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10369 discussions

A cry for help
by nev young 14 Jan '13

14 Jan '13

well for hardware. Does any one have a graphics card, with a PCIE connector and SVGA D-connector on the output, going spare that Vickie could have? If so could they bring it to the ALUG meet tomorrow. I've taken one out of my (spit)windows PC to get hers going and would like to avoid having to part with cash for a new one. Thankx Nev

2 3

Leetkey
by Anthony Anson 13 Jan '13

13 Jan '13

ISTR a workround for adding Leetkey to Thunderbird 17 was sent to the list. Am I dreaming? If my memory is correct I can rootle through everything I have saved from ALUG on the old Eee. If I am wrong, what is the last version in which Leetkey works? If I go onto the Mozilla website and install it, will it replace Mozilla 17, or install another one beside it? -- Tony

4 8

Backup Disk Freeze - Any cause clue from syslog?
by steve-alug＠hst.me.uk 13 Jan '13

13 Jan '13

Hi! My backup system has recently started causing me some grief. I'm running backuppc backing up to an IDE drive in a Netgear SC101 SAN storage box. There are two drives in this device, and the second one is being talked to by Simple Backup, and is working fine. The main/bigger drive is /dev/nbd1 and backuppc has started hanging whilst using it. It doesn't happen straight away - it's several hours after the backup has been started. If I power everything down, wait and switch it back on again, all the drives spin up and seem to work ok again. The SC101 is attached via the SC101-nbd project driver. http://code.google.com/p/sc101-nbd/ It has all been working fine until recently. Nothing's changed, apart from installing routine security updates (inc kernel updates) I'm running ubuntu 10.04. I'm currently doing a deep check on the disk using a tool from Ultimate boot Cd appropriate for the drive manufacturer, but a quick check said the disk's OK. Any ideas why it's hanging like this? Once hung, I can't even ls the disk - it's completely blocked. I tried reformatting it yesterday, and erasing and reinstalling backuppc, but it crashed again. Some of Syslog output below - there's many more after this one, but this is the first. Possible candidates: Disk SAN controller Main PC faulty Disk sleeping and failing to wake again. Any ideas guys? Cheers Steve Jan 11 07:00:28 myserver ntpd[1950]: kernel time sync status change 6001 Jan 11 07:02:01 myserver CRON[11758]: (logcheck) CMD ( if [ -x /usr/sbin/logcheck ]; then nice -n10 /usr/sbin/logcheck; fi) Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212092] INFO: task jbd2/nbd1-8:12704 blocked for more than 120 seconds. Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212100] "echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message. Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212104] jbd2/nbd1-8 D 00005645 0 12704 2 0x00000000 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212113] c6ce9de4 00000046 f7490000 00005645 00000000 c08964e0 c47b9c24 c08964e0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212123] 3c1ac4f3 0000299c c08964e0 c08964e0 c47b9c24 c08964e0 c08964e0 d7e7d800 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212131] 00000000 0000299c c47b9980 c47b9980 c30094e0 c6ce9e2c c6ce9df4 c05b71a1 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212140] Call Trace: Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212157] [<c05b71a1>] io_schedule+0x61/0xa0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212165] [<c01d4b9d>] sync_page+0x3d/0x50 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212171] [<c05b795d>] __wait_on_bit+0x4d/0x70 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212176] [<c01d4b60>] ? sync_page+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212181] [<c01d4dc1>] wait_on_page_bit+0x91/0xa0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212187] [<c0170e90>] ? wake_bit_function+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212193] [<c01d5051>] wait_on_page_writeback_range+0xa1/0x110 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212201] [<c023ca2e>] ? bio_alloc_bioset+0x2e/0xf0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212209] [<c02da977>] ? jbd2_journal_write_metadata_buffer+0x277/0x370 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212215] [<c01d511a>] filemap_fdatawait+0x5a/0x70 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212221] [<c02d2bae>] jbd2_journal_commit_transaction+0x51e/0x1030 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212230] [<c01311b8>] ? default_spin_lock_flags+0x8/0x10 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212236] [<c0164c78>] ? try_to_del_timer_sync+0x68/0xb0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212241] [<c02d93d5>] kjournald2+0x95/0x1c0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212247] [<c0170e40>] ? autoremove_wake_function+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212252] [<c02d9340>] ? kjournald2+0x0/0x1c0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212256] [<c0170bb4>] kthread+0x74/0x80 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212261] [<c0170b40>] ? kthread+0x0/0x80 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212267] [<c010a467>] kernel_thread_helper+0x7/0x10 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212278] INFO: task flush-43:16:11670 blocked for more than 120 seconds. Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212281] "echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message. Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212285] flush-43:16 D 00000484 0 11670 2 0x00000000 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212291] c46d3b34 00000046 c07eaa20 00000484 00000000 c08964e0 ef5735a4 c08964e0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212300] f5f3884b 0000299a c08964e0 c08964e0 ef5735a4 c08964e0 c08964e0 e8566a00 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212308] f5f2b230 0000299a ef573300 c2e0afe0 eb6accc0 c46d3b74 c46d3b94 c02d1ec5 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212316] Call Trace: Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212324] [<c02d1ec5>] do_get_write_access+0x245/0x440 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212330] [<c0170e90>] ? wake_bit_function+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212336] [<c02d2238>] jbd2_journal_get_write_access+0x28/0x40 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212343] [<c02bb3fe>] __ext4_journal_get_write_access+0x2e/0x60 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212349] [<c02bd611>] ext4_mb_mark_diskspace_used+0x61/0x2f0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212354] [<c02c38a6>] ext4_mb_new_blocks+0x306/0x590 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212360] [<c02b8613>] ? ext4_ext_find_extent+0x253/0x280 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212365] [<c02baf12>] ext4_ext_get_blocks+0x472/0x700 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212373] [<c0298f98>] ext4_get_blocks+0xf8/0x2c0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212379] [<c02997c9>] mpage_da_map_blocks+0x99/0x410 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212385] [<c02b0d90>] ? ext4_journal_start_sb+0xc0/0xf0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212390] [<c0296917>] ? ext4_meta_trans_blocks+0xb7/0xd0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212396] [<c0299dc9>] ext4_da_writepages+0x289/0x580 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212403] [<c01489d9>] ? update_curr+0x169/0x2a0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212410] [<c01dc66c>] do_writepages+0x1c/0x40 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212417] [<c0232a15>] writeback_single_inode+0xd5/0x380 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212422] [<c02331f9>] writeback_sb_inodes+0x149/0x230 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212427] [<c023364a>] writeback_inodes_wb+0x8a/0x160 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212432] [<c0233903>] wb_writeback+0x1e3/0x230 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212438] [<c0233a81>] wb_do_writeback+0x131/0x140 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212443] [<c0233acb>] bdi_writeback_task+0x3b/0xb0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212448] [<c01eb9e0>] ? bdi_start_fn+0x0/0xc0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212453] [<c01eba3d>] bdi_start_fn+0x5d/0xc0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212457] [<c01eb9e0>] ? bdi_start_fn+0x0/0xc0 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212461] [<c0170bb4>] kthread+0x74/0x80 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212466] [<c0170b40>] ? kthread+0x0/0x80 Jan 11 07:04:11 myserver kernel: [45960.212471] [<c010a467>] kernel_thread_helper+0x7/0x10 Jan 11 07:05:01 myserver CRON[11897]: (root) CMD (if [ -x /usr/bin/vnstat ] && [ `ls /var/lib/vnstat/ | wc -l` -ge 1 ]; then /usr/bin/vnstat -u; fi) Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212093] INFO: task jbd2/nbd1-8:12704 blocked for more than 120 seconds. Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212101] "echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message. Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212106] jbd2/nbd1-8 D 00005645 0 12704 2 0x00000000 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212114] c6ce9de4 00000046 f7490000 00005645 00000000 c08964e0 c47b9c24 c08964e0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212124] 3c1ac4f3 0000299c c08964e0 c08964e0 c47b9c24 c08964e0 c08964e0 d7e7d800 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212132] 00000000 0000299c c47b9980 c47b9980 c30094e0 c6ce9e2c c6ce9df4 c05b71a1 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212140] Call Trace: Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212156] [<c05b71a1>] io_schedule+0x61/0xa0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212165] [<c01d4b9d>] sync_page+0x3d/0x50 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212171] [<c05b795d>] __wait_on_bit+0x4d/0x70 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212175] [<c01d4b60>] ? sync_page+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212180] [<c01d4dc1>] wait_on_page_bit+0x91/0xa0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212187] [<c0170e90>] ? wake_bit_function+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212192] [<c01d5051>] wait_on_page_writeback_range+0xa1/0x110 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212200] [<c023ca2e>] ? bio_alloc_bioset+0x2e/0xf0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212207] [<c02da977>] ? jbd2_journal_write_metadata_buffer+0x277/0x370 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212213] [<c01d511a>] filemap_fdatawait+0x5a/0x70 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212219] [<c02d2bae>] jbd2_journal_commit_transaction+0x51e/0x1030 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212228] [<c01311b8>] ? default_spin_lock_flags+0x8/0x10 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212234] [<c0164c78>] ? try_to_del_timer_sync+0x68/0xb0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212239] [<c02d93d5>] kjournald2+0x95/0x1c0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212245] [<c0170e40>] ? autoremove_wake_function+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212250] [<c02d9340>] ? kjournald2+0x0/0x1c0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212254] [<c0170bb4>] kthread+0x74/0x80 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212259] [<c0170b40>] ? kthread+0x0/0x80 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212265] [<c010a467>] kernel_thread_helper+0x7/0x10 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212277] INFO: task flush-43:16:11670 blocked for more than 120 seconds. Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212282] "echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message. Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212285] flush-43:16 D 00000484 0 11670 2 0x00000000 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212292] c46d3b34 00000046 c07eaa20 00000484 00000000 c08964e0 ef5735a4 c08964e0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212300] f5f3884b 0000299a c08964e0 c08964e0 ef5735a4 c08964e0 c08964e0 e8566a00 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212309] f5f2b230 0000299a ef573300 c2e0afe0 eb6accc0 c46d3b74 c46d3b94 c02d1ec5 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212317] Call Trace: Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212325] [<c02d1ec5>] do_get_write_access+0x245/0x440 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212331] [<c0170e90>] ? wake_bit_function+0x0/0x50 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212337] [<c02d2238>] jbd2_journal_get_write_access+0x28/0x40 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212344] [<c02bb3fe>] __ext4_journal_get_write_access+0x2e/0x60 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212349] [<c02bd611>] ext4_mb_mark_diskspace_used+0x61/0x2f0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212354] [<c02c38a6>] ext4_mb_new_blocks+0x306/0x590 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212359] [<c02b8613>] ? ext4_ext_find_extent+0x253/0x280 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212364] [<c02baf12>] ext4_ext_get_blocks+0x472/0x700 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212372] [<c0298f98>] ext4_get_blocks+0xf8/0x2c0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212377] [<c02997c9>] mpage_da_map_blocks+0x99/0x410 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212383] [<c02b0d90>] ? ext4_journal_start_sb+0xc0/0xf0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212388] [<c0296917>] ? ext4_meta_trans_blocks+0xb7/0xd0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212393] [<c0299dc9>] ext4_da_writepages+0x289/0x580 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212400] [<c01489d9>] ? update_curr+0x169/0x2a0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212407] [<c01dc66c>] do_writepages+0x1c/0x40 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212413] [<c0232a15>] writeback_single_inode+0xd5/0x380 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212418] [<c02331f9>] writeback_sb_inodes+0x149/0x230 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212422] [<c023364a>] writeback_inodes_wb+0x8a/0x160 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212427] [<c0233903>] wb_writeback+0x1e3/0x230 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212433] [<c0233a81>] wb_do_writeback+0x131/0x140 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212438] [<c0233acb>] bdi_writeback_task+0x3b/0xb0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212443] [<c01eb9e0>] ? bdi_start_fn+0x0/0xc0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212447] [<c01eba3d>] bdi_start_fn+0x5d/0xc0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212451] [<c01eb9e0>] ? bdi_start_fn+0x0/0xc0 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212455] [<c0170bb4>] kthread+0x74/0x80 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212459] [<c0170b40>] ? kthread+0x0/0x80 Jan 11 07:06:11 myserver kernel: [46080.212464] [<c010a467>] kernel_thread_helper+0x7/0x10 Jan 11 07:08:11 myserver kernel: [46200.212124] INFO: task jbd2/nbd1-8:12704 blocked for more than 120 seconds.

3 3

Have I bought the wrong kit?
by Chris Walker 11 Jan '13

11 Jan '13

I am fed up with the cheap Huawei router that Talktalk supply so decided I would go for something that will run ddwrt. Having looked at the ddwrt site, I then started looking at Amazon. I decided I would buy a Buffalo Air Station and went for a WZR-HP-AG300H. But it tells me I should connect it to my modem. <Thinks> Hmm. Thought that was built-in. Look again at spec. B*gger. So should I buy a cheap ADSL modem or ask Amazon if they'll take it back and buy another Air Station but this time, one with the correct specs?

2 1

Barebones
by Laurie Brown 11 Jan '13

11 Jan '13

Over the last few years, we have been building small servers using Asus barebones systems. They've been great, and we can install whatever CPU we like, disks, memory, flavour of Linux and so on. They have proven to be relatively cheap and highly reliable machines. However, I just can't seem to find them any more! Our requirement is room for at least 3 SATA disks, preferably 4 plus DVD, multi-core CPU, preferably AMD, good PSU, and capable of taking at least 8Gb of memory. I can find loads of tiny machines great for firewalls and so on, but nothing any larger. Even the Shuttles, still easily found, can't hold enough disks. Does anyone know of a reliable supplier of Asus barebones, or something similar? The last thing I want to do is spend 4 figures on an HP and throw away a licence for Winblow$. Yes, I know I can buy a case, mobo and so on, but that's a laborious exercise if regular, and kit becomes obsolete so fast, it has to be repeated almost every time we build a machine. We've looked at Zoostorm, which is the closest I can find, but they aren't barebones, and we don't need a 2tb disk, just because we want 8Gb of memory. With Zoostorm, it seems that the higher the CPU/memory spec, the bigger the disks, and so on, and it's very hard to find out what the mobo is, and whether it's Linux-friendly. Just too many unknowns and potentially expensive pitfalls. Help/guidance greatly appreciated! Cheers, Laurie. -- --------------------------------------------------------------------- Laurie Brown laurie(a)brownowl.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------

4 7

Going spare...
by Mark Rogers 11 Jan '13

11 Jan '13

I have this motherboard, with CPU (couldn't tell you what CPU from memory): http://reviews.cnet.com/motherboards/abit-nf7-s2g-motherboard/4505-3049_7-3… Could likely find some RAM to go with it. Socket A so not high spec, but might be a good replacement for a failed board. I also have at least one Fujitsu Siemens Econel server with dead motherboard (PSU and CPU fine, I believe). Good solid metal cases with loads of drive bays etc, but not worth repairing. Should take standard motherboards if you can find one that the CPU fits relative to where the PSU is. Free for collection from Peterborough. Mark -- Mark Rogers // More Solutions Ltd (Peterborough Office) // 0844 251 1450 Registered in England (0456 0902) @ 13 Clarke Rd, Milton Keynes, MK1 1LG

1 0

Nice confirmation of mail not getting lost when SMTP server isn't available
by Chris Green 11 Jan '13

11 Jan '13

Over the past few days I have been playing about with the DNS on my LAN (changing which server runs dnsmasq, etc.). Last night around 22:00 I left everything, as I thought, running OK. This morning though no E-Mails had arrived on my desktop (which is also the SMTP server). It turned out that I hadn't restarted things enough and my dekstop had got a randomly assigned IP address rather than the fixed one it should have got (by telling dnsmasq its MAC address). So TsoHost's mail system hadn't been able to deliver mail to zbmc.eu for something like 12 hours. It was a good test for two things:- My offsite mail backup to which I deliver all my mail in parallel to delivery to my dekstop worked perfectly, so I could see all the undelivered mail there. When I fixed the IP address of my desktop all the undelivered mail arrived on my desktop after an hour or two. Isn't it nice when things work as they should! :-) -- Chris Green

1 0

Anyone use x2go or similar software?
by Chris Green 11 Jan '13

11 Jan '13

I was considering using VNC to access another box on my LAN but as the remote system (which would run a VNC server) doesn't currently have X running on it (though there's a Lubuntu desktop available) it makes VNC rather awkward. I've seen x2go recommended for this sort of situation as it seems as if it's more oriented towards the sort of thing I want to do - fire up an X session and use it remotely. While it would be nice if one could use 'old fashioned' X as it was originally designed it tends not to work so well with very many programs now using dBus to communicate. E.g. if I try and run nm-connection-editor on the remote system via an "ssh -x remote-system" connection it pops up a window on my system but there's an error:- ** (nm-connection-editor:3088): WARNING **: Couldn't connect to accessibility bus: Failed to connect to socket /tmp/dbus-9FFbE3UfRz: Connection refused ... and it doesn't actually work. Or can anyone suggest how to get around the dBus communication issue? -- Chris Green

3 4

Full size but low power PCs - does nobody sell them? (maybe related to Laurie's recent question)
by Chris Green 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

Why is it that no one seems to sell 'ordinary' PCs, in ordinary sized boxes, but with reasonably power efficient components. It's next to impossible to even find out what the power consumption is of most desktop PCs and very few of them have efficient power supplies (often the worst offender). It's all very well advocating little Intel Atom based boxes but they almost never have any space for extra disk drives. The same applies to Raspberry Pi etc., very low power but no easy way to assemble in a box with a couple of disk drives. I guess I'm after much the same as Laurie but with maybe more emphasis on power consumption. A basic case with low power mother board, low end processor, etc. and space for several disks. -- Chris Green

2 3

Are there any linux based NAS systems out there with reasonable audio output?
by Chris Green 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

I want a compact, low power Linux box to use as a NAS and audio streamer (probably running mpd). This is a slightly odd mix of requirements, does anyone have any suggestions of what to look at? Alternatively maybe a 'media streamer' would provide what I want, but I need it to have audio outputs and be able to run something like mpd so that it can run headless and be driven remotely. A custom built Linux box is a valid possibility too but getting a small, low-power one isn't trivial. (Raspberry Pi is out because its audio is notoriously bad and there seem to be few workarounds to avoid its sound problems) -- Chris Green

3 7

Re: [ALUG] Full size but low power PCs - does nobody sell them? (maybe related to Laurie's recent question)
by Chris Green 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

On Thu, Jan 10, 2013 at 04:47:47PM +0000, Anthony Anson wrote: > On 10/01/13 16:19, Chris Green wrote: > >Why is it that no one seems to sell 'ordinary' PCs, in ordinary sized > >boxes, but with reasonably power efficient components. > > If you don't feel competent to build one from scratch, go to a > proper computer shop (where are you? I can recommend some in the > Norwich area.) and they will put one together for you - probably > cheaper than you could. > I've been building my PCs since quite a long time ago (like since they were 386 processors, and NextGen processors - remember them?). However nowadays it doesn't really make economic sense. > >It's next to impossible to even find out what the power consumption is > >of most desktop PCs and very few of them have efficient power supplies > >(often the worst offender). > > > >It's all very well advocating little Intel Atom based boxes but they > >almost never have any space for extra disk drives. The same applies to > >Raspberry Pi etc., very low power but no easy way to assemble in a box > >with a couple of disk drives. > > Not a tremendous challenge though. > It's not a challenge putting a Raspberry Pi in a box and adding some USB disks, no. However it won't be a particularly good server. The difficulty is finding out which motherboards are low power and then finding a suitably efficient power supply. My desktop machine (Intel I3, 8Gb memory, two 1Tb disks) consumes only about 40 watts because I chose a reasonably low power board (after much searching to find information) and an efficient power supply. It's still a *bit* of a bodge though because the power supply isn't designed to fit in a standard box. Since my system only uses 40 watts it needs a much smaller power supply than most full-sized PC ones. Even a very efficient 300 watt power supply isn't going to be particularly good at 40 watts. I'm using an 80 watt supply. > >I guess I'm after much the same as Laurie but with maybe more emphasis > >on power consumption. A basic case with low power mother board, low end > >processor, etc. and space for several disks. > > Then you can run Tom's RTBT and have a low-end OS too? > > This is where your competent small trader scores. Try Anglian Internet. > I'd be *really* surprised if they know power consumption figures for assembled PCs (before they assemble them that is, I can measure the consumption of something I've built). I will send them an enquiry though. -- Chris Green

1 0

Reassembling RAID array
by Mark Rogers 10 Jan '13

10 Jan '13

I had a RAID5 array set up as /dev/md1 using 4 external USB3 drives. Following a reboot (I assume, although to be honest I'm not sure what caused it) the array hasn't come back up correctly: $ cat /proc/mdstat Personalities : [linear] [multipath] [raid0] [raid1] [raid6] [raid5] [raid4] [raid10] md1 : active raid5 super 1.2 level 5, 512k chunk, algorithm 2 [4/0] [____] md0 : active raid5 sda1[0] sdb1[1] sdd1[3] sdc1[2] 5860535808 blocks level 5, 64k chunk, algorithm 2 [4/4] [UUUU] unused devices: <none> Note: /dev/md0 is a separate array and is working fine; md1 should comprise sd[fghi]1 All the "missing" partitions are present, eg: $sudo fdisk -l /dev/sdf Disk /dev/sdf: 2000.4 GB, 2000398934016 bytes 81 heads, 63 sectors/track, 765633 cylinders, total 3907029168 sectors Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes Disk identifier: 0x2c2d5341 Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System /dev/sdf1 2048 3907029167 1953513560 fd Linux RAID autodetect (same applies for the other three disks). How do I get mdadm to add my disks into the array, both now and after a reboot? -- Mark Rogers // More Solutions Ltd (Peterborough Office) // 0844 251 1450 Registered in England (0456 0902) 21 Drakes Mews, Milton Keynes, MK8 0ER

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Best way to code a linux comms daemon
by Mark Rogers 09 Jan '13

09 Jan '13

Occasionally I have the need to write some communications software, typically something that connects to a serial or TCP port, writes requests and reads responses, writing the results into a database. Usually the basics are simple enough to achieve, but the challenge is in making a robust solution that will cope with lost connections and any other variety of reasons why things might go wrong (including bugs in the script itself). What is the "best" way to approach something like this? Are some programming languages better than others for this? What's the best way to ensure a script restarts if it fails for some reason? I'm looking for something Debian/Ubuntu based if relevant. [Aside: One reason for asking is that I have been playing with an app I downloaded that talks to CurrentCost power meters, with a PHP-based web interface and a Python-based daemon, and I'm not sure why Python was chosen for it; also I note that the daemon regularly crashes on my system leaving me without any data.] -- Mark Rogers // More Solutions Ltd (Peterborough Office) // 0844 251 1450 Registered in England (0456 0902) 21 Drakes Mews, Milton Keynes, MK8 0ER

3 6

Re: [ALUG] Best way to code a linux comms daemon
by Barry Samuels 09 Jan '13

09 Jan '13

On 09/01/13 09:30:13, Mark Rogers wrote: > On 8 January 2013 09:43, Barry Samuels > <bjsamuels(a)beenthere-donethat.org.uk>wrote: > > > I also use the Python-based interface written by Dale Lane. I have > > to run that 3 times every 24 hours to store data for the bar graphs > > and don't understand Python enough to be able to modify it to run > > unattended. Yes I know that there is an option to 'stay connected' > > but I don't want it running all the time just long enough to > > collect 24 hours worth of data. > > > > Cheers, I'll take a look at Dale's code, I've been using "measureit": > http://code.google.com/p/measureit/ > > I thought that I would, at least, express an interest. > > > > Thanks, it was awful quiet out there! Measureit looks interesting but appears to be for the Envi and Envir models only and mine is older than that. Pity. Some of my posts haven't appeared on the list and I haven't had a copy back but I've just realised why. I think I've been clicking 'Reply' instead of 'Reply to group' so some posts went directly to the poster instead of to the group. Apologies to those affected and old age means it can only get worse. :(( -- Barry Samuels http://www.beenthere-donethat.org.uk The Unofficial Guide to Great Britain

2 1

Debian CDs
by James Freer 08 Jan '13

08 Jan '13

Knowing some of you use debian i just wanted to check before i download the wrong thing. If one wants a bootable (but not live CD) one just downloads the first CD of the (gulp) 53 available. I want to install xfce... so is the first one still ok? Since the last time i tried debian they seem to have liveCD iso and stick isos. Further down the list there is debian-6.0.6-i386-xfce+lxde-CD-1.iso I assume this is xfce and lxde desktops on one iso - but i can't find any info referring to it on the website. Would this be the better choice? thanks james

4 10

HDD error
by Richard Lewis 07 Jan '13

07 Jan '13

Hello ALUG, A few weeks ago I got this error when booting my Debian box: ata1.00: exception Emask 0x50 SAct 0x0 SErr 0x280900 action 0x6 ata1.00: BMDMA stat 0x66 ata1.00: SError: { UnrecovData HostInt 10B8B BadCRC } ata1.00: failed command: READ DMA EXT ata1.00: cmd 25/00:08:00:a8:d6/00:00:3d:00:00/e0 tag 0 dma 4096 in res 51/84:00:00:a8:d6/84:00:3d:00:00/e0 Emask 0x70 (host bus error) ata1.00: status: { DRDY ERR } ata1.00: error: { ICRC ABRT } ata1.00: hard resetting link ata1.01: hard resetting link ata1.00: SATA link up 1.5 Gbps (SStatus 113 SControl 310) ata1.01: SATA link up 1.5 Gbps (SStatus 113 SControl 300) ata1.00: configured for UDMA/33 ata1.01: configured for UDMA/133 ata1: EH complete It was repeating every second or so from very early on in the boot. It did eventually boot with the root filesystem mounted read-only and the partition on which I mount /home mounted normally. In a panic, I did a backup and bought a replacement disk. Shortly afterwards I did a full SMART test and it came up clean. Since then, I haven't encountered any problems and in fact never got round to replacing the disk. (The new one is still in the packaing on the shelf.) However, this evening the same thing has happened. I did a bit more research this time and it seems this could be a SATA cable issue. The box is a Shuttle XPC which I bought as a complete system (not self-build). Does this sound like it is a problem with the SATA cable? And if so, does anyone have any recommendations or advice regarding replacing it and helping to prevent this problem in future? Thanks and best, Richard -- -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Richard Lewis j: ironchicken(a)jabber.earth.li @: lewisrichard http://www.richardlewis.me.uk/ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

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[ALUG Announce] ALUG Norwich Pub Meet Thursday 10th January
by Viperfang 07 Jan '13

07 Jan '13

ALUG Announce Please send announcements to Announce(a)lists.alug.org.uk Unsub, change settings via http://lists.alug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/announce ----- Hello Norwich Aluggers, Our monthly ALUG Norwich social meeting will be held this Thursday, 10th January at The Coach and Horses (82 Thorpe Road, Norwich, NR1 1BA). The meeting officially starts at 8pm, although some people may arrive earlier. More information on those people can be found on the list and the IRC channel. If you are unsure if you will recognise us then make yourself and your intent to attend known by either posting on list or visiting us on IRC so we can look out for you rather than hiding in the corner. Optionally you could ask at the bar if they know where the geeky computer weirdos are and they'll point you in the right direction (seriously!). Another possibility is look for heaps of electronics on a table that may possibly look like movie props that would used for detonating explosives. Feel free to bring electronics/laptops/gadgets to the meet, you will by no means be alone. Ben Bewick aka Viperfang NB: This mail is automated, please refer to the usual sources for more information. ALUG Contact Details: Website : http://www.alug.org.uk/ IRC : #alug on irc.alug.org.uk List : http://lists.alug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo Twitter : http://twitter.com/anglianlug Identica: TBA Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2381613902 ----- Send discussion replies to main(a)lists.alug.org.uk (Reply-To set) Unsub, change settings via http://lists.alug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/announce

1 0

USB Memory Sticks
by Michael Goddard 06 Jan '13

06 Jan '13

An odd request, but what is reasonable brand of USB M S for use with Linux? My reason for asking is that I've found of late some of these items, after a period of use, give a misleading response eg, describe item to be "full, no space", when user knows this to be untrue! tia Michael

5 4

[OT] Google search without cookies
by Dan 06 Jan '13

06 Jan '13

Dear All, Since yesterday, Google web searches all come up blank unless I allow Google to set cookies (Firefox 10.0.7 on Gentoo). Google's privacy FAQ still says that Google search will work without cookies, and I find that Google Image, Books, and Scholar searches work just fine without cookies, so it doesn't appear to be a deliberate change of policy on Google's part. Anyone else experiencing similar symptoms? -- Thanks, Dan

4 6

Selective 'repose' in Mint/Banshee/Brasero
by tony.anson＠girolle.co.uk 06 Jan '13

06 Jan '13

After a few minutes the (newish) netbook goes to sleep as it ought. However, when watching a video or listening to a CD (or, I presume, installing something?) the system snoozes, which is a pain. The system I'm using is the latest stable Mint put on last meeting at the Waggon and Horses. I have looked in various (IMO) likely places, but I can't find any way of disabling sleep for specific applications. Any ideas, gang? Pretty please? -- Tony

2 2

Fwd: Re: USB Memory Sticks
by tony.anson＠girolle.co.uk 03 Jan '13

03 Jan '13

Date: Thu, 03 Jan 2013 20:35:01 +0000 [20:35:01 UTC] From: tony.anson(a)girolle.co.uk United Kingdom To: nev(a)nevilley.org.uk Subject: Re: [ALUG] USB Memory Sticks Quoting nev young <nev(a)nevilley.org.uk>: [Hide Quoted Text] On 01/01/13 10:15, Chris Green wrote: On Mon, Dec 31, 2012 at 06:50:05PM +0000, Michael Goddard wrote: An odd request, but what is reasonable brand of USB M S for use with Linux? My reason for asking is that I've found of late some of these items, after a period of use, give a misleading response eg, describe item to be "full, no space", when user knows this to be untrue! I can't reaally see why the *brand* of memory stick would affect why this might happen. Have you simply got a lot of hidden files on the stick using all the space? Chris could be right. I had a problem with losing space on the memory card in my camera which I eventually found to be all the old photos filed under .Trash I've never had that problem, and my oldest stick is 64 MB... Most of mine are now SanDisk, Peak and Kingston. Be aware that decent sticks write to the memory in a pattern, so that it is used and re-used in rotation as it doesn't last for ever. As well as Nev's good suggestion, you can delete the partition which makes the thing usable - I have a small one to which this has happened - somehow. -- Tony

1 0

Ubuntu for smartphones
by Bev Nicolson 03 Jan '13

03 Jan '13

Eventually. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20891868 Bev.

2 1

Sound - how to get 'Output devices' to appear in PulseAudio?
by Chris Green 01 Jan '13

01 Jan '13

I am slowly getting to understand what's going on with sound on my little Acer Revo. However I still *don't* understand why sometimes PulseAudio can see some output devices and sometimes it can't. When it has no output devices not surprisingly I can't get any sound out of it, I then curse it for a while, run various things to see if I can understand what's going on, and at some point it works - but I can never understand why! So, how does one get output devices to appear? Then, further, how does one do this from the command line, because I want to run this headless and will only have ssh access. (Running X remotely doesn't work with modern applications as they use DBUS which breaks X) -- Chris Green

1 1

2600 meeting at 18:00 on Friday the 4th January.
by Viperfang 01 Jan '13

01 Jan '13

Quick heads up about this months Norwich 2600 meeting, more info at http://www.norwich2600.co.uk

1 0

3Com 8 port hub
by Chris Walker 29 Dec '12

29 Dec '12

Does anybody want one of these? http://www.amazon.co.uk/3Com-3C16750-US-OfficeConnect-Speed-8-Port/dp/B0000… One of my sons gave me one of these things over Christmas as he has never used it and he's in a 'tidying' mood! I think he's had it for some time and never used it. All I've done is find a power lead for it and switch it on. It lights up as expected but I haven't hooked up any LAN connections. It's free for the first person that shows an interest.

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