Month: October 2008

Simple rsync backup

Posted by Eric – October 13, 2008

One of my goals for running a dedicated home server was for backup purposes. I already have a Simpleshare NAS that works OK but if it fails my data is still lost. Unlike previous computers, the Shuttle PC K4500 is so quiet that I can run it 24/7. From the Shuttle PC, I can mount the Simpleshare and rsync changes across.

#!/bin/bash
/bin/mount /mnt/nfsbackup
/usr/bin/rsync -a --numeric-ids /mnt/nfsbackup/ /home/backup/bkup.0/
/bin/umount /mnt/nfsbackup

The –numeric-ids option is handy because the UID/GIDs are different between the server and my laptop. I looked at different methods of doing backups. What I decided was to rsync new files to the Shuttle PC but not to delete anything. I’ll decide how I want to “prune” deleted files later. Rsync runs every six hours and now I have everything mirrored. The next step in centralizing my data is to setup icecast and stream all my music from the server. I archive all my music in FLAC already. Once I start streaming I’ll be able to remove my MP3s from the laptop.

Critical Kernel Options

Posted by Eric – October 12, 2008

The Shuttle PC K4500 had a lot of unfamiliar hardware on it when I first bought it. The most critical part being the SATA drivers.

00:1f.2 IDE interface: Intel Corporation 82801GB/GR/GH (ICH7 Family) SATA IDE Controller (rev 01)

The pertinent option in menuconfig was to enable “Intel ESB, ICH, PIIX3, PIIX4 PATA/SATA Support” in the SATA drivers section. Important! In order for the kernel to boot, this driver must be built in or you won’t be able to mount your filesystems.

Networking is another critical component since I do nearly all of my work over SSH.

02:00.0 Ethernet controller: Marvell Technology Group Ltd. 88E8056 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 12)

The driver is called sky2. The entry in menuconfig is “SysKonnect Yukon2 support”. You have the choice to either build the driver in or modularize it. I should say that when I’m building a new config I execute “make defconfig” to create a base config that I edit later. So there might be other critical options that I don’t mention because they are enabled by default in defconfig.

Trigg County Country Ham Festival

Posted by Eric – October 11, 2008

The Trigg County HamFest is almost over, last day will be tomorrow. I paid a visit and took pictures while I was there. WKDZ Radio was there in a big way. Broadcasting live remotes from inside the festival.

Sitting Duck

Posted by Eric – October 9, 2008

Nomen posts a link on HoptownHall to thirty pictures of soldiers in Afghanistan.

OODA

Ok, men, here is a question to test your knowledge of military vehicles. This question is worth….uh…well, just answer the question.

What is the name and function of the vertical member mounted on the hood of the vehicle in photo #5?

Armored personnel carrier

Armored personnel carrier

Transplanted Hoosier

Ummm, would their nickname be “sitting duck” and their purpose be “look out”? 8)

Transplanted Hoosier

[...] It reminds me of the thingie that sticks out in the front of the black helicopter at the static display. (I told you I’m not military -here’s your proof.) IIRC, that thingie on the helicopter keeps the good guys from getting tangled in power lines. Could this thingie be to keep the good guys from getting “clotheslined” or to get rid of barbwire?

OODA

Ding, ding, ding!

Well done! It’s a Wire-strike Protection System (WSPS). It keeps the guys and the guns from being ripped off the top of the vehicle by low-hanging wires.

Hardware haters

Posted by Eric – October 2, 2008

I’m not the only one with no luck handling hardware. Even Gentoo developers don’t like working with hardware.

Oh, how the hardware hates me. My poor Gentoo development box and primary desktop workstation has been suffering a long string of random lockups lately.[...]

Today I cleaned out the machine, getting rid of a fair amount of dust. I had to remove the graphics card to get at its cooling fins, and ever since reinstalling it and rebooting, there are minor graphical glitches covering the screen at bootup, at least until the initrd is loaded. Everything’s fine once fbsplash and X kick in. Maybe I shoulda wiped off the PCIe contacts or something?

Though Josh Saddler seems to be having the opposite problem. His video clears up when graphics load but mine got worse after the splash image loaded.