habanero_joe

VMware View 4 Evaluation

After attending the VMware View 4 Launch tour in Tampa a couple of weeks ago, I loaded up the evaluation to give it a good field test.

NOTE: I recommend reading the documentation BEFORE installing…

A few points to consider prior to rolling out the product:
1) View Server requires a MS Windows Server (2008 is not supported yet) that is a domain member.
2) View Composer requires vCenter Server and is installed as a service on vCenter.
3) So far only Windows desktop OS is supported.
4) There is a 32-bit Open Source client available (Google it).

Note: View Composer is not required to evaluate View but it is worth the slightly extra work to see it in action. Composer certainly makes it easier to rapidly create multiple desktops from a single template.

Observations after a couple of weeks:
After the initial set up, I have not had to do anything other than reboot the View Server after it became non-responsive. This caused a seemingly unrelated error when trying to connect with View Client.

My next steps are to get the Open Source Client working and hopefully to get a PCoIP “zero client” device to test. My initial thought is why would I connect to a Windows desktop from a Windows desktop?

More later…

– habanero_joe

Calling all Ubuntu fans

This week I joined the Ubuntu LoCo Florida Team and participated in last night’s team meeting (via IRC).  Seems like a great group of people AND an excellent way to get more involved with Ubuntu (and really any Linux).

In addition to the IRC meetings, there are scheduled meetups to perform various activities such as installing networks for youth homes/schools, bug testing, documentation writing, and just plain fun. Anyone out there enjoy bar-b-que and beer???

I look forward to greater involvement!

If you have no idea what IRC is and need a Linux client to get started, I recommend xchat (sudo apt-get install xchat)

For more information and to join:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/LoCoTeams
http://ubuntuforums.org/forumdisplay.php?f=225
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/FloridaTeam
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Relay_Chat

– habanero_joe

IRC Client for BlackBerry

Looking for a no-charge BlackBerry IRC client? (or any J2ME device) I was and found jmirc. It is fairly basic and I feel that the interface is sort of clunky but it gets the job done. Current version is 0.96.

One of the nice features is that you can create profiles for various IRC host, channels and/or nicknames.

“This project started as a fork of Sverre Valskrå’s WLIrc but eventually led to be a complete rewrite project. Its aim is to be as small and lightweight as possible still trying to maintain the ease of use and all needed features. At the same time it tries to be some kind of hybrid implementing all the most useful features from other clients.”

Main info page: jmirc.sourceforge.net

Blackberry download: jmirc.sf.net/beta/jmIrc.jad

– habanero_joe

CentOS Helpful Tip

Happy New Year TwentyTen!

How many times have you “forgotten” a root password? Or been given control of a server set up by someone else? Hey it happens.

CentOS Password Reset

At the GRUB Loader, select the installation to reset, press A to append and press ENTER.
You will be presented with a prompt that looks similar to this: grub append> ro root=LABEL=/

Press the SPACEBAR once and type the word single and press ENTER. This will boot to single-user-mode.

You will then get the shell prompt (hostname)#

Change the root password using the normal command: passwd root

Reboot and login. That’s all there is to it!

Nagios Checker – Firefox Plugin

Ran across a very handy Firefox plugin for Nagios users – Nagios Checker 0.14.4. Super fast install and minimal setup to get going.

Running View

Expanded View

Options include audio alerting, specific alerts to view, display settings, update timer and others. Once installed all you have to do is move the mouse over the status bar to get the expanded view. Clicking on an alert takes you to that specific alert in Nagios. There is a handy update link included in the settings dialog box as well.
This is a must have for Nagios users that can’t have the Nagios Dashboard open all the time.

Check it out now!

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3607

Open Source for Schools

Why Linux and open source matters for small businesses and schools Hans Knobloch, Philadelphia Information technology Examiner

This blog was shared with me last night and I think the points made for using open source (linux) are right on target. The general public may or may not choose to accept this but business use of open source products continues to rise. Especially in this economic climate. (the reason this blog was started!) A quick Google search will reveal that there is an open source tool for just about any business need. This means freedom from initial software purchase, recurring license fees, etc.

Rockin’ on without Microsoft David Becker, Staff Writer, CNET News

This post is from 2003 and shows that even six years ago it was possible to convert to open source and continue as a successful business. It is easier today.
Linux is no longer relegated to the dark recesses of IT Geekdom. Major hardware vendors sell desktops and laptops pre-loaded with various distributions of Linux. A non-technical co-worker recently bought a mini-notebook loaded with Linux “because it was cheaper” and learned how to use it.
As virtualization projects grow in the SMB and education markets, there is often a natural progression towards open source related tools. Advanced configuration and troubleshooting of VMware ESX or Citrix XenServer hosts requires understanding and use of SSH and linux-based file systems.

Quoted from the blog post:

” Here are some facts about free and open source software and Linux:

  • A typical Linux and free open source software equipped PC will cost up to 60 – 70% less to operate over a typical three year write off time.
  • A typical PC hardware suited for Linux does not need to be as expensive as a typical Windows or Mac OS X PC. Linux requires much less resources. As a result, Linux PCs have an extended average lifetime.
  • Linux with typically installed quality programs, used for graphics, office, music, and Internet, are freely available as downloads from the Internet.
  • Linux versions, like Ubuntu, come with a host of no charge business software.
  • Pre-configured Linux versions, like the Ubuntu derivate Edubuntu, come with a host of no charge educational software, including teacher and student administration programs.
  • Linux installations can be upgraded and maintained without additional costs – ever.
  • Linux is much more stable and usually safer than its proprietary alternatives.
  • Linux is much less virus endangered than Windows or Apple OS X.
  • Linux is easy to learn and behaves in many ways just like Windows or Mac OS X.
  • Company specific software solutions are available where needed from commercial vendors.
  • Vendor supplied or vendor independent support programs are available if the need for professional support arises.
  • Hundreds of Linux end user and administrator forums on the Internet provide cost free support, configuration and installation how-to information, and help desk services.
  • Linux, with its open source character, is ideally suited to teach students the working of a modern computing system, better then any of its proprietary competitors. “

Openfiler iSCSI Share For CPS – Update

Original Post: Open Source Technology As Business Solutions: Openfiler – Symantec CPS Destination

We quickly noticed an issue with the iSCSI connector not automatically re-connecting the drive mapping when either the Openfiler server or the CPS server was rebooted. After some troubleshooting and most testing failed to resolve this issue, this project was scrapped in favor of using an Ubuntu NFS share as a backup2disk target.

Next step will be to test an NFS share as a CPS target.