How to fix a Thinkpad X230 with a broken 180 GB SSD disk

17th July 2013

Today I switched to -my -new laptop. I've previously written about the problems I had with -my new Thinkpad X230, which was delivered with an -180 -GB Intel SSD disk with Lenovo firmware that did not handle -sustained writes. My hardware supplier have been very forthcoming in -trying to find a solution, and after first trying with another -identical 180 GB disks they decided to send me a 256 GB Samsung SSD -disk instead to fix it once and for all. The Samsung disk survived -the installation of Debian with encrypted disks (filling the disk with -random data during installation killed the first two), and I thus -decided to trust it with my data. I have installed it as a Debian Edu -Wheezy roaming workstation hooked up with my Debian Edu Squeeze main -server at home using Kerberos and LDAP, and will use it as my work -station from now on.

- -

As this is a solid state disk with no moving parts, I believe the -Debian Wheezy default installation need to be tuned a bit to increase -performance and increase life time of the disk. The Linux kernel and -user space applications do not yet adjust automatically to such -environment. To make it easier for my self, I created a draft Debian -package ssd-setup to handle this tuning. The -source -for the ssd-setup package is available from collab-maint, and it -is set up to adjust the setup of the machine by just installing the -package. If there is any non-SSD disk in the machine, the package -will refuse to install, as I did not try to write any logic to sort -file systems in SSD and non-SSD file systems.

- -

I consider the package a draft, as I am a bit unsure how to best -set up Debian Wheezy with an SSD. It is adjusted to my use case, -where I set up the machine with one large encrypted partition (in -addition to /boot), put LVM on top of this and set up partitions on -top of this again. See the README file in the package source for the -references I used to pick the settings. At the moment these -parameters are tuned:

- -

Set up cryptsetup to pass TRIM commands to the physical disk - (adding discard to /etc/crypttab)
Set up LVM to pass on TRIM commands to the underlying device (in - this case a cryptsetup partition) by changing issue_discards from - 0 to 1 in /etc/lvm/lvm.conf.
Set relatime as a file system option for ext3 and ext4 file - systems.
Tell swap to use TRIM commands by adding 'discard' to - /etc/fstab.
Change I/O scheduler from cfq to deadline using a udev rule.
Run fstrim on every ext3 and ext4 file system every night (from - cron.daily).
Adjust sysctl values vm.swappiness to 1 and vm.vfs_cache_pressure - to 50 to reduce the kernel eagerness to swap out processes.

- -

During installation, I cancelled the part where the installer fill -the disk with random data, as this would kill the SSD performance for -little gain. My goal with the encrypted file system is to ensure -those stealing my laptop end up with a brick and not a working -computer. I have no hope in keeping the really resourceful people -from getting the data on the disk (see -XKCD #538 for an explanation why). -Thus I concluded that adding the discard option to crypttab is the -right thing to do.

- -

I considered using the noop I/O scheduler, as several recommended -it for SSD, but others recommended deadline and a benchmark I found -indicated that deadline might be better for interactive use.

- -

I also considered using the 'discard' file system option for ext3 -and ext4, but read that it would give a performance hit ever time a -file is removed, and thought it best to that that slowdown once a day -instead of during my work.

- -

My package do not set up tmpfs on /var/run, /var/lock and /tmp, as -this is already done by Debian Edu.

- -

I have not yet started on the user space tuning. I expect -iceweasel need some tuning, and perhaps other applications too, but -have not yet had time to investigate those parts.

- -

The package should work on Ubuntu too, but I have not yet tested it -there.

- -

As for the answer to the question in the title of this blog post, -as far as I know, the only solution is to replace the disk. It might -be possible to flash it with Intel firmware instead of the Lenovo -firmware. But I have not tried and did not want to do so without -approval from Lenovo as I wanted to keep the warranty on the disk -until a solution was found and they wanted the broken disks back.

Good causes: Debian Outreach Program for Women, EFF documenting the spying and Open access in Norway

15th October 2013

The last few days I came across a few good causes that should get +wider attention. I recommend signing and donating to each one of +these. :)

+ +

Via Debian +Project News for 2013-10-14 I came across the Outreach Program for +Women program which is a Google Summer of Code like initiative to get +more women involved in free software. One debian sponsor has offered +to match any donation done to Debian +earmarked for this initiative. I donated a few minutes ago, and +hope you will to. :)

+ +

And the Electronic Frontier Foundation just announced plans to +create video +documentaries about the excessive spying on every Internet user that +take place these days, and their need to fund the work. I've already +donated. Are you next?

+ +

For my Norwegian audience, the organisation Studentenes og +Akademikernes Internasjonale Hjelpefond is collecting signatures for a +statement under the heading +Bloggers United for Open +Access for those of us asking for more focus on open access in the +Norwegian government. So far 499 signatures. I hope you will sign it +too.

- Tags: debian, english. + Tags: debian, english, opphavsrett, surveillance.

@@ -132,54 +59,142 @@ until a solution was found and they wanted the broken disks back.

Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB with Lenovo firmware still lock up from sustained writes

10th July 2013

A few days ago, I wrote about -the -problems I experienced with my new X230 and its SSD disk, which -was dying during installation because it is unable to cope with -sustained write. My supplier is in contact with -Lenovo, and they wanted to send a -replacement disk to try to fix the problem. They decided to send an -identical model, so my hopes for a permanent fix was slim.

- -

Anyway, today I got the replacement disk and tried to install -Debian Edu Wheezy with encrypted disk on it. The new disk have the -same firmware version as the original. This time my hope raised -slightly as the installation progressed, as the original disk used to -die after 4-7% of the disk was written to, while this time it kept -going past 10%, 20%, 40% and even past 50%. But around 60%, the disk -died again and I was back on square one. I still do not have a new -laptop with a disk I can trust. I can not live with a disk that might -lock up when I download a new -Debian Edu / Skolelinux ISO or -other large files. I look forward to hearing from my supplier with -the next proposal from Lenovo.

- -

The original disk is marked Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB, -11S0C38722Z1ZNME35X1TR, ISN: CVCV321407HB180EGN, SA: G57560302, FW: -LF1i, 29MAY2013, PBA: G39779-300, LBA 351,651,888, LI P/N: 0C38722, -Pb-free 2LI, LC P/N: 16-200366, WWN: 55CD2E40002756C4, Model: -SSDSC2BW180A3L 2.5" 6Gb/s SATA SSD 180G 5V 1A, ASM P/N 0C38732, FRU -P/N 45N8295, P0C38732.

- -

The replacement disk is marked Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB, -11S0C38722Z1ZNDE34N0L0, ISN: CVCV315306RK180EGN, SA: G57560-302, FW: -LF1i, 22APR2013, PBA: G39779-300, LBA 351,651,888, LI P/N: 0C38722, -Pb-free 2LI, LC P/N: 16-200366, WWN: 55CD2E40000AB69E, Model: -SSDSC2BW180A3L 2.5" 6Gb/s SATA SSD 180G 5V 1A, ASM P/N 0C38732, FRU -P/N 45N8295, P0C38732.

- -

The only difference is in the first number (serial number?), ISN, -SA, date and WNPP values. Mentioning all the details here in case -someone is able to use the information to find a way to identify the -failing disk among working ones (if any such working disk actually -exist).

Oslo community mesh network - with NUUG and Hackeriet at Hausmania

11th October 2013

Wireless mesh networks are self organising and self healing +networks that can be used to connect computers across small and large +areas, depending on the radio technology used. Normal wifi equipment +can be used to create home made radio networks, and there are several +successful examples like +Freifunk and +Athens Wireless Metropolitan Network +(see +wikipedia +for a large list) around the globe. To give you an idea how it +work, check out the nice overview of the Kiel Freifunk community which +can be seen from their +dynamically +updated node graph and map, where one can see how the mesh nodes +automatically handle routing and recover from nodes disappearing. +There is also a small community mesh network group in Oslo, Norway, +and that is the main topic of this blog post.

+ +

I've wanted to check out mesh networks for a while now, and hoped +to do it as part of my involvement with the NUUG member organisation community, and +my recent involvement in +the Freedombox project +finally lead me to give mesh networks some priority, as I suspect a +Freedombox should use mesh networks to connect neighbours and family +when possible, given that most communication between people are +between those nearby (as shown for example by research on Facebook +communication patterns). It also allow people to communicate without +any central hub to tap into for those that want to listen in on the +private communication of citizens, which have become more and more +important over the years.

+ +

So far I have only been able to find one group of people in Oslo +working on community mesh networks, over at the hack space +Hackeriet at Husmania. They seem to +have started with some Freifunk based effort using OLSR, called +the Oslo +Freifunk project, but that effort is now dead and the people +behind it have moved on to a batman-adv based system called +meshfx. Unfortunately the wiki +site for the Oslo Freifunk project is no longer possible to update to +reflect this fact, so the old project page can't be updated to point to +the new project. A while back, the people at Hackeriet invited people +from the Freifunk community to Oslo to talk about mesh networks. I +came across this video where Hans JÃ¸rgen Lysglimt interview the +speakers about this talk (from +youtube):

+ +

I mentioned OLSR and batman-adv, which are mesh routing protocols. +There are heaps of different protocols, and I am still struggling to +figure out which one would be "best" for some definitions of best, but +given that the community mesh group in Oslo is so small, I believe it +is best to hook up with the existing one instead of trying to create a +completely different setup, and thus I have decided to focus on +batman-adv for now. It sure help me to know that the very cool +Serval project in Australia +is using batman-adv as their meshing technology when it create a self +organizing and self healing telephony system for disaster areas and +less industrialized communities. Check out this cool video presenting +that project (from +youtube):

+ +

According to the wikipedia page on +Wireless +mesh network there are around 70 competing schemes for routing +packets across mesh networks, and OLSR, B.A.T.M.A.N. and +B.A.T.M.A.N. advanced are protocols used by several free software +based community mesh networks.

+ +

The batman-adv protocol is a bit special, as it provide layer 2 +(as in ethernet ) routing, allowing ipv4 and ipv6 to work on the same +network. One way to think about it is that it provide a mesh based +vlan you can bridge to or handle like any other vlan connected to your +computer. The required drivers are already in the Linux kernel at +least since Debian Wheezy, and it is fairly easy to set up. A +good +introduction is available from the Open Mesh project. These are +the key settings needed to join the Oslo meshfx network:

+ +

+ + + + + +
Setting Value
Protocol / kernel module batman-adv
ESSID meshfx@hackeriet
Channel / Frequency 11 / 2462
Cell ID 02:BA:00:00:00:01

Setting	Value
Protocol / kernel module	batman-adv
ESSID	meshfx@hackeriet
Channel / Frequency	11 / 2462
Cell ID	02:BA:00:00:00:01

+ +

The reason for setting ad-hoc wifi Cell ID is to work around bugs +in firmware used in wifi card and wifi drivers. (See a nice post from +VillageTelco about +"Information +about cell-id splitting, stuck beacons, and failed IBSS merges! +for details.) When these settings are activated and you have some +other mesh node nearby, your computer will be connected to the mesh +network and can communicate with any mesh node that is connected to +any of the nodes in your network of nodes. :)

+ +

My initial plan was to reuse my old Linksys WRT54GL as a mesh node, +but that seem to be very hard, as I have not been able to locate a +firmware supporting batman-adv. If anyone know how to use that old +wifi access point with batman-adv these days, please let me know.

+ +

If you find this project interesting and want to join, please join +us on IRC, either channel +#oslohackerspace +or #nuug on +irc.freenode.net.

+ +

While investigating mesh networks in Oslo, I came across an old +research paper from the university of Stavanger and Telenor Research +and Innovation called +The +reliability of wireless backhaul mesh networks and elsewhere +learned that Telenor have been experimenting with mesh networks at +GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka in Oslo. So mesh networks are also interesting for +commercial companies, even though Telenor discovered that it was hard +to figure out a good business plan for mesh networking and as far as I +know have closed down the experiment. Perhaps Telenor or others would +be interested in a cooperation?

+ +

Update 2013-10-12: I was just +told +by the Serval project developers that they no longer use +batman-adv (but are compatible with it), but their own crypto based +mesh system.

- Tags: debian, english. + Tags: english, freedombox, nuug.

@@ -187,26 +202,37 @@ exist).

July 13th: Debian/Ubuntu BSP and Skolelinux/Debian Edu developer gathering in Oslo

9th July 2013

The upcoming Saturday, 2013-07-13, we are organising a combined -Debian Edu developer gathering and Debian and Ubuntu bug squashing -party in Oslo. It is organised by the -member assosiation NUUG and -the Debian Edu / Skolelinux -project together with the hack space -Bitraf.

- -

It starts 10:00 and continue until late evening. Everyone is -welcome, and there is no fee to participate. There is on the other -hand limited space, and only room for 30 people. Please put your name -on the event -wiki page if you plan to join us.

Skolelinux / Debian Edu 7.1 install and overview video from Marcelo Salvador

8th October 2013

The other day I was pleased and surprised to discover that Marcelo +Salvador had published a +video on +Youtube showing how to install the standalone Debian Edu / +Skolelinux profile. This is the profile intended for use at home or +on laptops that should not be integrated into the provided network +services (no central home directory, no Kerberos / LDAP directory etc, +in other word a single user machine). The result is 11 minutes long, +and show some user applications (seem to be rather randomly picked). +Missed a few of my favorites like celestia, planets and chromium +showing the Zygote Body 3D model +of the human body, but I guess he did not know about those or find +other programs more interesting. :) And the video do not show the +advantages I believe is one of the most valuable featuers in Debian +Edu, its central school server making it possible to run hundreds of +computers without hard drives by installing one central +LTSP server.

+ +

Anyway, check out the video, embedded below and linked to above:

+ + + +

Are there other nice videos demonstrating Skolelinux? Please let +me know. :)

- Tags: debian, debian edu, english, nuug. + Tags: debian edu, english, video.

@@ -214,79 +240,23 @@ wiki page if you plan to join us.

The Thinkpad is dead, long live the Thinkpad X230?

5th July 2013

Half a year ago, I reported that I had to find a -replacement -for my trusty old Thinkpad X41. Unfortunately I did not have much -time to spend on it, and it took a while to find a model I believe -will do the job, but two days ago the replacement finally arrived. I -ended up picking a -Thinkpad X230 -with SSD disk (NZDAJMN). I first test installed Debian Edu Wheezy as -a roaming workstation, and it seemed to work flawlessly. But my -second installation with encrypted disk was not as successful. More -on that below.

- -

I had a hard time trying to track down a good laptop, as my most -important requirements (robust and with a good keyboard) are never -listed in the feature list. But I did get good help from the search -feature at Prisjakt, which -allowed me to limit the list of interesting laptops based on my other -requirements. A bit surprising that SSD disk are not disks according -to that search interface, so I had to drop specifying the number of -disks from my search parameters. I also asked around among friends to -get their impression on keyboards and robustness.

- -

So the new laptop arrived, and it is quite a lot wider than the -X41. I am not quite convinced about the keyboard, as it is -significantly wider than my old keyboard, and I have to stretch my -hand a lot more to reach the edges. But the key response is fairly -good and the individual key shape is fairly easy to handle, so I hope -I will get used to it. My old X40 was starting to fail, and I really -needed a new laptop now. :)

- -

Turning off the touch pad was simple. All it took was a quick -visit to the BIOS during boot it disable it.

- -

But there is a fatal problem with the laptop. The 180 GB SSD disk -lock up during load. And this happen when installing Debian Wheezy -with encrypted disk, while the disk is being filled with random data. -I also tested to install Ubuntu Raring, and it happen there too if I -reenable the code to fill the disk with random data (it is disabled by -default in Ubuntu). And the bug with is already known. It was -reported to Debian as BTS -report #691427 2012-10-25 (journal commit I/O error on brand-new -Thinkpad T430s ext4 on lvm on SSD). It is also reported to the Linux -kernel developers as -Kernel bugzilla -report #51861 2012-12-20 (Intel SSD 520 stops working under load -(SSDSC2BW180A3L in Lenovo ThinkPad T430s)). It is also reported on the -Lenovo forums, both for -T430 -2012-11-10 and for -X230 -03-20-2013. The problem do not only affect installation. The -reports state that the disk lock up during use if many writes are done -on the disk, so it is much no use to work around the installation -problem and end up with a computer that can lock up at any moment. -There is even a -small C program -available that will lock up the hard drive after running a few -minutes by writing to a file.

- -

I've contacted my supplier and asked how to handle this, and after -contacting PCHELP Norway (request 01D1FDP) which handle support -requests for Lenovo, his first suggestion was to upgrade the disk -firmware. Unfortunately there is no newer firmware available from -Lenovo, as my disk already have the most recent one (version LF1i). I -hope to hear more from him today and hope the problem can be -fixed. :)

Finally, Debian Edu Wheezy is released today!

29th September 2013

A few hours ago, the announcement for the first stable release of +Debian Edu Wheezy went out from the Debian publicity team. The +complete announcement text can be found at +the Debian News +section, translated to several languages. Please check it out.

+ +

There is one minor known problem that we will fix very soon. One +can not install a amd64 Thin Client Server using PXE, as the /var/ +partition is too small. A workaround is to extend the partition (use +lvresize + resize2fs in tty 2 while installing).

- Tags: debian, english. + Tags: debian edu, english.

@@ -294,39 +264,72 @@ fixed. :)

The Thinkpad is dead, long live the Thinkpad X230

4th July 2013

Half a year ago, I reported that I had to find a replacement for my -trusty old Thinkpad X41. Unfortunately I did not have much time to -spend on it, but today the replacement finally arrived. I ended up -picking a Thinkpad -X230 with SSD disk (NZDAJMN). I first test installed Debian Edu -Wheezy as a roaming workstation, and it worked flawlessly. As I write -this, it is installing what I hope will be a more final installation, -with a encrypted hard drive to ensure any dope head stealing it end up -with an expencive door stop.

- -

I had a hard time trying to track down a good laptop, as my most -important requirements (robust and with a good keyboard) are never -listed in the feature list. But I did get good help from the search -feature at Prisjakt, which -allowed me to limit the list of interesting laptops based on my other -requirements. A bit surprising that SSD disk are not disks, so I had -to drop number of disks from my search parameters.

- -

I am not quite convinced about the keyboard, as it is significantly -wider than my old keyboard, and I have to stretch my hand a lot more -to reach the edges. But the key response is fairly good and the -individual key shape is fairly easy to handle, so I hope I will get -used to it. My old X40 was starting to fail, and I really needed a -new laptop now. :)

- -

I look forward to figuring out how to turn off the touch pad.

Videos about the Freedombox project - for inspiration and learning

27th September 2013

The Freedombox +project have been going on for a while, and have presented the +vision, ideas and solution several places. Here is a little +collection of videos of talks and presentation of the project.

+ +

FreedomBox - +2,5 minute marketing film (Youtube)
Eben Moglen +discusses the Freedombox on CBS news 2011 (Youtube)
Eben Moglen - +Freedom in the Cloud - Software Freedom, Privacy and and Security for +Web 2.0 and Cloud computing at ISOC-NY Public Meeting 2010 +(Youtube)
Fosdem 2011 +Keynote by Eben Moglen presenting the Freedombox (Youtube)
Presentation of +the Freedombox by James Vasile at Elevate in Gratz 2011 (Youtube)
Freedombox - +Discovery, Identity, and Trust by Nick Daly at Freedombox Hackfest New +York City in 2012 (Youtube)
Introduction +to the Freedombox at Freedombox Hackfest New York City in 2012 +(Youtube)
Freedom, Out +of the Box! by Bdale Garbee at linux.conf.au Ballarat, 2012 (Youtube)
Freedombox +1.0 by Eben Moglen and Bdale Garbee at Fosdem 2013 (FOSDEM)
What is the +FreedomBox today by Bdale Garbee at Debconf13 in Vaumarcus +2013 (Youtube)

+ +

A larger list is available from +the +Freedombox Wiki.

+ +

On other news, I am happy to report that Freedombox based on Debian +Jessie is coming along quite well, and soon both Owncloud and using +Tor should be available for testers of the Freedombox solution. :) In +a few weeks I hope everything needed to test it is included in Debian. +The withsqlite package is already in Debian, and the plinth package is +pending in NEW. The third and vital part of that puzzle is the +metapackage/setup framework, which is still pending an upload. Join +us on IRC +(#freedombox on irc.debian.org) and +the +mailing list if you want to help make this vision come true.

- Tags: debian, english. + Tags: debian, english, freedombox, sikkerhet, surveillance, web.

@@ -334,110 +337,114 @@ new laptop now. :)

Fourth alpha release of Debian Edu/Skolelinux based on Debian Wheezy

3rd July 2013

The fourth wheezy based alpha release of Debian Edu was wrapped up -today. This is the release announcement:

Third and probably last beta release of Debian Edu Wheezy

16th September 2013

The third wheezy based beta release of Debian Edu was wrapped up +today. This is the release announcement from Holger Levsen:

New features for Debian Edu 7.1+edu0~alpha3 released -2013-07-03

+
Hi,
-
These are the release notes for for Debian Edu / Skolelinux -7.1+edu0~alpha3, based on Debian with codename "Wheezy".
+
it is my pleasure to announce the third beta release (beta 2 for +short) of Debian Edu / +Skolelinux based on Debian Wheezy!
-
About Debian Edu and Skolelinux
+
Please test these images extensivly, if no new problems are found +we plan to do this final Debian Edu Wheezy release this coming +weekend. We are not aware of any major problems or blockers in beta2, +if you find something, please notify us immediately!
-
Debian Edu, also known as -Skolelinux, is a Linux distribution based on Debian providing an -out-of-the box environment of a completely configured school -network. Immediately after installation a school server running all -services needed for a school network is set up just waiting for users -and machines being added via GOsaÂ², a comfortable Web-UI. A netbooting -environment is prepared using PXE, so after initial installation of -the main server from CD, DVD or USB stick all other machines can be -installed via the network. The provided school server provides LDAP -database and Kerberos authentication service, centralized home -directories, DHCP server, web proxy and many other services. The -desktop contains -more -than 60 educational software packages and more are available from -the Debian archive, and schools can choose between KDE, Gnome, LXDE -and Xfce desktop environment.
+
(More about the remaining steps for the Edu Wheezy release in +another mail to the edu list tonight or tomorrow...)
-
This is the fourth test release based on Debian Wheezy. Basically -this is an updated and slightly improved version compared to the -Squeeze release.
+
Noteworthy changes and software updates for Debian Edu 7.1+edu0~b2 +compared to beta1:
-
Software updates
-
-
Dropped ispell dictionaries from our default installation.
-
Dropped menu-xdg from the KDE desktop option, to drop the Debian - submenu. It was not included with Gnome, LXDE or Xfce, so this - brings KDE in line with the others.
-
Dropped xdrawchem, xjig and xsok from our default installation as - they don't have a desktop menu entry and thus won't show up in the - menu now that menu-xdg was removed.
-
Removed the killer system to kill left behind processes on - multi-user machines, as it was no longer able to understand when a - X display was in use and killed the processes of the active users - too.
-
Dropped the golearn (from goplay) package as the debtags in wheezy - are too few to make the package useful.
-
-
Other changes
-
-
Updated artwork matching http://wiki.debian.org/DebianArt/Themes/Joy -
Multi-arch i386/amd64 USB stick ISO available.
-
Got rid of ispell/wordlist related debconf questions that showed - up for some language options.
-
Switched to using http.debian.net as APT source by default.
-
Fixed proxy configuration on Main Server installations.
-
Changed LTSP setup to ask dpkg to use force-unsafe-io the same way - d-i is doing it.
-
Made sure root and user passwords were not left behind in the - debconf database after installation on Main Server installations.
-
Made Roaming Workstation dynamic setup more robust and added draft - script setup-ad-client to hook a Roaming Workstation up to a - Active Directory server instead of a Debian Edu Main Server.
-
Update system to install needed firmware packages during - installation, to work properly in Wheezy.
-
Update system to handle hardware quirks (debian-edu-hwsetup).
-
Corrected PXE installation setup to properly pass selected desktop - and keymap settings to PXE installation clients.
-
LTSP diskless workstations use sshfs by default, allowing them to - work without adding them to DNS and NIS netgroups for NFS access.
-
-
Known issues

-
No mass import of user account data in GOsa (ldif or csv) - available yet (698840).
-
Artwork not enabled for all desktops.
+ +
The KDE proxy setup has been adjusted to use the provided wpad.dat. This +also gets Chromium to use this proxy.
+
Install kdepim-groupware with KDE desktops to make sure korganizer +understand ical/dav sources.
+
Increased default maximum size of /var/spool/squid and /skole/backup on the +main server.
+
A source DVD image containing all source packages is now available as well.
+
Updates for chromium (29.0.1547.57-1~deb7u1), imagemagick +(6.7.7.10-5+deb7u2), php5 (5.4.4-14+deb7u4), libmodplug +(0.8.8.4-3+deb7u1+git20130828), tiff (4.0.2-6+deb7u2), linux-image +(3.2.0-4-486_3.2.46-1+deb7u1).
+
-
Where to get it
+ +
Where to get it:

To download the multiarch netinstall CD release you can use
+
-
ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-CD.iso
-
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-CD.iso
-
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-CD.iso .
+
ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-CD.iso
+
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-CD.iso
+
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-CD.iso .

-
The MD5SUM of this image is: 2b161a99d2a848c376d8d04e3854e30c -
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 498922e9c508c0a7ee9dbe1dfe5bf830d779c3c8
+
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 3a1c89f4666df80eebcd46c5bf5fedb866f9472f
-
To download the multiarch USB stick ISO release you can use
+
To download the multiarch USB stick ISO release you can use
-
ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-USB.iso
-
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-USB.iso
-
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~a3-USB.iso .
+
ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-USB.iso
+
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-USB.iso
+
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-USB.iso .

-
The MD5SUM of this image is: 25e808e403a4c15dbef1d13c37d572ac -
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 15ecfc93eb6b4f453b7eb0bc04b6a279262d9721
+
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 702d1718548f401c74bfa6df9f032cc3ee16597e
+ +
The Source DVD image has the filename +debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b2-source-DVD.iso and the SHA1SUM +089eed8b3f962db47aae1f6a9685e9bb2fa30ca5 and is available the same way +as the other isos.
+ +
How to report bugs
+ +
For information how to report bugs please see +
http://wiki.debian.org/DebianEdu/HowTo/ReportBugs
-
How to report bugs
-
http://wiki.debian.org/DebianEdu/HowTo/ReportBugs
+
About Debian Edu and Skolelinux
+ +
Debian Edu, also known as Skolelinux, is a Linux distribution based +on Debian providing an out-of-the box environment of a completely +configured school network. Immediately after installation a school +server running all services needed for a school network is set up just +waiting for users and machines being added via GOsaÂ², a comfortable +Web-UI. A netbooting environment is prepared using PXE, so after +initial installation of the main server from CD or USB stick all other +machines can be installed via the network. The provided school server +provides LDAP database and Kerberos authentication service, +centralized home directories, DHCP server, web proxy and many other +services. The desktop contains more than 60 educational software +packages and more are available from the Debian archive, and schools +can choose between KDE, Gnome, LXDE and Xfce desktop environment.
+ +
This is the seventh test release based on Debian Wheezy. Basically +this is an updated and slightly improved version compared to the +Squeeze release.
+ +
Notes for upgrades from Alpha Prereleases
+ +
Alpha based installations should reinstall or downgrade the +versions of gosa and libpam-mklocaluser to the ones used in this beta +release. Both alpha and beta0 based installations should reinstall or +deal with gosa.conf manually; there are two options: (1) Keep +gosa.conf and edit this file as outlined on the mailing list. (2) +Accept the new version of gosa.conf and replace both contained admin +password placeholders with the password hashes found in the old one +(backup copy!). In both cases all users need to change their password +to make sure a password is set for CIFS access to their home +directory.
+ + +
cheers, +
Holger
+

@@ -450,70 +457,135 @@ Squeeze release.

Automatically locate and install required firmware packages on Debian (Isenkram 0.4)

25th June 2013

It annoys me when the computer fail to do automatically what it is -perfectly capable of, and I have to do it manually to get things -working. One such task is to find out what firmware packages are -needed to get the hardware on my computer working. Most often this -affect the wifi card, but some times it even affect the RAID -controller or the ethernet card. Today I pushed version 0.4 of the -Isenkram package -including a new script isenkram-autoinstall-firmware handling the -process of asking all the loaded kernel modules what firmware files -they want, find debian packages providing these files and install the -debian packages. Here is a test run on my laptop:

- -

-# isenkram-autoinstall-firmware 
-info: kernel drivers requested extra firmware: ipw2200-bss.fw ipw2200-ibss.fw ipw2200-sniffer.fw
-info: fetching http://http.debian.net/debian/dists/squeeze/Contents-i386.gz
-info: locating packages with the requested firmware files
-info: Updating APT sources after adding non-free APT source
-info: trying to install firmware-ipw2x00
-firmware-ipw2x00
-firmware-ipw2x00
-Preconfiguring packages ...
-Selecting previously deselected package firmware-ipw2x00.
-(Reading database ... 259727 files and directories currently installed.)
-Unpacking firmware-ipw2x00 (from .../firmware-ipw2x00_0.28+squeeze1_all.deb) ...
-Setting up firmware-ipw2x00 (0.28+squeeze1) ...
-# 
-

- -

When all the requested firmware is present, a simple message is -printed instead:

- -

-# isenkram-autoinstall-firmware 
-info: did not find any firmware files requested by loaded kernel modules.  exiting
-# 
-

- -

It could use some polish, but it is already working well and saving -me some time when setting up new machines. :)

- -

So, how does it work? It look at the set of currently loaded -kernel modules, and look up each one of them using modinfo, to find -the firmware files listed in the module meta-information. Next, it -download the Contents file from a nearby APT mirror, and search for -the firmware files in this file to locate the package with the -requested firmware file. If the package is in the non-free section, a -non-free APT source is added and the package is installed using -apt-get install. The end result is a slightly better working -machine.

- -

I hope someone find time to implement a more polished version of -this script as part of the hw-detect debian-installer module, to -finally fix BTS report -#655507. There really is no need to insert USB sticks with -firmware during a PXE install when the packages already are available -from the nearby Debian mirror.

Recipe to test the Freedombox project on amd64 or Raspberry Pi

10th September 2013

I was introduced to the +Freedombox project +in 2010, when Eben Moglen presented his vision about serving the need +of non-technical people to keep their personal information private and +within the legal protection of their own homes. The idea is to give +people back the power over their network and machines, and return +Internet back to its intended peer-to-peer architecture. Instead of +depending on a central service, the Freedombox will give everyone +control over their own basic infrastructure.

+ +

I've intended to join the effort since then, but other tasks have +taken priority. But this summers nasty news about the misuse of trust +and privilege exercised by the "western" intelligence gathering +communities increased my eagerness to contribute to a point where I +actually started working on the project a while back.

+ +

The initial +Debian initiative based on the vision from Eben Moglen, is to +create a simple and cheap Debian based appliance that anyone can hook +up in their home and get access to secure and private services and +communication. The initial deployment platform have been the +Dreamplug, +which is a piece of hardware I do not own. So to be able to test what +the current Freedombox setup look like, I had to come up with a way to install +it on some hardware I do have access to. I have rewritten the +freedom-maker +image build framework to use .deb packages instead of only copying +setup into the boot images, and thanks to this rewrite I am able to +set up any machine supported by Debian Wheezy as a Freedombox, using +the previously mentioned deb (and a few support debs for packages +missing in Debian).

+ +

The current Freedombox setup consist of a set of bootstrapping +scripts +(freedombox-setup), +and a administrative web interface +(plinth + exmachina + +withsqlite), as well as a privacy enhancing proxy based on +privoxy +(freedombox-privoxy). There is also a web/javascript based XMPP +client (jwchat) +trying (unsuccessfully so far) to talk to the XMPP server +(ejabberd). The +web interface is pluggable, and the goal is to use it to enable OpenID +services, mesh network connectivity, use of TOR, etc, etc. Not much of +this is really working yet, see +the +project TODO for links to GIT repositories. Most of the code is +on github at the moment. The HTTP proxy is operational out of the +box, and the admin web interface can be used to add/remove plinth +users. I've not been able to do anything else with it so far, but +know there are several branches spread around github and other places +with lots of half baked features.

+ +

Anyway, if you want to have a look at the current state, the +following recipes should work to give you a test machine to poke +at.

+ +

Debian Wheezy amd64

+ +

Fetch normal Debian Wheezy installation ISO.
Boot from it, either as CD or USB stick.
Press [tab] on the boot prompt and add this as a boot argument +to the Debian installer:
+
```
url=http://www.reinholdtsen.name/freedombox/preseed-wheezy.dat
```
Answer the few language/region/password questions and pick disk to +install on.
When the installation is finished and the machine have rebooted a +few times, your Freedombox is ready for testing.

+ +

Raspberry Pi Raspbian

+ +

Fetch a Raspbian SD card image, create SD card.
Boot from SD card, extend file system to fill the card completely.

+deb http://www.reinholdtsen.name/freedombox wheezy main
+

Run this as root:

+wget -O - http://www.reinholdtsen.name/freedombox/BE1A583D.asc | \
+   apt-key add -
+apt-get update
+apt-get install freedombox-setup
+/usr/lib/freedombox/setup
+

Reboot into your freshly created Freedombox.

+ +

You can test it on other architectures too, but because the +freedombox-privoxy package is binary, it will only work as intended on +the architectures where I have had time to build the binary and put it +in my APT repository. But do not let this stop you. It is only a +short "apt-get source -b freedombox-privoxy" away. :)

+ +

Note that by default Freedombox is a DHCP server on the +192.168.1.0/24 subnet, so if this is your subnet be careful and turn +off the DHCP server by running "update-rc.d isc-dhcp-server +disable" as root.

+ +

Please let me know if this works for you, or if you have any +problems. We gather on the IRC channel +#freedombox on +irc.debian.org and the +project +mailing list.

+ +

Once you get your freedombox operational, you can visit +http://your-host-name:8001/ to see the state of the plint +welcome screen (dead end - do not be surprised if you are unable to +get past it), and next visit http://your-host-name:8001/help/ +to look at the rest of plinth. The default user is 'admin' and the +default password is 'secret'.

- Tags: debian, english, isenkram. + Tags: debian, english, freedombox, sikkerhet, surveillance, web.

@@ -521,50 +593,283 @@ from the nearby Debian mirror.

The value of a good distro wide test suite...

22nd June 2013

In the Debian Edu / -Skolelinux project, we include a post-installation test suite, -which check that services are running, working, and return the -expected results. It runs automatically just after the first boot on -test installations (using test ISOs), but not on production -installations (using non-test ISOs). It test that the LDAP service is -operating, Kerberos is responding, DNS is replying, file systems are -online resizable, etc, etc. And it check that the PXE service is -configured, which is the topic of this post.

- -

The last week I've fixed the DVD and USB stick ISOs for our Debian -Edu Wheezy release. These ISOs are supposed to be able to install a -complete system without any Internet connection, but for that to -happen all the needed packages need to be on them. Thanks to our test -suite, I discovered that we had forgotten to adjust our PXE setup to -cope with the new names and paths used by the netboot d-i packages. -When Internet connectivity was available, the installer fall back to -using wget to fetch d-i boot images, but when offline it require -working packages to get it working. And ad the packages changed name -from debian-installer-6.0-netboot-$arch to -debian-installer-7.0-netboot-$arch, we no longer pulled in the -packages during installation. Without our test suite, I suspect we -would never have discovered this before release. Now it is fixed -right after we got the ISOs operational.

- -

Another by-product of the test suite is that we can ask system -administrators with problems getting Debian Edu to work, to run the -test suite using /usr/sbin/debian-edu-test-install and see if -any errors are detected. This usually pinpoint the subsystem causing -the problem.

- -

If you want to help us help kids learn how to share and create, -please join us on -#debian-edu on -irc.debian.org and the -debian-edu@ mailing -list.

Datalagringsdirektivet gjÃ¸r at Oslo HÃ¸yre og Arbeiderparti ikke fÃ¥r min stemme i Ã¥r

8th September 2013

I 2011 raderte et stortingsflertall bestÃ¥ende av HÃ¸yre og +Arbeiderpartiet vekk en betydelig del av privatsfÃ¦ren til det norske +folk. Det ble vedtatt at det skulle registreres og lagres i et halvt +Ã¥r hvor alle som bÃ¦rer pÃ¥ en mobiltelefon befinner seg, hvem de +snakker med og hvor lenge de snakket sammen. Det skal ogsÃ¥ +registreres hvem de sendte SMS-meldinger til, hvem en har sendt epost +til, og hvilke nett-tjenere en besÃ¸kte. Saken er kjent som +Datalagringsdirektivet +(DLD), og innebÃ¦rer at alle innbyggerne og andre innenfor Norges +grenser overvÃ¥kes dÃ¸gnet rundt. Det ble i praksis innfÃ¸rt brev og +besÃ¸kskontroll av hele befolkningen. Rapporter fra de landene som +allerede har innfÃ¸rt slik total lagring av borgernes +kommunikasjonsmÃ¸nstre forteller at det ikke hjelper i +kriminalitetsbekjempelsen. Den norske prislappen blir mange hundre +millioner, uten at det ser ut til Ã¥ bidra positivt til politiets +arbeide. Jeg synes flere hundre millioner i stedet burde vÃ¦rt brukt +pÃ¥ noe som kan dokumenteres Ã¥ ha effekt i kriminalitetsbekjempelsen. +Se mer pÃ¥ +Wikipedia +og Jon Wessel-Aas.

+ +

Hva er problemet, tenkter du kanskje? Et Ã¥penbart problem er at +medienes kildevern i praksis blir radert ut. Den innsamlede +informasjonen gjÃ¸r det mulig Ã¥ finne ut hvem som har snakket med +journalister pÃ¥ telefon, SMS og epost, og hvem som har vÃ¦rt i nÃ¦rheten +av journalister sÃ¥ sant begge bar med seg en telefon. Et annet er at +advokatvernet blir sterkt redusert, der politiet kan finne ut hvem +som har snakket med en advokat nÃ¥r, eller vÃ¦rt i mÃ¸ter en med advokat. +Et tredje er at svÃ¦rt personlig informasjon kan avledes fra hvilke +nettsteder en har besÃ¸kt. Har en besÃ¸kt hivnorge.no, +swingersnorge.com eller andre sider som kan brukes til avlede +interesser som hÃ¸rer til privatsfÃ¦ren, vil denne informasjonen vÃ¦re +tilgjengelig takket vÃ¦re datalagringsdirektivet.

+ +

De fleste partiene var mot, kun to partier stemte for. HÃ¸yre og +Arbeiderpartiet. Og bÃ¥de HÃ¸yre og Arbeiderpartiet i Oslo har +DLD-forkjempere pÃ¥ toppen av sine lister (har ikke sjekket de andre +fylkene). Det er dermed helt uaktuelt for meg Ã¥ stemme pÃ¥ disse +partiene. Her er oversikten over partienes valglister i Oslo, med +informasjon om hvem som stemte hva i fÃ¸rste DLD-votering i Stortinget, +basert pÃ¥ informasjon fra mine venner i +Holder de +Ord samt data.stortinget.no. +FÃ¸rst ut er stortingslista fra HÃ¸yre for Oslo:

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

#	Navn, fÃ¸dselsÃ¥r og valgkrets	Stemme/kommentar
1.	Ine Marie Eriksen SÃ¸reide (1976), Gamle Oslo	Stemte for DLD
2.	Nikolai Astrup (1978), Frogner	Stemte mot DLD
3.	Michael Tetzschner (1954), Vestre Aker	Stemte mot DLD
4.	Kristin Vinje (1963), Nordre Aker	Ikke til stede
5.	Mudassar Hussain Kapur (1976), Nordstrand	Ikke til stede
6.	Stefan Magnus B. Heggelund (1984), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Ikke til stede
7.	Heidi Nordby Lunde (1973), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Ikke til stede
8.	Frode Helgerud (1950), Frogner	Ikke til stede
9.	Afshan Rafiq (1975), Stovner	Ikke til stede
10.	Astrid NÃ¸klebye Heiberg (1936), Frogner	Ikke til stede
11.	Camilla Strandskog (1984) St.Hanshaugen	Ikke til stede
12.	John Christian Elden (1967), Ullern	Ikke til stede
13.	Berit Solli (1972), Alna	Ikke til stede
14.	Ola Kvisgaard (1963), Frogner	Ikke til stede
15.	James Stove Lorentzen (1957), Vestre Aker	Ikke til stede
16.	GÃ¼lsÃ¼m Koc (1987), Stovner	Ikke til stede
17.	Jon Ole Whist (1976), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Ikke til stede
18.	Maren Eline Malthe-SÃ¸renssen (1971), Vestre Aker	Ikke til stede
19.	StÃ¥le Hagen (1968), SÃ¸ndre Nordstrand	Ikke til stede
20.	Kjell Omdal Erichsen (1978), Sagene	Ikke til stede
21.	Saida R. Begum (1987), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Ikke til stede
22.	Torkel Brekke (1970), Nordre Aker	Ikke til stede
23.	Sverre K. Seeberg (1950), Vestre Aker	Ikke til stede
24.	Julie Margrethe Brodtkorb (1974), Ullern	Ikke til stede
25.	Fabian Stang (1955), Frogner	Ikke til stede

+ +

Deretter har vi stortingslista fra Arbeiderpartiet for Oslo:

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

#	Navn, fÃ¸dselsÃ¥r og valgkrets	Stemme/kommentar
1.	Jens Stoltenberg (1959), Frogner	Ikke til stede i Stortinget, leder av regjeringen som fremmet forslaget
2.	Hadia Tajik (1983), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Stemte for DLD
3.	Jonas Gahr StÃ¸re (1960), Vestre Aker	Ikke til stede i Stortinget, medlem av regjeringen som fremmet forslaget
4.	Marianne Marthinsen (1980), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Stemte for DLD
5.	Jan BÃ¸hler (1952), Alna	Stemte for DLD
6.	Marit Nybakk (1947), Frogner	Stemte for DLD
7.	Truls Wickholm (1978), Sagene	Stemte for DLD
8.	Prableen Kaur (1993), Grorud	Ikke til stede
9.	Vegard GrÃ¸slie Wennesland (1983), St.Hanshaugen	Ikke til stede
10.	Inger Helene Vaaten (1975), Grorud	Ikke til stede
11.	Ivar Leveraas (1939), Alna	Ikke til stede
12.	Grete Haugdal (1971), Gamle Oslo	Ikke til stede
13.	Olav TÃ¸nsberg (1948), Alna	Ikke til stede
14.	Khamshajiny Gunaratnam (1988), Grorud	Ikke til stede
15.	Fredrik Mellem (1969), Sagene	Ikke til stede
16.	Brit Axelsen (1945), Stovner	Ikke til stede
17.	Dag Bayegan-Harlem (1977), Ullern	Ikke til stede
18.	Kristin Sandaker (1963), ÃsteinsjÃ¸	Ikke til stede
19.	Bashe Musse (1965), GrÃ¼nerlÃ¸kka	Ikke til stede
20.	Torunn Kanutte Husvik (1983), St. Hanshaugen	Ikke til stede
21.	Steinar Andersen (1947), Nordstrand	Ikke til stede
22.	Anne Cathrine Berger (1972), Sagene	Ikke til stede
23.	Khalid Mahmood (1959), ÃstensjÃ¸	Ikke til stede
24.	Munir Jaber (1990), Alna	Ikke til stede
25.	Libe Solberg Rieber-Mohn (1965), Frogner	Ikke til stede

+ +

Hvilket parti fÃ¥r sÃ¥ min stemme i Ã¥r. Jeg tror det blir +Piratpartiet. Hvis de kan bidra +til at det kommer noen inn pÃ¥ Stortinget med teknisk peiling, sÃ¥ fÃ¥r +kanskje ikke overvÃ¥kningsgalskapen like fritt spillerom som det har +hatt sÃ¥ langt.

- Tags: debian edu, english. + Tags: norsk, personvern, stortinget, surveillance, valg.

@@ -572,143 +877,138 @@ list.

Debian Edu interview: Victor NiÈu

17th June 2013

The Debian Edu and -Skolelinux distribution have users and contributors all around the -globe. And a while back, an enterprising young man showed up on -our IRC channel -#debian-edu and started asking questions about how Debian Edu -worked. We answered as good as we could, and even convinced him to -help us with translations. And today I managed to get an interview -with him, to learn more about him.

- -

Who are you, and how do you spend your days?

- -

I'm a 25 year old free software enthusiast, living in Romania, -which is also my country of origin. Back in 2009, at a New Year's Eve -party, I had a very nice ~~beer~~ discussion with a -friend, when we realized we have no organised Debian community in our -country. A few days later, we put together the infrastructure for such -community and even gathered a nice Debian-ish crowd. Since then, I -began my quest as a free software hacker and activist and I am -constantly trying to cover as much ground as possible on that -field.

- -

A few years ago I founded a small web development company, which -provided me the flexible schedule I needed so much for my -activities. For the last 13 months, I have been the Technical Director -of FundaÈia Ceata, which is a free -software activist organisation endorsed by the FSF and the FSFE, and -the only one we have in our country.

- -

How did you get in contact with the Skolelinux / Debian Edu -project?

- -

The idea of participating in the Debian Edu project was a surprise -even to me, since I never used it before I began getting involved in -it. This year I had a great opportunity to deliver a talk on -educational software, and I knew immediately where to look. It was a -love at first sight, since I was previously involved with some of the -technologies the project incorporates, and I rapidly found a lot of -ways to contribute.

- -

My first contributions consisted in translating the installer and -configuration dialogs, then I found some bugs to squash (I still -haven't fixed them yet though), and I even got my eyes on some other -areas where I can prove myself helpful. Since the appetite for free -software in my country is pretty low, I'll be happy to be the first -one around here advocating for the project's adoption in educational -environments, and maybe even get my hands dirty in creating a flavour -for our own needs. I am not used to make very advanced plannings, so -from now on, time will tell what I'll be doing next, but I think I -have a pretty consistent starting point.

- -

What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux/Debian -Edu?

- -

Not a long time ago, I was in the position of configuring and -maintaining a LDAP server on some Debian derivative, and I must say it -took me a while. A long time ago, I was maintaining a bigger -Samba-powered infrastructure, and I must say I spent quite a lot of -time on it. I have similar stories about many of the services included -with Skolelinux, and the main advantage I see about it is the -out-of-the box availability of them, making it quite competitive when -it comes to managing a school's network, for example.

- -

Of course, there is more to say about Skolelinux than the -availability of the software included, its flexibility in various -scenarios is something I can't wait to experiment "into the wild" (I -only played with virtual machines so far). And I am sure there is a -lot more I haven't discovered yet about it, being so new within the -project.

- -

What do you see as the disadvantages of Skolelinux / Debian -Edu?

- -

As usual, when it comes to Debian Blends, I see as the biggest -disadvantage the lack of a numerous team dedicated to the -project. Every day I see the same names in the changelogs, and I have -a constantly fear of the bus factor in this story. I'd like to see -Debian Edu advertised more as an entry point into the Debian -ecosystem, especially amongst newcomers and students. IMHO there are a -lot low-hanging fruits in terms of bug squashing, and enough -opportunities to get the feeling of the Debian Project's dynamics. Not -to mention it's a very fun blend to work on!

- -

Derived from the previous statement, is the delay in catching up -with the main Debian release and documentation. This is common though -to all blends and derivatives, but it's an issue we can all work -on.

- -

Which free software do you use daily?

- -

I can hardly imagine myself spending a day without Vim, since my -daily routine covers writing code and hacking configuration files. I -am a fan of the Awesome window manager (but I also like the -Enlightenment project a lot!), -Claws Mail due to its ease of -use and very configurable behaviour. Recently I fell in love with -Redshift, which helps me -get through the night without headaches. Of course, there is much more -stuff in this bag, but I'll need a blog on my own for doing this!

- -

Which strategy do you believe is the right one to use to -get schools to use free software?

- -

Well, on this field, I cannot do much more than experiment right -now. So, being far from having a recipe for success, I can only assume -that:

Second beta release (beta 1) of Debian Edu/Skolelinux based on Debian Wheezy

22nd August 2013

The second wheezy based beta release of Debian Edu was wrapped up +today, slightly delayed because of some bugs in the initial Windows +integration fixes . This is the release announcement:

+ +

New features for Debian Edu 7.1+edu0~b1 released 2013-08-22

+ +

These are the release notes for Debian Edu / Skolelinux +7.1+edu0~b1, based on Debian with codename "Wheezy".

+ +

About Debian Edu and Skolelinux

+ +

Debian Edu, also known as +Skolelinux, is a Linux distribution based on Debian providing an +out-of-the box environment of a completely configured school +network. Immediately after installation a school server running all +services needed for a school network is set up just waiting for users +and machines being added via GOsaÂ², a comfortable Web-UI. A netbooting +environment is prepared using PXE, so after initial installation of +the main server from CD or USB stick all other machines can be +installed via the network. The provided school server provides LDAP +database and Kerberos authentication service, centralized home +directories, DHCP server, web proxy and many other services. The +desktop contains +more +than 60 educational software packages and more are available from +the Debian archive, and schools can choose between KDE, Gnome, LXDE +and Xfce desktop environment.

+ +

This is the sixth test release based on Debian Wheezy. Basically this +is an updated and slightly improved version compared to the Squeeze +release.

+ +

ALERT: Alpha based installations should reinstall or downgrade the +versions of gosa and libpam-mklocaluser to the ones used in this beta +release. Both alpha and beta0 based installations should reinstall or +deal with gosa.conf manually; there are two options: (1) Keep +gosa.conf and edit this file as outlined +on +the mailing list. (2) Accept the new version of gosa.conf and +replace both contained admin password placeholders with the password +hashes found in the old one (backup copy!). In both cases every user +need to change their their password to make sure a password is set for +CIFS access to their home directory.

+ +

Software updates

+ +

Added ssh askpass packages to default installation, to ensure ssh + work also without a attached tty.
Add the command-not-found package to the default installation to + make it easier to figure out where to find missing command line + tools. Please note, that the command 'update-command-not-found' + has to be run as root to actually make it useful (internet access + required).

+ +

Other changes

+ +

Adjusted the USB stick ISO image build to include every tool +needed for desktop=xfce installations.
Adjust thin-client-server task to work when installing from USB +stick ISO image.
Made new grub artwork (changed png from indexed to RGB format).
Minor cleanup in the CUPS setup.
Make sure that bootstrapping of the Samba domain really happens + during installation of the main server and adjust SID handling to + cope with this.
Make Samba passwords changeable (again) via GOsaÂ².
Fix generation of LM and NT password hashes via GOsaÂ² to avoid + empty password hashes.
Adapted Samba machine domain joining to latest change in the + smbldap-tools Perl package, fixing bugs blocking Windows machines + from joining the Samba domain.

+ +

Known issues

+ +

KDE fails to understand the wpad.dat file provided, causing it to + not use the http proxy as it should.
Chromium also fails to use the proxy when using the KDE desktop + (using the KDE configuration).

+ +

Where to get it

+ +

To download the multiarch netinstall CD release you can use

schools would like to get rid of proprietary software
ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b1-CD.iso
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b1-CD.iso
students will love the openness of the system, and will want to - experiment with it - maybe we need to harvest the native curiosity - of teenagers more?
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b1-CD.iso .

+ +

The MD5SUM of this image is: 1e357f80b55e703523f2254adde6d78b +
The SHA1SUM of this image is: 7157f9be5fd27c7694d713c6ecfed61c3edda3b2

+ +

To download the multiarch USB stick ISO release you can use

there is no "right one" when it comes to strategies, but it would - be useful to have some success stories published somewhere, so - other can get some inspiration from them (I know I'd promote - them!)

more active promotion - talks, conferences, even small school - lectures can do magical things if they encounter at least one - person interested. Who knows who that person might be? ;-)
ftp://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b1-USB.iso
http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b1-USB.iso
rsync -avzP ftp.skolelinux.org::skolelinux-cd/wheezy/debian-edu-7.1+edu0~b1-USB.iso .

I also see some problems in getting Skolelinux into schools; for -example, in our country we have a great deal of corruption issues, so -it might be hard(er) to fight against proprietary solutions. Also, -people who relied on commercial software for all their lives, would be -very hard to convert against their will.

The MD5SUM of this image is: 7a8408ead59cf7e3cef25afb6e91590b +
The SHA1SUM of this image is: f1817c031f02790d5edb3bfa0dcf8451088ad119

+ + +

How to report bugs

+ +

http://wiki.debian.org/DebianEdu/HowTo/ReportBugs

- Tags: debian edu, english, intervju. + Tags: debian edu, english.

@@ -716,131 +1016,34 @@ very hard to convert against their will.

Debian Edu interview: Jonathan Carter

12th June 2013

There is a certain cross-over between the -Debian Edu / Skolelinux -project and the Edubuntu -project, and for example the LTSP packages in Debian are a joint -effort between the projects. One person with a foot in both camps is -Jonathan Carter, which I am now happy to present to you.

- -

Who are you, and how do you spend your days?

- -

I'm a South-African free software geek who lives in Cape Town. My -days vary quite a bit since I'm involved in too many things. As I'm -getting older I'm learning how to focus a bit more :)

- -

I'm also an Edubuntu contributor and I love when there are -opportunities for the Edubuntu and Debian Edu projects to benefit from -each other.

- -

How did you get in contact with the Skolelinux / Debian Edu -project?

- -

I've been somewhat familiar with the project before, but I think my -first direct exposure to the project was when I met Petter -[Reinholdtsen] and Knut [Yrvin] at the Edubuntu summit in 2005 in -London. They provided great feedback that helped the bootstrapping of -Edubuntu. Back then Edubuntu (and even Ubuntu) was still very new and -it was great getting input from people who have been around longer. I -was also still very excitable and said yes to everything and to this -day I have a big todo list backlog that I'm catching up with. I think -over the years the relationship between Edubuntu and Debian-Edu has -been gradually improving, although I think there's a lot that we could -still improve on in terms of working together on packages. I'm sure -we'll get there one day.

- -

What do you see as the advantages of Skolelinux / Debian -Edu?

- -

Debian itself already has so many advantages. I could go on about -it for pages, but in essence I love that it's a very honest project -that puts its users first with no hidden agendas and also produces -very high quality work.

- -

I think the advantage of Debian Edu is that it makes many common -set-up tasks simpler so that administrators can get up and running -with a lot less effort and frustration. At the same time I think it -helps to standardise installations in schools so that it's easier for -community members and commercial suppliers to support.

- -

What do you see as the disadvantages of Skolelinux / Debian -Edu?

- -

I had to re-type this one a few times because I'm trying to -separate "disadvantages" from "areas that need improvement" (which is -what I originally rambled on about)

- -

The biggest disadvantage I can think of is lack of manpower. The -project could do so much more if there were more good contributors. I -think some of the problems are external too. Free software and free -content in education is a no-brainer but it takes some time to catch -on. When you've been working with the same proprietary eco-system for -years and have gotten used to it, it can be hard to adjust to some -concepts in the free software world. It would be nice if there were -more Debian Edu consultants across the world. I'd love to be one -myself but I'm already so over-committed that it's just not possible -currently.

- -

I think the best short-term solution to that large-scale problem is -for schools to be pro-active and share their experiences and grow -their skills in-house. I'm often saddened to see how much money -educational institutions spend on 3rd party solutions that they don't -have access to after the service has ended and they could've gotten so -much more value otherwise by being more self-sustainable and -autonomous.

- -

Which free software do you use daily?

- -

My main laptop dual-boots between Debian and Windows 7. I was -Windows free for years but started dual-booting again last year for -some games which help me focus and relax (Starcraft II in -particular). Gaming support on Linux is improving in leaps and bounds -so I suppose I'll soon be able to regain that disk space :)

- -

Besides that I rely on Icedove, Chromium, Terminator, Byobu, irssi, -git, Tomboy, KVM, VLC and LibreOffice. Recently I've been torn on -which desktop environment I like and I'm taking some refuge in Xfce -while I figure that out. I like tools that keep things simple. I enjoy -Python and shell scripting. I went to an Arduino workshop recently and -it was awesome seeing how easy and simple the IDE software was to get -up and running in Debian compared to the users running Windows and OS -X.

- -

I also use mc which some people frown upon slightly. I got used to -using Norton Commander in the early 90's and it stuck (I think the -people who sneer at it is just jealous that they don't know how to use -it :p) - -

Which strategy do you believe is the right one to use to -get schools to use free software?

- -

I think trying to force it is unproductive. I also think that in -many cases it's appropriate for schools to use non-free systems and I -don't think that there's any particular moral or ethical problem with -that.

- -

I do think though that free software can already solve so so many -problems in educational institutions and it's just a shame not taking -advantage of that.

- -

I also think that some curricula need serious review. For example, -some areas of the world rely heavily on very specific versions of MS -Office, teaching students to parrot menu items instead of learning the -general concepts. I think that's very unproductive because firstly, MS -Office's interface changes drastically every few years and on top of -that it also locks in a generation to a product that might not be the -best solution for them.

- -

To answer your question, I believe that the right strategy is to -educate and inform, giving someone the information they require to -make a decision that would work for them.

Intel 180 SSD disk with Lenovo firmware can not use Intel firmware

18th August 2013

Earlier, I reported about +my +problems using an Intel SSD 520 Series 180 GB disk. Friday I was +told by IBM that the original disk should be thrown away. And as +there no longer was a problem if I bricked the firmware, I decided +today to try to install Intel firmware to replace the Lenovo firmware +currently on the disk.

+ +

I searched the Intel site for firmware, and found +issdfut_2.0.4.iso +(aka Intel SATA Solid-State Drive Firmware Update Tool) which +according to the site should contain the latest firmware for SSD +disks. I inserted the broken disk in one of my spare laptops and +booted the ISO from a USB stick. The disk was recognized, but the +program claimed the newest firmware already were installed and refused +to insert any Intel firmware. So no change, and the disk is still +unable to handle write load. :( I guess the only way to get them +working would be if Lenovo releases new firmware. No idea how likely +that is. Anyway, just blogging about this test for completeness. I +got a working Samsung disk, and see no point in spending more time on +the broken disks.

- Tags: debian edu, english, intervju. + Tags: debian, english.

@@ -870,7 +1073,13 @@ make a decision that would work for them.

+ +

+ +

+ +

@@ -1020,23 +1229,25 @@ make a decision that would work for them.