August 2008 - KCLUG

OT- Coup Warning sort of understates it- Ignore this only if you wish everyone you love to be waterboarded!
by Oren Beck 02 Sep '08

02 Sep '08

We are approaching a day of potential history. It's nothing less than our literal freedom at stake, and I m assuredly understating it. You all know my reluctance to politically comment on list by now. -- Oren Beck 816.729.3645

8 8

OT- but the danger level demands we NOT ignore this
by Oren Beck 01 Sep '08

01 Sep '08

http://www.boingboing.net/2008/08/30/report-massive-warra.html With links to corroborating information. The summary is that nothing less than freedom itself is now being considered sacrificial. And if you dare support these police actions as justified? Karma will not be kind to you. -- Oren Beck 816.729.3645

3 2

Broken network initialization (Was: Re: Wanted...)
by Sean Crago 31 Aug '08

31 Aug '08

On Fri, Aug 29, 2008 at 11:17 PM, Sean Crago <cragos(a)gmail.com> wrote: > There is one major drawback that isn't specific to any one adapter, > though. iwconfig et al are a huge PITA, complicated further by > Debian/Ubuntu's underperforming networking initialization scripts. > Though I finally do have /etc/network/interfaces defined well enough > that it is finally reliably connecting to my WAP upon request, I find > myself having to run ifdown/ifup on every boot - Might be able to fix > this problem by moving the network initialization script further into > the boot process, but I really haven't the slightest idea why. > > Unlike competently designed systems such as Maemo (where seemless > 802.11 functionality matters a wee bit more than Ubuntu powered > laptops with wireless), Ubuntu causes far more problems running over a > wireless connection (regardless of the card) than it does over a > physical connection. The myriad poorly designed frontends to iwspy are > similarly inadequate and, if you'll forgive the repetition, incredibly > poorly designed. Don't even get me started on Xandros, and the Eee's > half-assed attempt to find a better solution to the aforementioned > problem. You know, I should probably just ask the list about this: I've got a well defined interfaces file (follows in the PS), but neither my Ubuntu laptop nor my Ubuntu desktop manages to create a wireless link on boot. It brings up the interface, but it doesn't actually establish comms with my Tomato-powered AP. However, when I just run a simple "ifdown wlan0;ifup wlan0" on either PC, it establishes a good, reliable link and hits the DHCP server with nary a hiccup. Anyone got an easy fix? I'll gripe and moan until the universe dies its heat death about the age and maturity of Linux not being reflected at all in luser-friendly GUI wifi configuration out of the box (or until it's fixed), but this should be what those apps are doing under the hood, and even it's not working right. Thanks, Sean Crago Kathmandu PS: Here's my interfaces file. Pretty much the same on both boxes: # This file describes the network interfaces available on your system # and how to activate them. For more information, see interfaces(5). # The loopback network interface auto wlan0 eth0 lo iface lo inet loopback # The primary network interface iface wlan0 inet dhcp wpa-driver wext wpa-key-mgmt WPA-PSK wpa-proto WPA wpa-ssid 001601842AEE wpa-psk MD5_hash_of_my_WPA2-AES_key iface eth0 inet dhcp

3 5

Re: Broken network initialization (Was: Re: Wanted...)
by Sean Crago 31 Aug '08

31 Aug '08

Not all symptoms in the bug were resolved, because of this related issue. That said, ok - I'll give NM another shot when I bored enough to break my system a little. Still, though - Any idea what is different between the ifup at boot and the ifup in my rc.local? Why would the one work and not the other? -Sean On Sun, Aug 31, 2008 at 11:31 AM, Justin Dugger <jldugger(a)ubuntu.com> wrote: > On Sat, Aug 30, 2008 at 11:01 PM, Sean Crago <cragos(a)gmail.com> wrote: >> Sure - Here's one on the subject - May not be the official way to do >> it, but it worked for me: >> http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=202834 > > That post was written a while ago, possibly before NM was made > default. And the forums are full of crack monkeys. > >> And here's an old bug report on the subject: >> https://bugs.launchpad.net/linux/+bug/33089 > > That's a report about ndiswrapper and broadcom; you've got different > hardware. Plus, that bug is fixed! When Ubuntu 8.10 alpha5 (new > kernel!) comes out, grab it and test the wifi with NM. It'll be > useful to determine whether your configuration is a problem, and > developers are more likely to help and fix bugs filed against the > testing version. Alpha 5 is scheduled for September 4th [1], so it > won't be a long wait. When you do test and it doesn't work, file a > new bug rather than piggy back on an existing one. Launchpad's dupe > features are smarter than average, but hardware specific bugs can > sound similiar while having different patches to fix. > > I don't own a mameo platform, but I imagine it's using NM along with > the rest of GNOME. NM does have an annoying keyring misfeature, thats > mostly solvable with libpam-keyring, which unlocks the keyring as part > of login. But I think storing WEP keys cryptographically is overkill, > and probably WPA/WPA2 as well. > > Justin Dugger > > [1] https://wiki.ubuntu.com/IntrepidReleaseSchedule >

2 1

IP and Biden - Bad, bad, bad direction
by Sean Crago 31 Aug '08

31 Aug '08

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/08/obama-veep-wa-1.html Obama VP Pick Joe Biden: Good on Civil Liberties, Friendly to Hollywood http://news.cnet.com/2010-1071-946732.html Pirate this, go to jail - CNET Considering that most VPs prior to Cheney ended up stuck spending most of their tenures in policy-shaping exploratory committees, and considering that Biden's already got a reputation for jetting all over the world and trying to get his hands into foreign policy debates this is bad, bad news. Way I read the articles above, Biden would have illegalized numerous open source projects including Rockbox and multiple ports of Linux/NetBSD/whatever to DRM-laden embedded systems. Recent news doesn't paint McCain as being much better, and there just isn't much to go off of concerning Obama. Which way will you swing? Anyone gonna put odds on the KCLUG reaching a consensus-based endorsement? :) Sean Crago http://mrzaius.com Kathmandu

3 2

Wanted: Cheap, Linux compatible wireless card
by Matthew Copple 30 Aug '08

30 Aug '08

My son is finally learning to read, and it is time to put a computer in his room. Unfortunately, we live in a hundred-year old house, and the idea of threading several feet of cat5 through bedroom and hallway is not appealing. I am putting Edubuntu on it for him. Does anyone have suggestions for a cheap, Linux compatible wireless card? I prefer an A/B/G card that is WPA compatible. I prefer a USB device if possible, but I won't quibble if PCI is cheaper. I really don't want to deal with ndiswrapper. Any suggestions? Matt Copple mcopple(a)kcopensource.org

5 6

Re: Wanted: Cheap, Linux compatible wireless card
by Sean Crago 30 Aug '08

30 Aug '08

I've got a Hawking PCI card from MicroCenter in Vienna, VA that set me back less than $30. Unlike most USB adapters in its price range it has a decent sized boom on it and a port to attach a bigger one if need be. If this is a desktop, just get one of these. It's cheap and Ubuntu supports it out of the box. The only card-specific drawback is that the Windows drivers are several years out of date, and, generally speaking, suck. http://www.hawkingtech.com/products/productlist.php?CatID=19&FamID=33&ProdI… Here's the lspci output from the Hawking card, if you're still thinking about going down this road: 01:05.0 Network controller: RaLink RT2561/RT61 802.11g PCI Uses the following modules, which ship with the stock Ubuntu kernels in Hardy: rt61pci 25472 0 rt2x00pci 11264 1 rt61pci rt2x00lib 22528 2 rt61pci,rt2x00pci There is one major drawback that isn't specific to any one adapter, though. iwconfig et al are a huge PITA, complicated further by Debian/Ubuntu's underperforming networking initialization scripts. Though I finally do have /etc/network/interfaces defined well enough that it is finally reliably connecting to my WAP upon request, I find myself having to run ifdown/ifup on every boot - Might be able to fix this problem by moving the network initialization script further into the boot process, but I really haven't the slightest idea why. Unlike competently designed systems such as Maemo (where seemless 802.11 functionality matters a wee bit more than Ubuntu powered laptops with wireless), Ubuntu causes far more problems running over a wireless connection (regardless of the card) than it does over a physical connection. The myriad poorly designed frontends to iwspy are similarly inadequate and, if you'll forgive the repetition, incredibly poorly designed. Don't even get me started on Xandros, and the Eee's half-assed attempt to find a better solution to the aforementioned problem. In summary, you might end up with fewer headaches down the road if you just pull some CAT6, but the above card will work at least as well as, possibly substantially better than, any USB dongle. Sean Crago Kathmandu

3 3

Recently there were some comments about neuros. This may explain the buzz factor at work.
by Oren Beck 27 Aug '08

27 Aug '08

http://open.neurostechnology.com/content/web-your-tv-why-it-makes-sense -- Oren Beck 816.729.3645

1 0

JOBOP: Red Hat Linux Administrator
by Hal Duston 27 Aug '08

27 Aug '08

Contact April Garlington of Bradford & Galt at 913-663-1264 for further information. ================================================================== Request for: System Administrator Assignment Start Date: ASAP Assignment End Date: 10/31/2008 Project Summary: Hallmark.com is moving the website to Savvis hosting facility. Although Savvis is providing Unix System Administrators, we need a System administrator to help us troubleshoot application issues and write monitoring scripts. Tasks to be performed: • Troubleshoot existing scripts • Write new monitoring scripts • Troubleshoot sendmail issues/setup • Convert scripts previously ran on AIX to Red Hat linux • Troubleshoot application issues at a system administration layer Required Technical Skills and Proficiencies: Skill Expert Significant Moderate Red Hat Linux Administration X AIX Administration X SendMail Administration X Scripting languages: X (Perl, bash, sed, awk, mod-perl) Websphere Administration X Apache Administration on RedHat Linux X Troubleshooting experience X ================================================================== Thanks, -- Hal

1 0

Security Warning: Active attacks using stolen SSH keys
by Billy Crook 27 Aug '08

27 Aug '08

If you haven't replaced your Debian-generated SSH keys yet, it's really time to do so immediately if they were generated from ssh-keygen during that year and a half that it was vulnerable in Debian. It's also not a bad idea to just check to see if yours are on the list anyway. See http://wiki.debian.org/SSLkeys#head-d841ac769390d013577ce3fd2be24b8cf5a74cfb From: http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=4937&rss The US-CERT is reporting that there is active attacks against Linux environments using stolen SSH keys. There is a new rootkit out, Phalanx2 which is dropped by attackers which, among the usual rootkit tasks, steal any SSH key on a system. The attackers then, presumably, use those stolen keys (the ones without passwords/passphrases at least) to get into other machines. Sources of compromised keys could include the weak key vulnerability in Debian-based systems a few months ago, so if you haven't updated and replaced those keys, you ought to do so now. The biggest defense is to have any keys, especially those used to authenticate to remote machines and certainly internet facing ones, require a passphrase to use. Check your logs, especially if you use SSH key-based auth, to identify accesses from remote machines that have no business accessing you. If you have IPs, that would be good. To detect if you have Phalanx2, look for /etc/khubd.p2/ (access by cd, not ls) or any directory that is called "khubd.p2". /dev/shm/ may contain files from the attack as well. Tripwire, AIDE and friends should also be able to detect filesystem changes. -- John Bambenek bambenek /at/ gmail \dot\ com

1 0