Table of Contents

hpc0 Keywords

hpc0 Optimization

Definition

Experienced administrators realize the importance of ensuring a systems longevity. Legacy systems are often useful a decade or more after initial deployment. The key to this longevity is being smart about the software you use.

Demonstration

In the OS X environment users are given a lot of gloss: the dashboard, three demential/reflective docks, a transparent menu bar, and various other visual enhancements. If you find that these features aren't imperative to your work and you would like some free system memory you may want to consider disabling them. (I will be describing these procedures further in my first project)

If Mac OS isn't your thing and Linux is you may want to consider compiling a customized version of the openSUSE linux distribution. The openSUSE project offers a simple web tool that enables the user to customize the components of their operating system before installation. The openSUSE build project can be found here: “https://build.opensuse.org/

hpc0 Octave

Definition

Octave is mathematical analysis/computation HPC tool. Scientists and Engineers use programs like Octave to solve complex mathematical situations. High performance computing systems permit less latency and therefore, faster results.

Demonstration

Scientists and Engineers can input complex equations and weigh the processing over HPC nodes within a cluster. This kind of balanced processing is widely popular and practical for HPC applications. Octave gives the user a command line interface for processing requests, shown below:

server@Dimension-4600:~$ octave
GNU Octave, version 3.2.4
Copyright (C) 2009 John W. Eaton and others.
This is free software; see the source code for copying conditions.
There is ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; not even for MERCHANTABILITY or
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  For details, type `warranty'.

Octave was configured for "i686-pc-linux-gnu".

Additional information about Octave is available at http://www.octave.org.

Please contribute if you find this software useful.
For more information, visit http://www.octave.org/help-wanted.html

Report bugs to <bug@octave.org> (but first, please read
http://www.octave.org/bugs.html to learn how to write a helpful report).

For information about changes from previous versions, type `news'.

octave:1> help

  For help with individual commands and functions type

    help NAME

  (replace NAME with the name of the command or function you would
  like to learn more about).

  For a more detailed introduction to GNU Octave, please consult the
  manual.  To read the manual from the prompt type

    doc

  GNU Octave is supported and developed by its user community.
  For more information visit http://www.octave.org.

octave:2> 

hpc0 Xen Virtualization

Definition

Xen offers virtualization software with a focus on technical specification. Xen supports various architectures, is widely popular and is very robust; xen virtualization is trusted by larger internet groups such as Amazon.

Demonstration

In lab46 we've worked with Xen in a CLI but there is a GUI version as well. Xen offers an array of administrative tools accessible via the command line:

vmserver03:~# xm
Usage: xm <subcommand> [args]

Control, list, and manipulate Xen guest instances.

Common 'xm' commands:

 console              Attach to <Domain>'s console.                     
 create               Create a domain based on <ConfigFile>.            
 new                  Adds a domain to Xend domain management           
 delete               Remove a domain from Xend domain management.      
 destroy              Terminate a domain immediately.                   
 dump-core            Dump core for a specific domain.                  
 help                 Display this message.                             
 list                 List information about all/some domains.          
 mem-set              Set the current memory usage for a domain.        
 migrate              Migrate a domain to another machine.              
 pause                Pause execution of a domain.                      
 reboot               Reboot a domain.                                  
 restore              Restore a domain from a saved state.              
 resume               Resume a Xend managed domain                      
 save                 Save a domain state to restore later.             
 shell                Launch an interactive shell.                      
 shutdown             Shutdown a domain.                                
 start                Start a Xend managed domain                       
 suspend              Suspend a Xend managed domain                     
 top                  Monitor a host and the domains in real time.      
 unpause              Unpause a paused domain.                          
 uptime               Print uptime for all/some domains.                
 vcpu-set             Set the number of active VCPUs for allowed for    
                      the domain.

<Domain> can either be the Domain Name or Id.
For more help on 'xm' see the xm(1) man page.
For more help on 'xm create' see the xmdomain.cfg(5)  man page.

For a complete list of subcommands run 'xm help'.
vmserver03:~# 

Xen allows powerful critiquing of its settings.

hpc0 DD

I desided to swap my 80Gb IDE USB drive on my PogoLab server for a faster, 120Gb 5400RPM SATA drive. After a few Google queries I stumbled upon a tutorial that called for the DD tool.

Definition

DD is a tool for cloning disks.

'if=' - The drive you're going to copy. 'of=' - The drive being copied to.

Demonstration

andrew@Lab:/media$ sudo dd if=/dev/sdh of=/dev/sdg
[sudo] password for andrew: 

156301488+0 records in
80026361856 bytes (80 GB) copied, 7342.41 s, 10.9 MB/s
andrew@Lab:/media$ 

hpc0 Packages

Definition

As an administrator you'll often need to install packages from external repositories.

Demonstration

In Debian you source file for repositories is located in “/etc/apt/sources.list” There you can add or modify sources.

hpc0 Using Package managers

Definition

In Debian we rely on a program called aptitude to install external packages

Demonstration

To update aptitude, use the aptitude update command shown below:

vmserver03:~# aptitude update
Writing extended state information... Done
Get:1 http://dl.google.com stable Release.gpg [189B]                                                                                          
Get:2 http://security.debian.org lenny/updates Release.gpg [836B]                                                                             
Ign http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/main Translation-en_US                                                                           
Ign http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/contrib Translation-en_US                                                                        
Ign http://dl.google.com stable/non-free Translation-en_US                                                                                    
Ign http://dl.google.com stable/main Translation-en_US                                                                                        
Get:3 http://dl.google.com testing Release.gpg [189B]                                                                                         
Ign http://dl.google.com testing/non-free Translation-en_US                                                                                   
Get:4 http://security.debian.org lenny/updates Release [92.4kB]                                                                               
Get:5 http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny Release.gpg [197B]                                                                              
Get:6 http://dl.google.com stable Release [2544B]                                                                                             
Get:7 http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable Release.gpg [836B]                                                                                 
Ign http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable/all Translation-en_US                                                                                
Get:8 http://dl.google.com testing Release [2513B]                                                                                            
Ign http://dl.google.com stable Release                                                                                                       
Ign http://dl.google.com testing Release                                                                                                      
Ign http://dl.google.com stable/non-free Packages/DiffIndex                                                                                   
Ign http://dl.google.com stable/main Packages/DiffIndex                                                                                       
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/main Translation-en_US                                                                            
Hit http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable Release                                                                                              
Err http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable Release                                                                                              
  
Ign http://dl.google.com testing/non-free Packages/DiffIndex                                                                                  
Get:9 http://dl.google.com stable/non-free Packages [1010B]                                                                                   
Ign http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/main Packages/DiffIndex                                                                          
Get:10 http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable Release [2177B]                                                                                   
Get:11 http://dl.google.com stable/main Packages [1082B]                                                                                      
Ign http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable Release                                                                                              
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/extras Translation-en_US                                                                          
Ign http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/contrib Packages/DiffIndex                                                                       
Ign http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/main Sources/DiffIndex                                                                           
Ign http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/contrib Sources/DiffIndex                                                                        
Get:12 http://dl.google.com testing/non-free Packages [793B]                                                                                  
Get:13 http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/main Packages [346kB]                                                                         
Ign http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable/all Packages/DiffIndex                                                                               
Hit http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny Release                                                                                           
Err http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny Release                                                                               
  
Ign http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable/all Sources/DiffIndex                                                                    
Hit http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable/all Packages                                                                                         
Get:14 http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny Release [910B]                                                                                 
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny Release                                                                                    
Hit http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable/all Sources                                                                                   
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/main Packages/DiffIndex                                                                           
Get:15 http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/contrib Packages [766B]                                                                       
Get:16 http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/main Sources [121kB]                                         
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/extras Packages/DiffIndex                                                              
Get:17 http://security.debian.org lenny/updates/contrib Sources [811B]                                                             
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/main Packages                                                                               
Hit http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny Release.gpg                                                                                                
Ign http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/extras Packages                                                                                   
Ign http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/main Translation-en_US                                                                                     
Ign http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/contrib Translation-en_US                                                                                  
Hit http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny Release                                                                                                    
Hit http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/main Packages                                                                                     
Ign http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/main Packages/DiffIndex                                                                                    
Get:18 http://www.bimoid.com stable Release.gpg [490B]                                                                                        
Ign http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/contrib Packages/DiffIndex                                                                                 
Ign http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/main Sources/DiffIndex                                                                                     
Ign http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/contrib Sources/DiffIndex                                                                                  
Hit http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/main Packages                                                                                              
Ign http://www.bimoid.com stable/non-free Translation-en_US                                                                                   
Hit http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny/extras Packages                                                                                   
Hit http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/contrib Packages                                                                                           
Hit http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/main Sources                                                                                               
Hit http://www.bimoid.com stable Release                                                                                                      
Err http://www.bimoid.com stable Release                                                                                                      
  
Hit http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/contrib Sources                                                                                            
Get:19 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates Release.gpg [836B]                                                                         
Get:20 http://www.bimoid.com stable Release [1681B]                                                                                           
Ign http://www.bimoid.com stable Release                                                                                                      
Ign http://www.bimoid.com stable/non-free Packages/DiffIndex                                                                                  
Ign http://www.bimoid.com stable/non-free Packages                                                                                            
Hit http://www.bimoid.com stable/non-free Packages                                                                                            
Get:21 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates/main Translation-en_US                                                                     
Ign ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates/main Translation-en_US                                                                        
Get:22 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates Release [142kB]                                                                            
Get:23 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates/main Packages/DiffIndex [2023B]                                                            
Get:24 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates/main 2012-03-02-2013.04.pdiff [2688B]                                                      
Get:25 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates/main 2012-03-02-2013.04.pdiff [2688B]                                                      
Get:26 ftp://ftp.debian.org lenny-proposed-updates/main 2012-03-02-2013.04.pdiff [2688B]                                                      
Fetched 724kB in 17s (42.1kB/s)                                                                                                               
Reading package lists... Done             
W: GPG error: http://dl.google.com stable Release: The following signatures couldn't be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY A040830F7FAC5991
W: GPG error: http://dl.google.com testing Release: The following signatures couldn't be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY A040830F7FAC5991
W: GPG error: http://packages.dotdeb.org oldstable Release: The following signatures couldn't be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY E9C74FEEA2098A6E
W: GPG error: http://packages.enlightenment.org lenny Release: The following signatures couldn't be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY 6B2226D9969C86CA
W: GPG error: http://www.bimoid.com stable Release: The following signatures couldn't be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY AD17586265F2FB00
W: You may want to run apt-get update to correct these problems

vmserver03:~# 

Then grabbing a new package:

use aptitude install “…”

Displayed below:

vmserver03:~# aptitude install calcurse
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information      
Initializing package states... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done  
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  calcurse 
0 packages upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 231kB of archives. After unpacking 872kB will be used.
Writing extended state information... Done
Get:1 http://ftp.us.debian.org lenny/main calcurse 2.1-1 [231kB]
Fetched 231kB in 1s (150kB/s)    
Selecting previously deselected package calcurse.
(Reading database ... 46642 files and directories currently installed.)
Unpacking calcurse (from .../calcurse_2.1-1_i386.deb) ...
Processing triggers for man-db ...
Setting up calcurse (2.1-1) ...
Reading package lists... Done             
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Reading extended state information      
Initializing package states... Done
Writing extended state information... Done
Reading task descriptions... Done         

vmserver03:~# 

hpc0 What to do with a VM server

Definition

A popular use for a Virtual Machineis a LAMP server (Linux, Apache, Mysql, PHP) server

Demonstration

A virtualized operating system is ideal for handling a simple webserver like this. it has the potential for always on applications and the files are segregated from the rest of the system. It also adds another level of security for your web server, this is because it is VM is hidden from the rest of the system and requires a second authentication for access.

hpc0 What not to do with a VM server

Make time go backwards…because you'll need to fuddle with your config file and reinitiate your VM. Luckily Haas is a master of time and can deal with such impasses.

hpc0 Objective

hpc0 Objective

Further understand the necessary components of a proper web server

Definition

If i hope to get into this line of work I want my focus to be web technologies. I need to know as much as I possibly can.

Method

Lab46 resources, real world experience, contemplation of concepts based on work in the lair.

Measurement

Jacob and I have started http://www.adaptivelogicdesign.com to open our services to new clients and learn new skills while doing so.