corvus.IT.portal

Update: rtorrent 0.8.7 with wtorrent

2011-10-28T17:56:00.000+08:00

Updated rtorrent on my Debian box, and find that wtorrent cannot connect to rtorrent anymore after a reboot. Here is the fix procedures:

.rtorrent.rc file

1. chmod the .socket file on startup

scgi_local = /tmp/rtorrent.rpc.socket
schedule = chmod,0,0,"execute=chmod,777,/tmp/rtorrent.rpc.socket"

2. updated umask syntax

# Everyone can read/write the downloaded files
system.umask.set = 000

/etc/init.d/rtorrent file

Remove all lines referring to the function "modify_socket". It is handled with .rtorrent.rc now.

南生圍木橋 [Flickr]

2011-10-16T08:04:21-07:00

corvuslee posted a photo:

Curious bird [Flickr]

2011-10-16T07:54:16-07:00

corvuslee posted a photo:

(Untitled) [Flickr]

2011-10-16T07:52:38-07:00

corvuslee posted a photo:

RamDisk on Windows Vista/7

2011-10-13T18:41:00.000+08:00

Get the package
Download ImDisk from http://www.ltr-data.se/opencode.html/#ImDisk and the install it.

Configure the RamDisk

As the Windows administrator, run these commands

sc config imdisk start= auto
net start imdisk

Create a Windows batch file - C:\startup.bat

@echo OFF
echo System startup script
echo by corvus.lee@gmail.com
echo 2011-07-24 version
echo ###

:RAMDISK
REM === Ramdisk on R:\ ===
echo Creating the ramdisk
imdisk.exe -a -t vm -o fix -o hd -o rw -s 512M -m R: -p "/FS:fat32 /V:RamDisk /Q /Y"
if not %errorlevel% equ 0 goto :ERROR
echo done.
echo.
echo Creating R:\temp
if not exist R:\temp mkdir R:\temp
if not %errorlevel% equ 0 goto :ERROR
echo done.
echo.
goto :STARTUP_APPS

REM ===Startup Applications===
:STARTUP_APPS
goto :EOF

:ERROR
echo ###
echo !!Error encountered!!
echo ###
pause
exit /b 1

Automatic start-up
There are a few ways to do this:

1) Start menu (recommended)
Link C:\startup.bat to the Windows start menu

OR 2) Windows services
using srvany.exe (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/137890)

OR 3) Group Policy

Locate the machine startup group policy

Add C:\startup.bat as a machine startup script; Reboot.

Bee's nest [Flickr]

2011-07-27T08:06:14-07:00

corvuslee posted a photo:

Butterfly [Flickr]

2011-07-27T08:05:41-07:00

corvuslee posted a photo:

Performance Review: Hitachi 2.5" 320GB HDD

2011-02-18T15:56:00.003+08:00

Model: Hitachi HTS543232A7A384

MS Outlook online/offline mailbox

2010-12-15T20:49:00.001+08:00

If the company you are working for is using MS Exchange as the email server, it is very common that you will reach the mailbox size limit in less than a month if you keep everything online (i.e. on the Exchange server).

This article is about how to create an offline mailbox with all emails for permanent storage, while keeping the recent conversations online for easier access, especially if Outlook Web Access (OWA) is available.

1. Create an offline data file

Go to control panel -> Mail -> Mail Setup -> Data Files

Add a new data file on your local hard drive, but keep the Online data file as the Default.

If possible, put it away from your system drive (i.e. C:\)

2. Setting the default Inbox

Go to the E-mail tab, and make sure new messages are going to the Inbox of the Online data file.

Now save and close the Account Settings dialog

3. Creating Outlook Rules

Open the Outlook, and go to manage Rules and Alerts

Start from a blank incoming rule

Leave everything blank for conditions

Copy every mails to the Inbox of your offline data file. Optionally, you can assign it to a category.

If everything is set, click Finish

Then we start from a blank outgoing rule

Leave it blank for conditions

Move a copy to the Sent folder of your offline data file

When everything is set, click Finish

4. Auto-Archive the online data file

Setup an AutoArchive for Inbox, Sent and Deleted Items folders. Modify the retention period to fit with your actual usage.

5. Final touch

Make the Inbox of the offline data file as the default view when Outlook starts

Android: Changjie Input Method

2010-11-03T16:39:00.003+08:00

繁體中文輸入法: 倉頡, 速成, 筆劃, 注音
拼音輸入法請使用CedIME with Pinyin

Application

CedIME

Installation

Android market - https://market.android.com/details?id=hk.cedime.inputmethod

Fine Tuning foobar2000 in Windows 7

2010-09-30T23:20:00.013+08:00

Introduction

Several months ago, I have written a blog post here showing how to Get the Best Sound Quality in Windows for Free. Today, we are going to do some fine tunings to get a better result by using some 3rd party components.

Software requirement

foobar2000
WASAPI output (Windows 7 only; Try ASIO or KS otherwise)
sox resampler

Analyze your sound card

Take a look at the user manual, and/or do some googling to find out which playback combination your sound card can support.

Audigy 2: 16bit/48kHz*, 24bit/48KHz, 24bit/96KHz, 24bit/192kHz
* ASIO supported

foobar2000 configuration

Install the components

Use WASAPI as the output, matching the soundcard playback bitrate

Enable the DSPs in order

Configure the SoX resampler, upscaling to 192kHz

Configure the equalizer to fit with your equipment and taste. I have lowered the 77 & 110Hz to reduce the excessive bass output by my speaker set.

Now sit back and enjoy some nice musics

Android: Scanner Barcode and QR code

2010-09-19T15:02:00.008+08:00

Application

Barcode Scanner

Installation

Android market - https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.zxing.client.android
Author site - http://code.google.com/p/zxing/

Description

Scanning [1D] barcode and [2D] QR code

Usage

downloading Android apps, shopping, sharing contacts, and more...

Review: Motorola Milestone

2010-09-18T10:34:00.003+08:00

Description:

Motorola MILESTONE XT702
My first Android phone

Hardware:

CPU: TI OMAP3430 (550MHz)
RAM: 256MB
Internal storage: 256MB
External storage: up to 32GB microSDHC
Dimension: 3.7" 480x854 (FWVGA)
Wifi: 802.11b/g
Bluetooth: 2.1 + EDR
Camera: 5MP, dual LED
Others: side slide keyboard, micro USB, 3.5mm jack

OS:

Android 2.1

Battery:

Last for around 3 days for casual use

Howto: Backup Server - BackupPC

2010-05-14T18:11:00.002+08:00

Introduction

Having more and more computers to handle, it will become too time-consuming to rely on individual backup software installed on individual machines. We need an enterprise-grade system which can backup Windows, MacOS, and possibly other OS on your servers from a centralized console, without interfering the clients.

For a SME/home-user environment, I have picked a simple software - BackupPC. It has the following advantages:

Identical files across multiple backups of the same or different PCs are stored only once resulting in substantial savings in disk storage and disk I/O.
No client-side software is needed
Powerful web-interface
Free and open source under GPL

Alternative:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_backup_software

Installation of BackupPC

You can install BackupPC with the command below. If you are not using apache2 as the httpd, skip the automatic configuration process.

aptitude install backuppc libfile-rsyncp-perl

httpd Configuration

Configuring lighttpd for BackupPC web interface

Install lighttpd (or any other httpd you prefer) if not already installed, and then follow the steps below to configure it in the Debian way. For other httpd, follow the BackupPC wiki.

1. Declare the BackupPC cgi-bin

#/etc/lighttpd/conf-available/10-cgi.conf

... (append to the end)
## BackupPC Web Interface
alias.url += ( "/backuppc" => "/usr/share/backuppc/cgi-bin/" )
$HTTP["url"] =~ "^/backuppc" {
cgi.assign = (
"index.cgi" => """
".cgi" => "/usr/bin/perl"
)
}

Note: The URL has to be /backuppc due to unknown reason

2. Force user authentication for the BackupPC web interface

#/etc/lighttpd/conf-available/05-auth.conf

... (uncomment/modify the 2 lines below)
auth.backend = "htdigest"
auth.backend.htdigest.userfile = "/etc/lighttpd/.htdigest"

... (append to the end)
## BackupPC authentication
auth.require = ( "/backuppc" =>
(
"method" => "digest",
"realm" => "BackupPC",
"require" => "valid-user"
)
)

3. Enable modules auth and cgi

lighttpd-enable-mod auth cgi

4. Edit /etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf to add index.cgi as an authorized index file

## files to check for if .../ is requested
index-file.names = ( "index.php", "index.html",
"index.htm", "default.htm",
"index.lighttpd.html",
"index.cgi" )

5. Restart lighttpd

/etc/init.d/lighttpd restart

Configuring lighttpd for user authentication

The easiest way to declare mass users in htdigest format is by using the tools, htdigest, coming with the apache2-utils package. In this tutorial, however, I will show you how to create a single user by manually creating the files.

1. Before beginning, mark down the username/password combination together with the realm (declared in lighttpd auth.conf as BackupPC in this tutorial).

2. Create a hashed string of the combination

echo -n "backuppc:realm:secret" | md5sum | cut -b -32

719f3992ad96182f6be0edbec0b3fd66

3. Declare the user in the htdigest file

#/etc/lighttpd/.htdigest
backuppc:realm:719f3992ad96182f6be0edbec0b3fd66

BackupPC Configuration

1. Populate the table with all client hosts to be backed up

Note for dhcp checkbox:
If results of both commands are OK, the checkbox should be omitted
#nmblookup hostname
#nmblookoup ip_address_returned

2. (Optional) Modify the target path from /var/lib to /home

mv /var/lib/backuppc/ /home
ln -s /home/backuppc /var/lib/backuppc

#restart the service
/etc/init.d/backuppc restart

Method 1: SMB

The biggest advantage of using SMB is no interventions on the client side.

Go to the Xfer config of the host; Specify the smb share to be backed up with corresponding credentials.

Note: the ClientCharset should be set to utf8, if not already defined in smb.conf

Method 2: rsync

Backup using rsync usually yields better performance, and enables encryption using ssh. Nice choice for road-warriors' notebook.

rsyncd

1. Download the latest backuppc rsyncd package from http://sourceforge.net/projects/backuppc

2. Follow the readme file to install on the Windows client machine

- edit rsyncd.secrets

- edit rsyncd.conf

[example]
path = C:\Users\corvus\Pictures
comment = Pictures
strict modes = false
auth users = JohnDoe
secrets file = c:/rsyncd/rsyncd.secrets
hosts allow = 127.0.0.1
read only = false
list = false

- edit service.bat and install the daemon as a Windows service

3. rsyncd is now listening to port 873

ssh tunnel (optional)

1. Follow my previous blogpost to create a ssh key pair (with passphrase) for user backuppc

2. Save the private key as 'keyfile.ppk' in 'c:\program files\MyEnTunnel'

3. Download the latest package of MyEnTunnel from http://nemesis2.qx.net/pages/MyEnTunnel

4. Launch the installer and do not register as a Windows service

5. Optionally, replace the included Plink with the latest version

6. Select 'MyEnTunnel' from the Start Menu

7. Click on 'Connect' to verify, and the green icon indicates a success

8. (Optional) Copy the MyEnTunnel shortcut to the Startup directory in the start menu to make it autostart when logged in

fakeping

Create the file /usr/bin/fakeping.sh

#!/bin/sh
# Provide fake ping response for
# backuppc clients through SSH tunnel
# by Corvus LEE (corvus.lee-gmail.com)

# Initialization
HOST=$1

# Function
fping() {
netstat -an | grep "\<${IP}:${PORT}\>" > /dev/null
if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
echo "PING $HOST ($IP) 56(84) bytes of data."
echo "64 bytes from $HOST ($IP): icmp_seq=1 ttl=128 time=18.888 ms"
echo ""
echo "--- $HOST ping statistics ---"
echo "1 packets transmitted, 1 received, 0% packet loss, time 0ms"
echo "rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 18.888/18.888/18.888/0.000 ms"
exit 0
else
echo "ping: unknown host $HOST"
exit 1
fi
}

# Execution
case $HOST in
corvuspc)
IP=127.0.0.1
PORT=8730
;;
*)
echo Unknown host $HOST
exit 1
;;
esac
fping

And make it executable by chmod +x /usr/local/bin/fakeping.sh

backuppc

Go to Backup Settings of the host, and modify ClientNameAlias and PingCmd as shown below

Go to Xfer, and modify:

XferMethod = rsyncd
RsyncShareName
RsyncdUserName
RsyncdPasswd
RsyncdClientPort

First Full Backup

1. Start the full backup manually

2. Wait until it has finished

Restore Test

1. Browser to a sample directory

2. Restore to the original location

3. Wait until the restore has been completed successfully

By default, BackupPC will try to perform a full backup every 7 days, and an incremental backup daily.

To learn more about the advanced settings, please visit the wiki and documentation.

Howto: Anonymous FTP with Upload Permission Only

2010-03-21T23:25:00.001+08:00

Introduction

Have you ever has a situation that someone wants to share some photos/videos/files with you, but too big to fit into a single email? Forget about those paid/free 3rd party solution provider. Why not setting up an anonymous FTP account in your own box? Downloading a 1GB file will only take you less than 2 minutes, rather than half an hour (or even more) from the Internet. Obviously, for security concern, we have to restrict this anonymous access to have permission of uploading and listing files only. You surely do not want those files accessible to all Internet users, do you?

Installation

In this tutorial, we are using the very popular vsftpd on a Debian machine. Simply install it from the repository with the usual way.

apt-get install vsftpd

Stop the service before everything is ready

/etc/init.d/vsftpd stop

Configuration

/etc/vsftpd.conf

modify/append following lines

# anonymous users can create directories and upload files
anonymous_enable=YES
write_enable=YES
anon_upload_enable=YES
# anonymous users cannot download their own files
anon_umask=007
anon_world_readable_only=YES

Following section is optional

# local user can login and access his home directory only
local_enable=YES
local_umask=022
chroot_local_user=YES
#allow power user (me) to access everywhere
chroot_list_enable=YES
chroot_list_file=/etc/vsftpfd.chroot_list

filesystem

By default on a Debian system, the anonymous user uses the home diretory and privileges of the "ftp" user for its root directory. What about making it inside my home directory, so that I can access those uploaded files from the FTP and Samba easily?

create an upload-only directory

mkdir /srv/ftp/upload_files_here

create another one in my home directory

mkdir /home/corvus/ftp

modify the ownership

chown corvus:corvus /home/corvus/ftp

toggle the SGID and all writable permission

chmod 2777 /home/corvus/ftp

drwxrwsr-x 2 corvus corvus 4096 2010-03-21 00:16 ftp

mount the directory within the anonymous FTP root

mount --bind /home/corvus/ftp /srv/ftp/upload_files_here

make the mount permanent in /etc/fstab

/home/corvus/ftp /srv/ftp/upload_files_here bind defaults,bind 0 0

Post-configuration test

Now we can start vsftpd

/etc/init.d/vsftpd

Upload a plain text file to the upload_files_here directory, and it appears on the Linux file system

ls -l /home/corvus/ftp
-rw-rw---- 1 ftp corvus 0 2010-03-21 22:40 TESTFILE.txt

Deleting/Download the file from the FTP client results and error 550 - Permission denied

Now login with Samba or FTP using a regular user account (ex: corvus), and we can overwrite/delete the file successfully.

Multiple strings with AND condition in findstr

2010-02-26T10:31:00.002+08:00

Assume we have a file (test.txt) containing following lines:

1 2 3 4 5
5 4 3 2 1
2 3 4 1 5
1 3 2 5 4

and we want to find the lines which contain 2,4 and 5 in order.

This command

findstr "2 4 5 test.txt

will return all 4 lines, because it searches for 2 or 4 or 5 from the file.

To specify the 'AND condition' for multiple strings, i.e. 2 and 4 and 5, we can use this command

findstr "2.*4.*5" test.txt

and it will show line 1 and 3.

The syntax "stringA.*stringB.*stringC" works even when there is no space (or with multiple spaces) between each string.

Quick howto: SSH using key pair

2010-02-19T16:04:00.004+08:00

Generate the keys

Launch PuTTY Key Generator

Accept the default and click generate

Move the mouse randomly

Modify the comment without a passphrase

Save the private key to a very safe location

Copy the public key content {for later use}

Authorize the key to specific user

SSH (using PuTTY) into the remote xNIX machine

Paste the content into ~/.ssh/authorized_keys in one single line

lazy but unsafe method: echo {right click} >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys

Login with PuTTY

Launch PuTTY again, and specify the key to be used

Fill in auto-login username

Save the settings and try to connect

Login with Plink (PuTTY Link)

plink hostname -l username -batch -i path-to-the-private-key script-to-be-executed

Troubleshoot

sshd[4239]: Authentication refused: bad ownership or modes for directory /home/user

Make sure only user has write access to the directory
chmod go-w /home/user

Get the Best Sound Quality in Windows for Free

2010-02-10T23:20:00.004+08:00

Introduction

Normally, the best way to improve sound quality on a computer is to invest in the hardware. Getting a good sound card, DAC, Amplifier, Speakers, etc. can be quite challenging to most people. This tutorial is explaining with step-by-step procedures how you can achieve the optimum sound quality, *without* purchasing anything.

Infrastructure

The limit has been predetermined already, depends on what hardware you have got on hand. So find out every pieces of sound-related hardware in your home, and try to fit in the best scenario as shown:

Motherboard -- (PCI) -- Sound Card -- (coaxial/optical) -- DAC -- Amplifier -- Speakers

The key point is to try to put everything outside the computer case to reduce interference, especially the Digital to Analog Converter (DAC).

If you don't have so many components, try to use an integrated USB DAC instead:

Computer -- (USB) -- Integrated DAC + Amplifier -- Speakers

However, even if you are using a very simple configuration (like me), this tutorial will always be applicable.

Motherboard -- (optional Sound Card) -- Speakers

Software

The second major components in yield the best sound quality is the software used to play music. In this tutorial, I assume you are using Windows Vista or Windows 7. If you are using XP or any versions older, it is time to upgrade. Or if you are using non-Windows operating systems, you are lucky and you can skip all following sections.

To get a very good (if not the best) sound quality, give up on the Windows Media Player, RealPlayer or QuickTime Player. What you need is a professional player, which is totally dedicated to music playing. And my recommendation is foorbar2000.

After getting the latest version, simply follow on-screen instructions to get it installed.

Configuration

After completing the installation, do not start it now. But instead, visit the foobar2000 download site to get an official plugin - WASAPI output. Upon download completion, extract the file - foo_out_wasapi.dll - to the component directory (C:\Program Files\foobar2000\components).

Now you can start the main program and finish the Quick Appearance Setup wizard in any way you like.

Next, open the 'Preferences' and check that the WASAPI component has been loaded.

Add your music folder to the library.The reason why I exclude *.mp3 is that I always have the same set of *.wav/flac for computer playback. Details will be discussed in another tutorial about CD ripping.

Don't use the ReplayGain function. Those should be handled in the CD ripping process.

In the DSP Manager, enable Resampler (PPHS) and Advanced Limiter. In the Resampler settings, set the desired sampling rate. For my Creative Audigy 2, the best is 96kHz. Consult your sound card specification to find the maximum value.

Now select WASAPI output, and set the output data format. For my Audigy2, the best is 24-bit. Again, find out your value from the sound card specification.

Now sit back, and enjoy!

Elephant KE-002 Slim Keyboard

2010-02-08T23:41:00.003+08:00

I am not a big fan of luxurious keyboard, but I have to say that this one I have bought is really a very good one and worth the money (HKD98).

First of all, it is stylish. Only 21mm high, with matte finishing on the front side, and nicely polished back side looks absolutely beautiful.

The touch and feel of the 'island' keyboard pattern is great enough for most people, under most situations.

Bundled in the box is a good-looking cover. Even with it on top, one can still type very cleanly, both in terms of speed, and hygiene. (Do you know that on average there are 3295 germ/sq. inch on a regular keyboard!?)

Review: My second business notebook

2009-12-09T22:33:00.000+08:00

Description

Dell Inspiron 1440
Company notebook, replacing the Lenovo one

Hardware

CPU: Pentium Dual-core T4300 @ 2.10GHz
RAM: 4G
HDD: 250G
Dimension: 14.1" 1366x768

Software

Vista Basic SP2

Power consumption:
(on AC adapter with power saver profile)

OFF: 0W
BIOS: 38.59W
Idle: 27.24W
Idle (dimmest backlight): 22.80W
Full load: 43.13W

HDD Benchmark:
[WD2500BEVT]

Remark:
The lightweight battery surprisingly lasts longer than I think!

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 6@23-Oct)

2009-11-09T22:17:00.001+08:00

吃過藥後病情好轉很多了. 午飯和'同事'一起吃馳名的肉骨茶, 湯底認真出色. 回想起上一次吃已經是很多年前的事情了, 這次來馬來西亞勾起了不少回憶.

晚飯吃了馬來西亞另一特色食物 - '海南雞'. 雞肉略嫌老了一點, 但味道不錯. 最出色的反而是味飯, 濃濃的口感不是經常能遇見的.

如無意外, 這次的馬來西亞之行以此為終結, 明天吃過酒店的自助早餐就往機場回港了.

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 5@22-Oct)

2009-11-09T22:05:00.003+08:00

喉痛更嚴重了, 午飯'同事'們都十分遷就我, 一起到附近的本地餐館吃了個馬來西亞雲吞面, 想不到還蠻好吃的! 面條的質地和一般的不同, 少了份嚼勁但多了蛋的味道. 雲吞是傳統的大小, 但勝在份量夠多, 吃起來份外滿足.

可是工作不順利, 加上有點病倒的感覺, 晚上就豪吃了一頓(RM31.95). 到Manhattan Fish Market吃了個魚柳配炒飯, 另加一杯熱朱古力. 朱古力的口感相當濃及滑, 連平常不太喜歡朱古力的我也忍不住讚美. 魚柳配上可口的香草, 淡淡清香. 炒飯質素一般, 如果沒病的話可以試試傳統的Fish & Chips配搭, 效果更佳.

飯後到馬來西亞萬寧(Guardian)買了一排PanadolC, 希望明天有更好的狀態應付嚴峻的工作.

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 4@21-Oct)

2009-11-09T22:02:00.002+08:00

好像染上了輕微感冒. 午飯吃了個素食'辦'面(RM6.85), 味道真的很差.

有幸遇上友善好客的'同事', 放工後獲邀一起到Central Market (LRT:Pasar Seni; KTM:Kuala Lumpur)購買手信. 雖然地方不大, 但卻有不少特色玩意及地道小吃, 值得一逛. 順道嘆了一杯馬來西亞奶茶, 味道跟港式奶茶差不多, 只是較為甜了一點.

晚飯於Sweet Chat, 吃了一個甜品set(RM17.15), 味道一般但賣相不錯.

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 3@20-Oct)

2009-11-09T21:51:00.002+08:00

午飯於food junction吃了個本地炒飯, 味道略鹹, 質素一般但勝在便宜.

晚飯於Secret Recipe吃了一頓豐富的. Fruit Punch(RM8.05)喝得出是鮮榨的, (RM17.85)無骨雞脾中釀了惹味的雞肉片及芝士, 十分好吃.

回到酒店後, 偶然看見近處有人放了幾個低空的煙花, 結束了精彩的一天.

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 2@19-Oct)

2009-11-01T22:23:00.005+08:00

午餐吃了馳名的馬來西亞喇沙(RM11.40), 原來要加入蝦膏攪勻才算正宗. 但味道太酸太辣, 吃不慣.

晚飯於The Chicken Rice Shop(RM18.70)吃了一個套餐, 想不到有意外驚喜. 沙爹雞味道一流, 炒芽菜甜甜的, 味飯很有海南雞飯的感覺, 特飲有本地特色, 總括而言值得推介.

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 1@18-Oct)

2009-10-30T22:23:00.005+08:00

有幸乘坐國泰新型座椅的A330, 加上客機只有半滿, 十分舒適.

於機場(KLIA)乘的士往酒店, 終於有機會一嘗時速160km/h的快感!
[Tips: 於機場乘的士要買ticket, 較便宜的budget class位於exit A, 節儉者可以考慮乘機場巴士或KLIA ekspres到Sentral Station後轉車.]

自兩年半前一試難忘, 有機會到KLCC當然要仔細享受馳名的Rotiboy.

上次未能一登Petronas Twin Towers的skybridge, 當然要再來拜訪. 可惜所有ticket已經派完(15:30), 難免心中有憾, 唯有寄情於隨手的snapshot.

附加漠然(但好看)的神情來總結今天的心情.

Quick howto: from Yahoo Mail to Gmail

2009-10-12T21:43:00.001+08:00

[This method is much simpler, alternative to the old post using fetchyahoo+exim4]

Installation on the Debian box

Package to install

freepops
dialog{a}

Stop the freepops daemon

/etc/init.d/freepops stop

Update freepops plugin

freepops-updater-dialog

Modify /etc/freepops/config.lua

freepops.ACCEPTED_ADDRESSES = {
-- empty table means that there is no address that is accepted
-- without looking at the rejected list
Your Yahoo! Mail Address Here
-- "example@foo.xx" -- use this to allow this particular mail address
-- ".*@foo.xx" -- accept everythig at the foo.xx domain
}

Modify /etc/default/freepops to change the listening port (default 2000) to 2221 (or 1110) to match with Gmail options

#####################################
# configuration file for freepopsd.
#
# man freepopsd for more info.
DAEMON="/usr/bin/freepopsd"
DAEMON_OPTS=" -n -s nobody.nogroup -p 2221"
PIDFILE="/var/run/freepops.pid"
CHROOTED_DAEMON_OPTS=" -n -s nobody.nogroup -p 2221"

!!Debian Bug#440234
Fix: dpkg-reconfigure freepops

Start freepops daemon
/etc/init.d/freepops start

#Optional test:
If you now telnet to the freepops server to the correct port (ex: telnet hostname 2221), a warm welcome message will appear

+OK FreePOPs/0.2.9 pop3 server ready

quit

Configure Gmail

In Gmail settings page, add a POP3 email account

Input the correct information [include @yahoo for the username]

Check the history for possible errors

Tips: eTax with Windows 7 (RC)

2009-09-14T18:19:00.005+08:00

[edit: IE8 with Win7 is now fully supported]

When accessing the HKSAR government IRD eTax page with Windows 7 (RC) via IE8, an error will be shown while trying to login.

Error page stating that the Windows version is not supported

!!Warning!!
You have to fully understand and bear the risk, if the workaround below is going to be applied.

Provided all other prerequisites are fulfilled, there is a quick workaround for this problem. Simply copy the address (URL), and change the last part from failure.jsp to success.jsp and go.

Howto: Backup Server - rsync

2009-09-03T21:08:00.000+08:00

Introduction

Occasionally, client machines like notebook or desktop may need to be reinstalled from scratch. The recovery of OS and different kinds of application software is time-consuming, but usually risk-free. The most important and challenging task is to recover user data with the most up-to-date version. This is when the backup system comes in.

For a home-user environment, I have picked a simple tool - rsync. It has the following advantages:

provides fast incremental file transfer
easy to setup
open source under GPL

Alternative:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_backup_software

Implementation

Server (Linux)

rsync

If rsync is not installed already, use apt-get to grab it.

apt-get install rsync

Have a look at /etc/default/rsync and accept the default (do not start rsync in daemon mode)

ssh key pair

corvus@nas:~$ ssh-keygen
Generating public/private rsa key pair.
Enter file in which to save the key (/home/corvus/.ssh/id_rsa): /home/corvus/.ssh/deltacopy
Created directory '/home/corvus/.ssh'.
Enter passphrase (empty for no passphrase):
Enter same passphrase again:
Your identification has been saved in /home/corvus/.ssh/deltacopy.
Your public key has been saved in /home/corvus/.ssh/deltacopy.pub.
...

Warning:
Do not enter any passphrase while generating the key pair

Then append the public key to the file ~/.ssh/authorized_keys

corvus@nas:~$cat ~/.ssh/deltacopy.pub >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys

Client (Windows)

Download and install DeltaCopy from here. Then copy the private key (without .pub) generated earlier on the Linux server to the installation directory. (ex: C:\Program Files\Synametrics Technologies\DeltaCopy)

Warning:
Keep this private key very very securely.

If you have filenames with unicode character, download cygwin1.dll supporting UTF-8 and replace the old one in the installation directory with this.

Warning:
Make sure the dll version is the same. (ex: 1005.25.0.0)

Launch DeltaCopy Client and create a new profile

Note:
The Virtual Directory Name corresponds to the directory off of your home directory (. refers to the root of the user home directory)

Add some folders/files to be backed up

Right click the item, and modify the target path if necessary

Check the options, and input the parameters (-e "ssh -l yourLoginName -i deltacopy").
If the Linux ssh server is not listening to the default port (22), use -p switch to specify it.

Append some rsync parameters (refer to the manpage of rsync for explanation)

recommended:
--exclude='desktop.ini'
--exclude='Thumbs.db'
--exclude='.*'
--no-p
--chmod=Du=rwx,Dgo=rx,Fu=rw,Fgo=r

optional:
--exclude='My *'

Warning:
Be very careful when enabling option 'Remove deleted files from server'. It will delete all files on the target server that do not exist on the source computer

Click Display Run Command

Copy the rsync.exe command, and run it in a command prompt once to remember authenticity of the host

C:\Program Files\Synametrics Technologies\DeltaCopy>rsync.exe -v -rlt -z -u --delete ......
...
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)? yes
...

Optionally, click Run Now... to test it with the GUI interface

The process is shown on screen in real time

Note:
Don't worry if the unicode character is not displayed correctly in the log, but do check the result listing with SMB/FTP.

Finally, schedule the rsync (command) using the Windows Task Scheduler for regular backup/restore/synchronize. The initial backup/restore should be scheduled once during free time as this process is quite CPU & HDD intensive for large amount of data transfer.

Review: My business notebook

2009-09-01T21:37:00.000+08:00

Description:

Lenovo 3000 G410
Company notebook

Hardware:

CPU: Intel Celeron 540 @ 1.86GHz
RAM: 2G
HDD: 120G
Dimenion: 14.1" 1280x800 mirror-surface

Software:

Vista Basic SP1

Power consumption:
(on AC adapter with power saver profile)

OFF: 0W
BIOS: 36W
Idle: 32W
Idle (dimmest backlight): 27W
Full load: 45W

Conclusion:
It is my first time to use a Celeron computer, and surprisingly it outperforms my expectations! Vista runs smoothly (without Aero), documents open very fast, even with a giant software (I hate NAV) always in the task area.

There are some minor bugs though. For example, the hotkey for volume up/down will sometimes hang explorer.exe. Anyway, this is the economic model from Lenovo.

If you are looking for a desktop replacement for Internet browsing and general office use only, this can be the one to go.

[edit: 01/09/2009]
Performed some disk benchmark, with results as shown below:

HDD: WDC WD1200BEVS-22UST0

corvus.IT.portal

Update: rtorrent 0.8.7 with wtorrent

南生圍木橋 [Flickr]

Curious bird [Flickr]

(Untitled) [Flickr]

RamDisk on Windows Vista/7

Bee's nest [Flickr]

Butterfly [Flickr]

Performance Review: Hitachi 2.5" 320GB HDD

MS Outlook online/offline mailbox

Android: Changjie Input Method

Fine Tuning foobar2000 in Windows 7

Introduction

Software requirement

Analyze your sound card

foobar2000 configuration

Android: Scanner Barcode and QR code

Review: Motorola Milestone

Howto: Backup Server - BackupPC

Introduction

Installation of BackupPC

httpd Configuration

Configuring lighttpd for BackupPC web interface

Configuring lighttpd for user authentication

BackupPC Configuration

1. Populate the table with all client hosts to be backed up

Method 1: SMB

Method 2: rsync

First Full Backup

1. Start the full backup manually

Restore Test

More

Howto: Anonymous FTP with Upload Permission Only

Introduction

Installation

Configuration

/etc/vsftpd.conf

filesystem

Post-configuration test

Multiple strings with AND condition in findstr

Quick howto: SSH using key pair

Generate the keys

Authorize the key to specific user

Login with PuTTY

Login with Plink (PuTTY Link)

Troubleshoot

Get the Best Sound Quality in Windows for Free

Introduction

Infrastructure

Software

Configuration

Elephant KE-002 Slim Keyboard

Review: My second business notebook

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 6@23-Oct)

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 5@22-Oct)

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 4@21-Oct)

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 3@20-Oct)

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 2@19-Oct)

Business Trip to Kuala Lumpur (Day 1@18-Oct)

Quick howto: from Yahoo Mail to Gmail

Installation on the Debian box

Configure Gmail

Tips: eTax with Windows 7 (RC)

Howto: Backup Server - rsync

Introduction

Implementation

Server (Linux)

rsync

ssh key pair

Client (Windows)

Review: My business notebook