine since they will generate their own routing. I'm sure all they need to do is look at the routing tables in GigabitEthernet7-0-0.GW9.SAC1.ALTER.NET [152.63.55.77] but they won't.
 
Is there a way I can force a working path, or at least bypass their failing router? This problem has been ongoing for almost a month. I'm only at her house every other weekend and I can't easily help her remotely. She ends up going almost two weeks with no service.
 
BTW: a tracert to google yields:
Tracing route to google.com [74.125.91.147]
over a maximum of 30 hops:
  1     1 ms     1 ms     1 ms  10.0.0.1
  2     2 ms     2 ms     2 ms  dslrouter [192.168.1.1]
  3    44 ms    45 ms    45 ms  10.9.45.1
  4    45 ms    45 ms    45 ms  so-0-3-3-0.BOS-CORE-RTR2.verizon-gni.net [130.81.4.69]
  5    45 ms    45 ms    46 ms  so-0-2-0-0.BOS-BB-RTR2.verizon-gni.net [130.81.20.86]
  6    47 ms    47 ms    48 ms  0.so-0-2-0.XL4.BOS4.ALTER.NET [152.63.16.141]
  7    58 ms    56 ms    55 ms  0.xe-6-1-1.XL4.NYC4.ALTER.NET [152.63.3.90]
  8    67 ms    55 ms    54 ms  TenGigE0-5-0-0.GW8.NYC4.ALTER.NET [152.63.21.65]
  9    75 ms    75 ms    75 ms  google-gw.customer.alter.net [152.179.72.62]
 10    56 ms    56 ms    55 ms  216.239.43.114
 11    85 ms    64 ms    64 ms  72.14.239.93
 12    72 ms    72 ms    73 ms  209.85.248.75
 13    72 ms    74 ms    73 ms  209.85.254.237
 14    80 ms    72 ms    72 ms  209.85.240.53
 15    73 ms    73 ms    73 ms  qy-in-f147.1e100.net [74.125.91.147]
Trace complete.
--
~Rick
<div>
<div>Hi guys,</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>It's been quiet for a while here so I thought I'd ask "the experts" here for some advice.</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>My girlfriend has Verizon DSL Internet service (in MA, US) and has been having service problems. I've tested/placed the wireless adapter and tested/replaced the wireless router. Those were not the problem.</div>

<div>
<br clear="all">Last night and this morning I did some tracert (Windows XP) tests and got the following results:</div>
<div>Tracing route to <a href="http://verizon.com">verizon.com</a> [192.76.85.245]<br>over a maximum of 30 hops:</div>
<div>&nbsp; 1&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp; 10.0.0.1<br>&nbsp; 2&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 2 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 2 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp; dslrouter [192.168.1.1]<br>&nbsp; 3&nbsp; 1434 ms&nbsp; 1447 ms&nbsp; 1447 ms&nbsp; 10.9.45.1<br>&nbsp; 4&nbsp;&nbsp; 502 ms&nbsp;&nbsp; 762 ms&nbsp; 1124 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://so-0-3-3-0.BOS-CORE-RTR2.verizon-gni.net">so-0-3-3-0.BOS-CORE-RTR2.verizon-gni.net</a> [130.81.4.69]<br>
&nbsp; 5&nbsp; 1169 ms&nbsp; 1205 ms&nbsp; 1221 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://so-0-2-0-0.BOS-BB-RTR2.verizon-gni.net">so-0-2-0-0.BOS-BB-RTR2.verizon-gni.net</a> [130.81.20.86]<br>&nbsp; 6&nbsp;&nbsp; 965 ms&nbsp;&nbsp; 684 ms&nbsp;&nbsp; 888 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://0.so-0-2-0.XL4.BOS4.ALTER.NET">0.so-0-2-0.XL4.BOS4.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.16.141]<br>
&nbsp; 7&nbsp; 1080 ms&nbsp; 1103 ms&nbsp; 1114 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://0.so-5-1-0.XT2.SAC1.ALTER.NET">0.so-5-1-0.XT2.SAC1.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.146.82]<br>&nbsp; 8&nbsp; 1104 ms&nbsp; 1104 ms&nbsp; 1105 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://GigabitEthernet7-0-0.GW9.SAC1.ALTER.NET">GigabitEthernet7-0-0.GW9.SAC1.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.55.77]<br>
&nbsp; 9&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; *&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; *&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; *&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Request timed out.<br>&nbsp;10&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; *&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; *&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; ^C</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>I've run this about a dozen times over the past day with the same results. If I try a different destination, like <a href="http://google.com">google.com</a>, the network follows a different path and succeeds. Once I get a sucessful connection, all is well for a while. Then it all drops back to failing connections.</div>

<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>I've called Verizon support and tried to tell them they have a failing router in their network but they insist on telling me to power off and reset my router, DSL modem and computer. Then they run their tests and say everything is working fine. It isn't, obviously. They won't take my tracert information to locate the problem and insist on running their own tests. I'm sure they will&nbsp;be fine&nbsp;since they will generate their own routing. I'm sure all they need to do is look at the routing tables in <a href="http://GigabitEthernet7-0-0.GW9.SAC1.ALTER.NET">GigabitEthernet7-0-0.GW9.SAC1.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.55.77] but they won't.</div>

<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>Is there a way I can force a working path, or at least bypass their failing router? This problem has been ongoing for almost a month. I'm only at her house every other weekend and I can't easily help her remotely. She ends up going almost two weeks with no service.</div>

<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>BTW: a tracert to google yields:</div>
<div>Tracing route to <a href="http://google.com">google.com</a> [74.125.91.147]<br>over a maximum of 30 hops:</div>
<div>&nbsp; 1&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1 ms&nbsp; 10.0.0.1<br>&nbsp; 2&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 2 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 2 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 2 ms&nbsp; dslrouter [192.168.1.1]<br>&nbsp; 3&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 44 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp; 10.9.45.1<br>&nbsp; 4&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://so-0-3-3-0.BOS-CORE-RTR2.verizon-gni.net">so-0-3-3-0.BOS-CORE-RTR2.verizon-gni.net</a> [130.81.4.69]<br>
&nbsp; 5&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 45 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 46 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://so-0-2-0-0.BOS-BB-RTR2.verizon-gni.net">so-0-2-0-0.BOS-BB-RTR2.verizon-gni.net</a> [130.81.20.86]<br>&nbsp; 6&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 47 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 47 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 48 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://0.so-0-2-0.XL4.BOS4.ALTER.NET">0.so-0-2-0.XL4.BOS4.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.16.141]<br>
&nbsp; 7&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 58 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 56 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 55 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://0.xe-6-1-1.XL4.NYC4.ALTER.NET">0.xe-6-1-1.XL4.NYC4.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.3.90]<br>&nbsp; 8&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 67 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 55 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 54 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://TenGigE0-5-0-0.GW8.NYC4.ALTER.NET">TenGigE0-5-0-0.GW8.NYC4.ALTER.NET</a> [152.63.21.65]<br>
&nbsp; 9&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 75 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 75 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 75 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://google-gw.customer.alter.net">google-gw.customer.alter.net</a> [152.179.72.62]<br>&nbsp;10&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 56 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 56 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 55 ms&nbsp; 216.239.43.114<br>&nbsp;11&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 85 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 64 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 64 ms&nbsp; 72.14.239.93<br>
&nbsp;12&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 73 ms&nbsp; 209.85.248.75<br>&nbsp;13&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 74 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 73 ms&nbsp; 209.85.254.237<br>&nbsp;14&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 80 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 ms&nbsp; 209.85.240.53<br>&nbsp;15&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 73 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 73 ms&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 73 ms&nbsp; <a href="http://qy-in-f147.1e100.net">qy-in-f147.1e100.net</a> [74.125.91.147]</div>

<div>Trace complete.<br>-- <br>~Rick<br>
</div>
</div>
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
Andrew Gould | 12 May 2011 15:57
Picon

server questions

Are Ubuntu or OpenSUSE easy to administer from the command line
without breaking the installed system configuration tools (yast, etc)?

Can anyone recommend a good tutorial on iptables?

Background:  I used to run a FreeBSD server with ssh and https exposed
to the internet.  I used pf for firewalling and secure web for forums
and webdav.  I'd like have a similar setup again.  I'm purchased a
zotac zbox id40 (atom d525 dual core, upgraded to 4gb ram) for lower
energy use.  The wireless adapter, ralink 2860, works in OpenSUSE 11.3
and 11.4 but not FreeBSD.

I know Slackware is supposed to be good from the command line, but I'd
like a distro that supports postgresql (packages, updates, etc).

Thanks,

Andrew
Permalink | Reply | 14 comments |
headers
Michael Hipp | 12 May 2011 17:18

Re: server questions

FWIW, I run several Ubuntu servers and *only* administer them from the command 
line. So that may not answer your question.

Michael

On 5/12/2011 8:57 AM, Andrew Gould wrote:
> Are Ubuntu or OpenSUSE easy to administer from the command line
> without breaking the installed system configuration tools (yast, etc)?
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
Yu Meng Chong | 12 May 2011 17:37

Re: server questions


----- "Andrew Gould" <andrewlylegould <at> gmail.com> wrote:

> Are Ubuntu or OpenSUSE easy to administer from the command line
> without breaking the installed system configuration tools (yast,
> etc)?
> 
> Can anyone recommend a good tutorial on iptables?
> 
> Background:  I used to run a FreeBSD server with ssh and https
> exposed
> to the internet.  I used pf for firewalling and secure web for forums
> and webdav.  I'd like have a similar setup again.  I'm purchased a
> zotac zbox id40 (atom d525 dual core, upgraded to 4gb ram) for lower
> energy use.  The wireless adapter, ralink 2860, works in OpenSUSE
> 11.3
> and 11.4 but not FreeBSD.

Hi Andrew!

Fascinating!

I'm thinking of building a AMD Zacate server because it uses passive 
cooling, but I am so afraid of the performance (or lack thereof)! I 
once setup a Celeron server for basic print and file sharing and the 
performance was abysmal. Took forever to boot and seemed to be 
"thrashing" 99% of the time, though there was 1GB RAM in it. This was
some years ago when 1GB was a big deal.

Anyway, back to your question. I am using OpenSUSE right now, and I 
have to say that so far, the experience has been superb! The packages
I have used seem much better engineered compared with CentOS/RHEL 
(more thought put into them, so better suited to task), the mailing 
list is quite vigorous and 11.4 has some nice eye candy and performance
enhancements. The only downside to OpenSUSE is that there is a lot 
less documentation for it compared to RHEL or Ubuntu. This can be 
quite frustrating when all you want is a quick solution.

I don't know enough about iptables to say if it is easier to manage on
OpenSUSE. I use Yast for this sort of thing and it is quite effective
for most things (even works over SSH), but my understanding of 
firewalls and security are very basic, so I may not be the best person
to ask about this.

Anyway, let us know how the Zotac box performs! I heard some awful 
stuff about Intel Atoms, and that the cooling still requires a CPU 
fan. But I am very curious to know if it is capable enough to be a 
server of any kind! 

Regards,
pascal chong
Permalink | Reply | 5 comments |
headers
Bruce Marshall | 12 May 2011 18:32

Re: server questions

On Thursday, May 12, 2011, Yu Meng Chong wrote:
> Anyway, let us know how the Zotac box performs! I heard some awful 
> stuff about Intel Atoms, and that the cooling still requires a CPU 
> fan. But I am very curious to know if it is capable enough to be a 
> server of any kind! 

I'm running an Atom box (1.80Ghz,  4GB quad cpu)   as an email, spam, and 
firewall server and main server to my internet connection.   Haven't seen any 
problems with it at all, and I know that Spamassassin takes quite a bit of 
cycles.   Before that I ran  an Atom  1.6Ghz, 2GB,  dual cpu and the 
performance as a server was the same.  Both boxes have a small cpu fan.

BTW, I use shorewall as a firewall and it is pretty easy to make it do what I 
want and therefore,  I haven't bothered to dig into iptables all that much.
Permalink | Reply | 2 comments |
headers
Andrew Gould | 12 May 2011 18:43
Picon

Re: server questions

On Thu, May 12, 2011 at 11:32 AM, Bruce Marshall <bmarsh <at> bmarsh.com> wrote:
> On Thursday, May 12, 2011, Yu Meng Chong wrote:
>> Anyway, let us know how the Zotac box performs! I heard some awful
>> stuff about Intel Atoms, and that the cooling still requires a CPU
>> fan. But I am very curious to know if it is capable enough to be a
>> server of any kind!
>
> I'm running an Atom box (1.80Ghz,  4GB quad cpu)   as an email, spam, and
> firewall server and main server to my internet connection.   Haven't seen any
> problems with it at all, and I know that Spamassassin takes quite a bit of
> cycles.   Before that I ran  an Atom  1.6Ghz, 2GB,  dual cpu and the
> performance as a server was the same.  Both boxes have a small cpu fan.
>
> BTW, I use shorewall as a firewall and it is pretty easy to make it do what I
> want and therefore,  I haven't bothered to dig into iptables all that much.
> _______________________________________________

My chief concern with iptables is learning how to deal with brute
force attacks on the ssh port.  In PF you can write rules that will
blacklist an ip address after a specified rate of connection attempts
(5 attempts in 3 seconds, for example).  I could change the ssh port,
of course, but then I'd have to find another open port through my
employer's firewall  (port 16 is blocked).

Andrew
Permalink | Reply | 1 comment |
headers
Andrew Gould | 12 May 2011 18:45
Picon

Re: server questions

On Thu, May 12, 2011 at 10:37 AM, Yu Meng Chong <chongym <at> cymulacrum.net> wrote:
>
> ----- "Andrew Gould" <andrewlylegould <at> gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Are Ubuntu or OpenSUSE easy to administer from the command line
>> without breaking the installed system configuration tools (yast,
>> etc)?
>>
>> Can anyone recommend a good tutorial on iptables?
>>
>> Background:  I used to run a FreeBSD server with ssh and https
>> exposed
>> to the internet.  I used pf for firewalling and secure web for forums
>> and webdav.  I'd like have a similar setup again.  I'm purchased a
>> zotac zbox id40 (atom d525 dual core, upgraded to 4gb ram) for lower
>> energy use.  The wireless adapter, ralink 2860, works in OpenSUSE
>> 11.3
>> and 11.4 but not FreeBSD.
>
>
> Hi Andrew!
>
> Fascinating!
>
> I'm thinking of building a AMD Zacate server because it uses passive
> cooling, but I am so afraid of the performance (or lack thereof)! I
> once setup a Celeron server for basic print and file sharing and the
> performance was abysmal. Took forever to boot and seemed to be
> "thrashing" 99% of the time, though there was 1GB RAM in it. This was
> some years ago when 1GB was a big deal.
>
> Anyway, back to your question. I am using OpenSUSE right now, and I
> have to say that so far, the experience has been superb! The packages
> I have used seem much better engineered compared with CentOS/RHEL
> (more thought put into them, so better suited to task), the mailing
> list is quite vigorous and 11.4 has some nice eye candy and performance
> enhancements. The only downside to OpenSUSE is that there is a lot
> less documentation for it compared to RHEL or Ubuntu. This can be
> quite frustrating when all you want is a quick solution.
>
> I don't know enough about iptables to say if it is easier to manage on
> OpenSUSE. I use Yast for this sort of thing and it is quite effective
> for most things (even works over SSH), but my understanding of
> firewalls and security are very basic, so I may not be the best person
> to ask about this.
>
> Anyway, let us know how the Zotac box performs! I heard some awful
> stuff about Intel Atoms, and that the cooling still requires a CPU
> fan. But I am very curious to know if it is capable enough to be a
> server of any kind!
>
> Regards,
> pascal chong
>

I just read that YAST has an ncurses interface for terminal use!
Permalink | Reply | 1 comment |
headers
Yu Meng Chong | 12 May 2011 18:45

Re: server questions


----- "Bruce Marshall" <bmarsh <at> bmarsh.com> wrote:

> I'm running an Atom box (1.80Ghz,  4GB quad cpu)   as an email, spam,
> and 
> firewall server and main server to my internet connection.   Haven't
> seen any 
> problems with it at all, and I know that Spamassassin takes quite a
> bit of 
> cycles.   Before that I ran  an Atom  1.6Ghz, 2GB,  dual cpu and the 
> performance as a server was the same.  Both boxes have a small cpu
> fan.

How many users are on your Atom server, and is it one of those small 
form-factor type casings, a mini-ITX board or a rackmount chassis? I 
love the mini-ITX casings, but the real reason I am looking at Atom 
and Zacate is because I need something that does not generate too much
heat and can be kept in a closet with no air-conditioning. Sounds 
crazy huh?

> 
> BTW, I use shorewall as a firewall and it is pretty easy to make it do
> what I 
> want and therefore,  I haven't bothered to dig into iptables all that
> much.

Shorewall is really cool, but I think Andrew was comparing with 
pfSense(?) on FreeBSD. I have seen that software only once and the 
features are just too sophisticated for me. All I need from a firewall
is: block everything except HTTP/HTTPS/SMTP/POP3/IMAP, and port 
forwarding.

regards,
pascal chong
Permalink | Reply | 3 comments |
headers
Yu Meng Chong | 12 May 2011 18:51

Re: server questions


----- "Andrew Gould" <andrewlylegould <at> gmail.com> wrote:

> 
> I just read that YAST has an ncurses interface for terminal use!

Yup! You can run it in a remote SSH terminal window! 

I use it to configure iptables (sort of! My needs are really basic)

I configure my servers for passwordless SSH, which is more secure,
I think. And I don't have to worry about people trying brute force 
attacks (though still vulnerable to DoS I guess).
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |

Gmane