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Comment Re:Advatages of ZFS over BTRFS? (Score 2) 297

Gotcha. So btrfs and df play up only under a raid1 situation. That explains why I didn't notice any problem.

As for snapshots, I've set up an automated snapshot system using btrfs. Main volume is mounted to /snapshots. One subvolume is created in there, and is then separately mounted to /data . Snapshots are created under the /snapshot directory, while /data is the path used by applications. I've created a nightly script which renames all previous snapshots, and then creates a new snapshot. It all works seamlessly, and it seems pretty easy to understand. I'm unsure what the fuss is, really.

Comment Re:Advatages of ZFS over BTRFS? (Score 2) 297

I'm playing around with btrfs at the moment, and I've spotted some inconsistencies in the document you mentioned.

* Subvolumes can be moved and renamed under btrfs. I do this on a daily basis.
* btrfs can do read-only snapshots. Mind you, it does have to be specified.
* As far as I can tell, "df" does work fine with btrfs. The document implies it does not.

I am still quite new to btrfs, so I'm learning much at the moment. There may be more points that I've missed.

It seems, though, your document is a bit out of date, and btrfs has improved since then.

Comment Re: Doesn't Matter (Score 1) 369

Well, I guess it all depends on the type of game you want to play.

For AAA type games, Windows is the only obvious choice.

For more Indie type games, Linux is actually an excellent choice now. Especially for the average person, who can run them via Ubuntu and Steam.

My preference is for the latter type, and since Valve introduced their Steam client, I've found myself going to Windows much less. In fact, I only recently booted Windows up for the first time in 4 months or so, just to install system updates and the latest firefox. Just because, well, I didn't feel right leaving it without updates.

I've a healthy collection of over 50 Linux steam games, thanks mostly to Humble Bundle. None required any work to get going. Steam took care of it all. An average user would cope fine with that.

I game on my laptop, which admittedly, was pretty highly spec'd a few years ago (sandy bridge quad core cpu, Nvidia 485M, 8GB mem). Works great for anything I've thrown at it so far.

Basically, my point is, depending on the type of gamer you are, Linux Gaming has made a _huge_ leap this year. For me, the improvement has all but removed my need for Windows. For others, well, mileage may vary. For the standard indie gamer, Linux is here and and is very usable.

Comment Re:This is why I have a 1 week delayed install pol (Score 3, Interesting) 254

True. I recently went through a bunch of Debian upgrades from 6 to 7, and this happened to one server. Unfortunately, it was one of the few physical servers on the list, which meant I had to haul my ass down to the data centre, early hours of the morning, to fix it at the console.

Serves me right for ignoring the grub update warning while doing the update. A simple "grub-install /dev/sda", when the update process is finished, would have made sure that all was OK. Also, this can be fixed by booting the Debian 7 install CD, and running through the rescue menu. No need for a live CD or such.

Still, it's a shame that this one got through the testing process, especially for such a crucial bit of the system. Very unusual for Debian.

Comment Re:Uh huh (Score 1) 570

Agreed that Group Policy is wonderful for simple administration of multiple windows machines. You can get something similar to work with Linux, for example using Puppet, but it does take some work to tune it nicely. Powershell is a god-send, and it's about time that Microsoft started to embrace command line administration, although it still needs some tweaking to be as convenient as a unix shell.

There are a few confusing things you mentioned, though.

- 140+ dependencies to install one app? I assume this was done automatically, instead of manually. If not, what the hell distribution were you using?! If so, then I consider this an advantage, because it is a fine-grained system of separate packages, instead of one monolith installer which includes bundled libraries that end up being cruft over time.
- Reboot a lot? I'm still wondering what distribution you're using. I've upgraded whole Debian versions without booting.
- Want to automate firewall configuration? There's an app for that. Again, this can vary with distribution.
- Getting things to start up and talk? More distribution based behaviour.
- Configuration scripts can certainly tolerate typos, depending on the service. With many services, if you do make a typo, that setting is ignored and a warning is printed with the line number. No need to search a whole 10kb file. Unix services are generally very good at telling you exactly where and what the issue is. I only wish Windows services were as simple.
- Spaces in filenames? Works fine, though you _must_ encase filename variables in double quotes when doing scripting work. It's something that people often forget. Case-insensitive user names? Yep, you're right. Unicode text? It's there. I can type UTF-8 at the prompt without issue. IPv6? In theory and practice. GUI config wizards? Yes, depending on your distribution. Text based config wizards? There are some, but agreed, not many. Configuration change without having to stop and start? Look up the HUP signal. An editor more user friendly than vi? They're there (pico for example). Beats me why you wouldn't learn an excellent text editor like vi anyway. It's like not learning to touch type when using the keyboard. I install vim on most windows servers I administer.
- Those "-e" command line options are just shortcuts. There's often a long version of the option which is more descriptive. There's a long history in Unix of using shortcut options. Apparently, it's more efficient.

Most of the issues you mention vary greatly depending on the Linux distribution you use. If you have to complain, do so about the distribution you're using. Don't label them under the all-encompassing name of "Linux".

Comment Re:What about new talent? (Score 1) 1501

We are simultaneously rational and emotional beings. The vulgarity evokes our emotional side, and helps to emphasise an important rational point. It can be pretty effective, and obviously shouldn't be overused. Also, it helps if it's backed up with compliments when appropriate.

All OSS circles are not the same. If you fear being insulted, I'm sure you can find many projects without that behaviour. Give it a go, though. Take a few insults, and see if it makes you a more effective programmer. If you feel it's too much, you can say as much. Try and see if for what it is, though.

Comment Re:Hmmm (Score 3, Interesting) 168

Tim is smart enough to know that he cannot run. The Internet is everywhere. We will track him down, lock him up in a small room, Misery-style, and make him write the game we want. Along with the whole Broken Age team, of course. Can't expect Tim to do the programming and artwork, even if we hack off a foot or two.

Anyway, point being, Tim isn't going anywhere. I'm perfectly confident the game will be made, and it will be Schafer-awesome.

Comment Re:we ditched vmware for xenserver 2 years back... (Score 1) 86

Thanks for the clarification. Some good information there, but still not as coherent as I'd like.

Excellent points about the security policy. Other than Activesync also possible to use with open source software, I can't think of any equivalent ability for the other features you mention.

I'm confused as to why you think OSS doesn't have adequate vertical scaling. Add more RAM, you can run more simultaneous connections. Add more/faster disks, you can fetch mail more quickly. Add more CPU, and, well, it's just as responsive. Mail servers aren't cpu bound, unless you have a fairly underpowered cpu.

Gosh, the old 2GB file size limit on 32 bit systems. Haven't seen that for a decade. Probably not a good example to use.

I quite like Maildir. I don't deal with hundreds of billions of emails, though. Just manage a mail server that stores email for 400-500 domains, with around 50,000 mailboxes, and 4 or 5 million emails. A one server job, really. Maildir works very nicely. It doesn't have an indexing system per se, but service software can implement that. Dovecot and Cyrus do just that. Works just as fast as the Exchange system we have here, which handles email for around 90 employees, although the Exchange system does suffer from the occasional Outlook connection timeout when it gets heavy with disk IO. I blame the sales people and their email searches.

Backups from Maildir aren't too bad. I get up to 80GB/hour. After hours, of course. Via Rsync, to a remote backup server. I do have directory indexing turned on for the filesystem. Necessary when dealing with so many files.

Maildir restores are far from impossible. Just copy the relevant restored mail files to the correct directory. Oh, and if running Cyrus, reconstruct the mailbox. Easy and convenient. Beats the hell out of having to splice the restored email into an mbox file. Haven't done that for years.

Comment Re:we ditched vmware for xenserver 2 years back... (Score 1) 86

I think what you mean to say is the default MDA (or LDA) agent for sendmail writes a flat file. It looks a bit strange when you claim sendmail also has MDA duties.

Unsure why you think a flat file cannot exceed 2GB. Of course, it's not optimal to have a mailbox file that big, but if you're running a mail system that deals with large mailboxes, you'd have switched to the Maildir format years ago. This also helps with mailboxes with a very large number of messages, or at least, it pushes the problem to the filesystem. You can then pick and choose a filesystem, and tune it for a large number of small files.

Also unsure why you list Dovecot and Cyrus as a mail/IMAP client. I think perhaps you mean IMAP server, but you also mention Pine, which is a client.

With a bit of effort, you can scale these services over as many servers as you wish. Have a look at http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/9804 for an example. It's an old document, but is still relevant for this type of design.

You're right that there's no push email feature for open source services. The closest I know of is using the IMAP IDLE feature, which keeps a connection open to the mail server. The mail server then notifies the client immediately through this connection. Not quite push email, but comes very close.

Unsure what you mean by enforcing security policy.

Comment Re:A great win for FreeBSD (Score 2) 457

Thanks for the comment, my glass-half-empty friend.

Right now, somewhere, some kid with an eager mind has discovered the name of "FreeBSD" because of this story. Should they continue the investigation, fuelled by the insatiable curiosity that is the hallmark of younger generations, he or she will install FreeBSD onto their computer system. From there, the questions only grow, as they delve into its inner workings. It could be a life changing discovery. Only the future can tell.

Most people are unaware of what constitutes the core of their devices. That is true. What is also true is that some people do discover facts, thanks to articles like this.

Funny thing is, I'm not even much of a FreeBSD fan, though I do like their kernel. If some eager-minded kid is reading this ... install Debian! You've then got a choice of kernels to run your system with, including the FreeBSD kernel. I think even Illumos is available, though not sure if that Debian port is still active.

Comment Re:A great win for FreeBSD (Score 1) 457

Well, I'm not saying it's a certainty, but it is a possibility. Hence why I used the word "could" in my original phrase. Even the small percentage of people who care can translate into more users.

I had no idea that the PSP uses a BSD variant. Thanks for teaching me. I find that interesting, and will bring it up in geeky conversation, should the situation arise.

Comment Re:A great win for FreeBSD (Score 1) 457

It's publicity. Awareness of FreeBSD will increase, and that could translate into more users. Likely more users of the kind that are curious, inquisitive, and technically able.

Like you, I very much doubt that Sony will feed back any patches. Corporate structure means that the process of sharing code will include a series of approvals and legal checks, making the whole process painful for the programmer. No tech guy worth their salt wants to put themselves through that wringer, unless they're really really passionate about getting it through.

The FreeBSD kernel is top notch, so Sony will certainly benefit from such a solid system. PS4 users will benefit from decent scheduling and multitasking. The FreeBSD community should hopefully benefit from the increased exposure. It's really not a bad deal overall. Just a shame that the FreeBSD system won't get better graphic drivers out of it, but hey, anything potentially released would undoubtedly be unsupported and proprietary, and thus a pain in the arse for FreeBSD maintainers.

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