Here comes Automount! I quite literally stumbled on to this while looking to solve another un-related problem (Mounting a remote linux file system with SSHFS). What is automount? It’s a daemon that runs on Linux systems and whenever a user attempts to access an “automount” monitored mount point it will ensure it is mounted (if not already) and when a mount is not in use will unmount it. This takes care of most situations where a stale mount (When the local system thinks it still is mounted, but the remote system is unavailable or has been restarted) – perfect for this application.

This was configured on a CentOS machine and here is how I did it. Make sure you have cifs (or smbfs if you are using an older distro) installed. Install autofs:

yum install autofs

First I needed to make a directory for which to mange my mount.

mkdir /media/auto

Though you can use any existing folder. Once you have done so we’ll need to setup automount to know about the mount point – open /etc/auto.master and add the following to the bottom:

/media/auto /etc/auto.media

Replace /media/auto with the directory and you can call the file which ever you like “auto.windows” “auto.servername” etc.

Next open the file you referenced. In this case: /etc/auto/media and add the following formatted string:

MOUNTNAME -fstype=, :

So for my example I want it mounted to /media/auto/windows1 using cifs and my username: halle password: swordfish and domain: berry on the windows share //10.10.0.2/travolta

windows1  -fstype=cifs,rw,noperm,user=halle,pass=swordfish,domain=berry ://10.10.0.2/travolta

Now in the above example can be customized for all sorts of mount types found in fstab – this is just an example for Linux to remote windows share.

Once you’ve completed that, restart autofs:

/etc/init.d/autofs restart

and navigate to the created folder:

cd /media/auto

If you do an ls you should see nothing. Because the mount is only accessed when needed. If you cd in to the mount name (defined above in the auto.media file) and do an ls you’ll now be on the Windows share.

I requested the Linux server I built and then transported from the previous office (where I had network control) and placed in the new office with Network Services to open ports 22,80,443,3306 on the new public IP. After answering their demands as to why any port other than 80 and 443 needed to be open they said “We can provide you VPN access to the network – from which you can access the box on the LAN and not need other ports open” – Okay fairly straight forward. I do some poking around – they use Cisco AnyConnect to manage the VPN, which has a Linux Client. Their instructions showed ActiveX and .exe tools being used and you have to have special Cisco account to get the client tools. I requested the Linux client and they replied “There is no Linux client for the VPN – it only works with Windows. Don’t you have a windows machine at home”

Okay aside from the obvious – almost naive comment about having a Windows Box – I provided them, in my original email, with proof this “elusive” Linux Client exists yet the blow me off. Later I was told that if Network Services doesn’t have an answer – then they just say no. So I grudgingly go home, boot my Laptop into the Windows Partition and setup the VPN client to make sure it works. It freaked because I was using Firefox and instead of pulling some ActiveX hackery just provided me with the .exe download.

I tested it – it works. Yet I am in Windows – I like to be in Linux since I’m most comfortable in that platform. I reboot and repeat. This time a Java window launches and I get prompted to download vpnsetup.sh – WHOA! The Cisco gateway picked up my version and prompted me a download. Nice! (Props to Cisco for that) Downloaded, installed, ran. Shit – errors about a Certificate not being readable. Cant’ get past this popup box even after I press “Accept”. Quick check of their site, it’s only 32bit. When I ran an STRACE and checked the logs I found it was either failing at /usr/lib files being 64bit or just flat out not finding the right libs at all.

Google pointed me to some old threads with borrowing 32bit lib files from Firefox.

HERE IS HOW I DID IT
I made sure these were installed:

sudo apt-get install curl ia32-libs lib32nss-mdns libcurl3 libxml2

After that install the vpnsetup file.

Next download the latest 32bit Firefox (they don’t seem to distinguish on the page, I just went here and downloaded the Linux version. I extracted it to a temporary location. These are the libs I needed:

libfreebl3.so  libnspr4.so  libnss3.so  libnssdbm3.so  libnssutil3.so  libplc4.so  libplds4.so  libsmime3.so  libsoftokn3.so  libsqlite3.so

Most of those are already covered in other pages – but libsoftokn3.so – which is part of nss-devel was needed to read the cert properly – hence the weird blank pop-up (After getting that in place the certificate was read and I could accept it)

Place those, or soft link them to /usr/lib32 and for good measure (though I found it no necessary) /opt/cisco/vpn/lib/

Lastly – run the setup one more time and re-launch the tool.

DON’T BE AN IDIOT LIKE ME AND HARD COPY THESE LIB FILES TO /usr/lib IT WILL ONLY MAKE YOU WANT TO CRY

That should do it. If it doesn’t these are other steps I did that I don’t think matter:

Install Getlibs then run the following:

getlibs libsqlite3.so.0

I will be packaging the modified libs into a support deb and rpm package for easy distribution. Right now I’m the only Linux User in the entire company (with a company that is over 10,000 employees world wide) but with this new initiative there will be a lot more Linux users in the future.

I look forward to emailing Network Services about how I connected via VPN on Linux to the network – Thanks Cisco for meeting me half way!

I am very proud of both of them – especially for Sara who I’ve personally seen the sacrifices and hardships she’s had to endure to get to where she is now. For people like me – I know we envy you.

I thought it was nice that they are trying to make this impossible deadline by providing me with all the help they can afford to spare.

PM: “Here are four developers to you help you! I am awesome”
ME: “Oh, great! What’s your experience in everyone?”
01: “I’ve been developing ASP/.NET Applications for 10 years”
02: “I’ve been developing APS/.NET Applications for 8 years”
03: “I’ve been managing Microsoft SQL Servers for 5 years”
04: “I’m a Microsoft Sharepoint Designer and ASP developer”
ME: *FACEPALM* – “Do any of you know what Linux is?”

Most people answer “Free operating system”

ME: “Has anyone ever used PHP before?”

Some slight nods of heads – maybe this isn’t so bad…

ME: “Does anyone know what PHP stands for?”

No one even knows. I don’t expect php developers to really know this answer either (Well I kind of do actually) but still. If you’re going to fake it – at least try. I appreciate the effort but you’ve given me a lot of what I don’t need.

So I continue with this charade. I’m running OpenVZ on CentOS 5.4 and have setup a standalone MySQL container, and then a few development containers and a “stable” container. It’s my style of management. I send out each ASP developer a set of links about using Linux, their logins (with root) for each of their containers, and tell them “Read the documents, give it a shot, ask me if you have any questions” About 30 minutes later they all walk into my office (Most are twice my age) they come saying

“We can’t connect to the server”
ME: “Let me take a look”
*Loads terminal and connects*
ME: “What are you guys trying”
“Remote Desktop Tool”
ME: “That’s to connect to Windows via GUI – this is a server environment, there is no GUI. Go back and read my email again. Download PuTTy. Use command line.”

It’s going to be a long project.

MySQL Workbench! I’m surprised by this tool from MySQL – first of all I’ve never seen any colleagues use it but this tool is robust in it has the MySQL Query Browser, MySQL Administrator, and Data Modeling tools. I know – crazy, but to throw a few more “FEATURES!!!” at you – the tool is free from MySQL (I’m currently using the very stable BETA) and is available for Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux (Including several pre-built packages for Debian/Ubuntu, Fedora, and SuSe Linux)

MySQL – My hats off to you. You’ve built an interface that encompasses all the tools and features I need to create, maintain, and monitor MySQL servers/databases on a personal and enterprise level.

I suggest downloading this tool and giving it a good test drive. Supports multiple server configurations and changing on the fly to easily monitor and maintain your servers!

Cleavland Vibrators?
Sara and I met at the end of 2007 at the time I was dating the yet to be revealed bitch of a lifetime but Sara was her room mate. Those two semesters we became what I would call very good friends, all the times that bitch was ignoring me or running around – Sara was there and it was a lot of fun hanging out with her. I’ll also admit that I did kind of have a silly crush on her. Whether it was the failed attempts at installing Linux onto her laptop, creating screens for printing, dancing wildly in front of a web cam, doing crafts, or watching movies I had a great time that year in that afartment and I know it was because of her.

Hazy Days
A year later, Spring 2009, that bitch of a lifetime revealed herself and we broke up. At the time I was working what seemed to be the permanent death overnight shift (I was promised a 1 month rotation and was actually on overnights for almost 4 months) so my days involved sleeping on the couch and nights involved sleeping at my desk. I started talking to Sara again online and we agreed a Craft Night was well in order. Fondue, sewing, drinks – sounds like a good night. All my friends in the area were all her friends so I was pretty lonely. That night was awesome, a great time and great memory. In fact it wasn’t long ago to this year that it happened. We continued to talk online – Sara was in the midst of several all nighters because of class ending. I would spend my sleepless nights at work talking to her, and my sleepless days at her apartment keeping her company as she worked.

Wanna ride roller coasters?
I love roller coasters. The bitch who revealed herself did not – she actually didn’t have much in common with me at all, why we dated for four years is still a painful mystery. During one of our hazy, sleep deprived days, we talked about things to do – Busch Gardens being only 20 minutes away seems like a great idea. Her Dad was able to get a great deal on season passes for us. One Friday while I enjoyed my time not sleeping at her apartment she looked up from her computer and asked me “Wanna go ride roller coasters?” – “Hell yeah” May 1st – we went to Bush Gardens and spent the whole day not sleeping or working riding roller coasters, eating candy, and escaping the pressures of the day. That evening at IHOP we talked about it and clicked into place “I’m falling in love with her” my crush from two years ago relived, even more exciting than before, closer than before.

Now?
From then on our lives adventures continued as one. It has been, the most difficult year since – but the most rewarding year of my life to date. I look into her eyes, her smile, and I know this is the person whom I want to spend the next day, week, month, years with. This post is dedicated to her, I love her, she to me is everything a woman should be, and everything a best friend is.

class test
{
        public $fubar;

        function __construct()
        {
                return true;
        }

        function Foo()
        {
                $this->fubar = "bar";
        }

        function Bar()
        {
                $this->fubar = "foo";
        }

        function __toString()
        {
                return "Value: " . $this->fubar . "";
        }
}

class nack extends test
{
        function __toString()
        {
                return "NACK QUACK! " . $this->fubar . "";
        }
}

$classname = array("test", "nack");

foreach( $classname as $classy )
{
        $runtime = new $classy();

        $runtime->Foo();
        echo $runtime;
        $runtime->Bar();
        echo $runtime;
}
?>

The results should be:

Value: bar
Value: foo
NACK QUACK! bar
NACK QUACK! foo

This demonstrates creating and running classes from variable names, something I’ve had to hack away at recently. Since the names are also stored in array form you could even go about creating a “trigger” like mechanism and do an array_walk (example assumes the class definitions are intact):

function runtime_name($item1)
{
        $runtime = new $item1();

        $runtime->Foo();
        echo $runtime;
        $runtime->Bar();
        echo $runtime;
}

echo "Walk it out!";
array_walk($classname, 'runtime_name');

The results of which look a lot like this:

Walk it out!
Value: bar
Value: foo
NACK QUACK! bar
NACK QUACK! foo

This method would allow you to re-use that “logic” multiple times throughout your program.

The components of this project include: An abstract database model “DataMart”, an OLAP server, a Business Rules Engine, Reporting tools, Dashboard tools, Export tools, and has to be “Platform and non-domain specific”.

Holy shit. If you’re a developer you know that typically you start with a database model, and build your code on that. As Lead Developer for this project I was concerned as first of all don’t have a database model. Our DataMart may change at any moment – and will – and the application needs to be able to automagically adjust. We’re designing security on a “cell” based level – which means that different security roles will have access to not only specific columns in the database, but specific rows of that table. All this while not knowing the actual tables, columns, or rows.

If this all sounds crazy so far – because it kind of is – then here are just a few more requirements. Any software we use must be Open Source and the majority of the project must be in php.

We’ve just submitted our Analysis Document for review – not only have we found a way to meet all their requirments, but we’ll be able to do so in the time period they’ve outlined. This will be one of the most interesting products I’ve every worked on.

I’m flattered really, that people think that highly of my skill set. I was worried that I wouldn’t be qualified for the job though ( I mean, I’m a php Developer and Linux System Administrator – I’ve used Windows, worked on it for a year as an Admin but I’m not judger or talents ). Well the interviews kicked off today – on top of my two up coming deadlines, one being tomorrow, and the other next Friday – wow. Three interviews, and these people were morons. I thought I would spend my time judging talents and making the hard decision of “who was better” these Resumes were blatantly falsified. Someone who writes a certification on their resume should at least know what that certification is for.

“From a generic standpoint – if a server is failing – what are some of the first places to start diagnoses” Let me tell you the correct answer is not “Restart the machine”. A server is failing – please first identify what is failing, then advise on several typical points of failure, then tell me a plan of action. Two of the three answered “Restart” those two also had no idea what “Rack Mounted” meant or of enterprise network level configuration. One of the applicants actually was able to give me intelligent feedback but half the things mentioned on the Resume were not true from talking to him.

I can see why the technology industry has some terrible employees. You take a Resume at face value, give it to an HR representative, and hire based on that and “References” who knows who you’re getting.

I’m glad I was able to help weed out these falsifiers.

This weekend it’s my turn (well it’s been my turn for quite some time, I just haven’t been able to do so) I’m freaking out because I’m still trying to pull enough money together to make it. My first paycheck doesn’t come until May 15th which as been leaving me in quite a pinch. I’ve been frantically trying to pick up a Freelance job in the interim to fund this necessity ( I consider seeing Sara a necessity – It’s hard to understand I’m sure, but believe me life without her is just like life without sun ).

I’ve also been working at Supremesoft building a Monitoring  & Impact Evaluation system in php! This M&E is going to be quite a beast – but more on that in another post. I love the line of work I’ve found myself in now I hope this project pans out and I hope to be back under the same roof with Sara. Lets face it – time away from the woman you love, really is a drag.