Blog of Andrew Krone

The Economy....

2008-09-30T11:42:00.001-07:00

The Big Picture:
bigpicture.typepad.com

Chris Martenson:
http://www.chrismartenson.com/

Jesse's Cafe Americain:
http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/

Clusterfuck Nation:
http://jameshowardkunstler.typepad.com/

Create a command prompt loop Linux

2008-07-08T12:47:00.000-07:00

Example:

[root@servername~ ]# while [ 1 ]
> do
> date;
> df –h |grep backup;
> sleep 600;
> done

This creates a loop that checks the disks mounted to the directories with the name “backup” and displays the date every ten minutes. This is useful to see the progress of a very large sync command on a ten minute basis. Obviously it can be changed for virtually any command.

Note: the “while [ 1 ]” basically means the while is always true, thus the “sleep 600” is required. Otherwise you would have an infinite loop just going crazy.

You can kill the output with ctrl-c

-Andy

Backuppc: Moving the pool

2008-06-25T09:35:00.001-07:00

Here are the instructions to create a dual disk system using backuppc. This approach creates a "copy" of the pool data without RAID. I have two external USB drives, both 500 Gig here. The advantage (I think) of this method is that if a mistake is made or a disk crashes no rebuilding is needed, just a copy. Also, the second disk can be removed for safe keeping, all we need is a replacement disk (no rebuilding)

1). Stop backuppc:
/etc/init.d/backuppc stop

2). Sync the current default location to your new mount point excluding "pc" (USB device = /data1):
rsync -avPH --exclude=pc/ --delete /var/lib/backuppc/ /data1/backuppc/
(This creates all the data for backuppc in /data1/backuppc, the "H" preserves hard links)

3). Move the old location to a new file, just in case:
mv /var/lib/backuppc /var/lib/backuppc_old

4). Change the /data1 mount point in /etc/fstab to mount /var/lib/backuppc, here's the line:
before: /dev/sdc /data1/backuppc ext3 defaults 0 0
after: /dev/sdc /var/lib/backuppc ext3 defaults 0 0

5). If there's a second disk, setup a crontab with an rsync:
rsync -aPH --exclude=pc/ --delete /var/lib/backuppc/ /data2/backuppc/ >/dev/null 2>&1

6). Reboot and verify the disk(s) are mounted correctlty

7). Start backuppc, /etc/init.d/backuppc start

8). After a few days if all is working remove /var/lib/backuppc_old

Note: Rather than creating a symbolic link from /var/lib/backuppc to /data1/backuppc I opted to create a static mount point in /etc/fstab. This is more straightforward. When someone runs "df -k" they'll see the giant mount point at /var/lib/backuppc and hopefully notice that it's a USB device.

Formatting USB: You may also have to format the USB drive with "mkfs.ext3 /dev/sdc". The device can be determined pretty easily with the Logical Volume Management Tool available in the GNOME GUI.

Further Note: Changing /etc/BackupPC/conf.pl and some of the files like "/usr/lib/BackupPC/Lib.pm" so the top directory is hard changed is NOT recommended. This is because someone else may update the backuppc package and the topDir will break.

-Andy

Coinfiguring a Sylog Server on Linux

2008-05-13T11:28:00.000-07:00

Simple stuff, just no good resource out there:

1). Modify the line in /etc/syslog.conf from this:
*.info;mail.none;authpriv.none;cron.none /var/log/messages

To this
*.info;mail.none;authpriv.none;cron.none;local0.none /var/log/messages

2). Add the following two lines to the bottom of /etc/syslog.conf, the file “specialfilename” is the name of the new log:
# Firebox logs
local0.* /var/log/specialfilename

3). Modify /etc/syconfig/syslog so the”SYSLOGD_OPTIONS” look like this:
SYSLOGD_OPTIONS="-r -m 0"

4). Restart the syslog server:
[root@yourserver etc]# /etc/init.d/syslog restart
Shutting down kernel logger: [ OK ]
Shutting down system logger: [ OK ]
Starting system logger: [ OK ]
Starting kernel logger: [ OK ]

2008-04-23T08:50:00.000-07:00

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2008-04-21T09:23:00.000-07:00

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2008-04-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

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2008-04-11T13:18:00.001-07:00

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Removing Duplicate Lines from a text or Excel file

2008-03-25T10:56:00.000-07:00

Removing duplicate lines on a file is easy. Although, not sure how to do it with vi or notepad++ or crimson editor.

Here's how to do it in Excel:

1). Open the text file in Excel
2). Create a new macro
3). Cut and paste the procedure below into the macro
4). Run the macro
5). Relish how easy things are with Google

Public Sub DeleteDuplicateRows()
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
' DeleteDuplicateRows
' This will delete duplicate records, based on the Active Column. That is,
' if the same value is found more than once in the Active Column, all but
' the first (lowest row number) will be deleted.
'
' To run the macro, select the entire column you wish to scan for
' duplicates, and run this procedure.
''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Dim R As Long
Dim N As Long
Dim V As Variant
Dim Rng As Range

On Error GoTo EndMacro
Application.ScreenUpdating = False
Application.Calculation = xlCalculationManual

Set Rng = Application.Intersect(ActiveSheet.UsedRange, _
ActiveSheet.Columns(ActiveCell.Column))

Application.StatusBar = "Processing Row: " & Format(Rng.Row, "#,##0")

N = 0
For R = Rng.Rows.Count To 2 Step -1
If R Mod 500 = 0 Then
Application.StatusBar = "Processing Row: " & Format(R, "#,##0")
End If

V = Rng.Cells(R, 1).Value
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
' Note that COUNTIF works oddly with a Variant that is equal to vbNullString.
' Rather than pass in the variant, you need to pass in vbNullString explicitly.
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
If V = vbNullString Then
If Application.WorksheetFunction.CountIf(Rng.Columns(1), vbNullString) > 1 Then
Rng.Rows(R).EntireRow.Delete
N = N + 1
End If
Else
If Application.WorksheetFunction.CountIf(Rng.Columns(1), V) > 1 Then
Rng.Rows(R).EntireRow.Delete
N = N + 1
End If
End If
Next R

EndMacro:

Application.StatusBar = False
Application.ScreenUpdating = True
Application.Calculation = xlCalculationAutomatic
MsgBox "Duplicate Rows Deleted: " & CStr(N)

End Sub

2008-03-25T09:39:00.001-07:00

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2008-03-24T07:55:00.001-07:00

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Yum not working

2008-03-20T08:23:00.000-07:00

Yum should work out of the box: but it doesn't. On CentOS (Linux) you may see the following:

[root@yourservername etc]# yum update apcupsd
Loading "installonlyn" plugin
Setting up Update Process
Setting up repositories
Reading repository metadata in from local files
Could not find update match for apcupsd
No Packages marked for Update/Obsoletion

Add these to "/etc/yum.repos.d/CentOS-Base.repo":

[extras2]
name=Fedora Extras - $releasever - $basearch
baseurl=http://download.fedora.redhat.com/pub/fedora/linux/extras/6/$basearch/
gpgcheck=0
gpgkey=http://download.fedora.redhat.com/pub/fedora/linux/extras/RPM-GPG-KEY-Fedora-Extras

NOW, try it again:

[root@servername etc]# yum install apcupsd
Loading "installonlyn" plugin
Setting up Install Process
Setting up repositories
extras2 100% |=========================| 1.1 kB 00:00
Reading repository metadata in from local files
primary.xml.gz 100% |=========================| 1.7 MB 00:11
################################################## 5211/5211
Parsing package install arguments
Resolving Dependencies
--> Populating transaction set with selected packages. Please wait.
---> Downloading header for apcupsd to pack into transaction set.
apcupsd-3.12.4-5.fc6.i386 100% |=========================| 15 kB 00:00
---> Package apcupsd.i386 0:3.12.4-5.fc6 set to be updated
--> Running transaction check

Dependencies Resolved

=============================================================================
Package Arch Version Repository Size
=============================================================================
Installing:
apcupsd i386 3.12.4-5.fc6 extras2 405 k

Transaction Summary
=============================================================================
Install 1 Package(s)
Update 0 Package(s)
Remove 0 Package(s)

Total download size: 405 k
Is this ok [y/N]: y
Downloading Packages:
(1/1): apcupsd-3.12.4-5.f 100% |=========================| 405 kB 00:02
Running Transaction Test
warning: apcupsd-3.12.4-5.fc6: Header V3 DSA signature: NOKEY, key ID 1ac70ce6
Finished Transaction Test
Transaction Test Succeeded
Running Transaction
Installing: apcupsd ######################### [1/1]

Installed: apcupsd.i386 0:3.12.4-5.fc6
Complete!

SSL with Sendmail

2008-03-19T12:08:00.001-07:00

Thank to the following web site:

http://www.cromwell-intl.com/unix/sendmail-ssl.html

-Andy

How to make sendmail use SSL/TLS whenever possible

1. Create a certificate directory and go there:
# mkdir /etc/mail/cert
# cd /etc/mail/cert
2. Create a key for the server, giving a new pass phrase when prompted:
# openssl genrsa -des3 -out server.key 1024
# openssl rsa -in server.key -out server.key.open
3. Create a clear-text copy of the key (so it is not pass-phrase-protected), giving the pass phrase when asked:
# openssl req -new -x509 -days 3650 -key server.key.open -out server.crt
4. Answer the X.509v3 questions appropriately.
5. Make the files root-read-only:
# chmod 600 server.*
6. Edit /etc/mail/sendmail.cf and add these lines. You should find commented-out versions of these settings in the file, maybe about a third of the way through it.
O CACertPath=/etc/mail/cert
O CACertFile=/etc/mail/cert/server.crt
O ServerCertFile=/etc/mail/cert/server.crt
O ServerKeyFile=/etc/mail/cert/server.key.open
O ClientKeyFile=/etc/mail/cert/server.crt
7. Restart sendmail:
# /etc/init.d/sendmail restart

Outlook 2003 Not Saving to Sent Items Folder

2008-03-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

Outlook 2003 defies intuition. It would make sense that there should be an outbox or a sent items or a "sent" but Microsoft would rather make it really confusing. If you're connecting through imap and you want to have a specific imap folder say "Sent Items" store your sent mail you need to create a rule:

Tools > Rules > New Rule

Don't use the template, start from scratch.

What you want to create is a rule that reads like this:

Apply this rule after I send the message. Uses the message form and on this machine only move a copy to Sent Items folder.

-Andy

2008-03-13T13:48:00.001-07:00

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2008-03-11T08:31:00.000-07:00

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2008-03-07T08:05:00.001-08:00

8am

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2008-03-06T16:46:00.000-08:00

5pm

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2008-03-06T08:14:00.000-08:00

Morning 8am

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2008-03-04T15:12:00.000-08:00

Low tide

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2008-03-04T07:44:00.000-08:00

Mid tide

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Great Find Tutorial

2008-02-08T12:10:00.001-08:00

http://dmiessler.com/study/find/

Sun buys MySQL

2008-02-07T16:11:00.001-08:00

Ugh, hope they don't screw it up like they have so many other software projects:

http://mysql.com/news-and-events/sun-to-acquire-mysql.html

-Andy

Where's my MySQL error log file??

2008-01-25T09:01:00.000-08:00

MySQL likes to be different. Most installations like apache use /var/log/httpd as a default location. MySQL stores it's log files by server name in the database path:

log file name = servername.domainname.err

log file location and name = /var/db/mysql/servername.domainname.err

This is frustrating when working on a L.A.M.P box because most developers/troubleshooters will go straight to /var/log and then run a "locate" for something with "my" and/or "log". This approach will not work.

TGIF,
Andy

Red-Light cameras Increase Accidents

2008-01-08T13:57:00.000-08:00

From: http://www.motorists.org/blog/red-light-cameras/red-light-cameras-increase-accidents-5-studies-that-prove-it/

-Andrew Krone

Red-Light Cameras Increase Accidents: 5 Studies That Prove It
January 8th, 2008 Posted in Red-Light Cameras

reports The NMA has been contending that red-light cameras (RLCs) are a detriment to motorist safety for many years.

People, both in the media and in the general public, often dismiss this claim as opinion, suggest that there isn’t enough data available yet, ask why we support people who run red lights (we don’t), or write off the organization as being biased.

The only way to combat this is through hard facts and independent research. Luckily, we have both.

We reiterate our challenge: If it’s not about the money, then prove it.

No community has accepted, which shouldn’t be surprising considering the facts.

Here are five independent studies that demonstrate the failure of red-light cameras as a safety measure:

1) A Long Term Study of Red-Light Cameras and Accidents
David Andreassen
Australian Road Research Board
February, 1995

This study examined the long term effect on accident-types of red-light cameras at 41 signalized intersections in Melbourne, Australia. The cameras were installed in 1984, and reported accidents for the period 1979 to 1989 were used in the detailed analysis.

Quotes from the study:

“The results of this study suggest that the installation of the RLC at these sites did not provide any reduction in accidents, rather there has been increases in rear end and adjacent approaches accidents on a before and after basis and also by comparison with the changes in accidents at intersection signals.”

“There has been no demonstrated value of the RLC as an effective countermeasure.”

Download The Full Study

2) The Impact of Red Light Cameras (Photo-Red Enforcement) on Crashes in Virginia
Virginia Transportation Research Council
June 2007

The Virginia Transportation Research Council released a report expanding upon earlier research into the safety effects of red light cameras in Virginia. Despite showing an increase in crashes, this study was instrumental in the return of red-light cameras to the state of Virginia. With a proven negative safety impact, the clear incentive to bring back the cameras was money.

Quotes from the study:

“After cameras were installed, rear-end crashes increased for the entire six-jurisdiction study area… After controlling for time and traffic volume at each intersection, rear-end crash rates increased by an average of 27% for the entire study area.”

“After cameras were installed, total crashes increased.”

“The impact of cameras on injury severity is too close to call.”

“Based only on the study results presented herein and without referencing other studies, the study did not show a definitive safety benefit associated with camera installation with regard to all crash types, all crash severities, and all crash jurisdictions.”

Download The Full Study

3) The Red-Light Running Crisis: Is It Intentional?
Office of the Majority Leader
U.S. House of Representatives
May 2001

This report was prepared by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey’s staff. It looks at the problems of red-light cameras and how to really deal with traffic-light violations.

Quoted from the study:

“And one should ask the question, if there’s a problem with an intersection, why don’t safety engineers in the field just go out and fix the timing?

In fact, before red light cameras arrived in the United States, that’s exactly what our regulations instructed them to do. If too many people enter on red at an intersection, engineers were supposed to lengthen its yellow time. But in the year that red light cameras first started collecting millions in revenue on our shores, those entrusted with developing our traffic safety regulations dropped the requirement to fix signal timing, instructing engineers to “use enforcement” instead.

Indeed, according to the Federal Highway Administration, these problem intersections serve as a great location to hold a press conference. The agency offers a script for local officials to exploit a tragically mistimed intersection to call for the installation of additional red light cameras and tout their safety benefits.

But none of the reports that are supposed to tell us that red light cameras are responsible safety benefits actually say that. First, they dismiss increases in rear-end collisions associated with red light cameras as “non-significant,” despite evidence to the contrary. Second, they do not actually look at red light intersection accidents. The latest accident study in Oxnard, California, for example, only documents accident reductions “associated with”—not caused by— red light cameras. Although that statement has little scientific value, it does have great marketing appeal if you don’t look too closely.

Every study claiming red light cameras increase safety is written by the same man. Before joining the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), he was a top transportation official in New York City at the time the city began looking into becoming the first jurisdiction in the country to install red light cameras. In other words, the father of the red light camera in America is the same individual offering the “objective” testimony that they are effective.

A similar conflict of interest affects those entrusted with writing safety regulations for our traffic lights. The Institute of Transportation Engineers is actively involved in lobbying for, and even drafting legislation to implement, red light cameras. They are closely tied to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which in turn is funded by companies that stand to profit handsomely any time points are assessed to a driver’s license.

In short, the only documented benefit to red light cameras is to the pocketbook of local governments who use the devices to collect millions in revenue.”

Download The Full Study

4) Investigation Of Crash Risk Reduction Resulting From Red-Light Cameras In Small Urban Areas
Mark Burkey, Ph.D. & Kofi Obeng, Ph.D.
North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University
July 2004

A study prepared by the North Carolina A&T State University’s Urban Transit Institute for the United States Department of Transportation.

Quoted from the study:

“Using a large data set, including 26 months before the introduction of RLCs, we analyze reported accidents occurring near 303 intersections over a 57-month period, for a total of 17,271 observations. Employing maximum likelihood estimation of Poisson regression models, we find that:

The results do not support the view that red light cameras reduce crashes. Instead, we find that RLCs are associated with higher levels of many types and severity categories of crashes.”

Download The Full Study

5) Evaluation of the Red-Light-Camera-Enforcement Pilot Project
Ontario Ministry of Transportation
December 2003

This report from Ontario, Canada’s Ministry of Transportation’s concluded that jurisdictions using photo enforcement experienced an overall increase in property damage and fatal and injury rear-end collisions. The report also concludes that there was an overall reduction in serious accidents and angle collisions. However, a closer look at the data found in this government-sponsored report show that intersections monitored by cameras experienced, overall, a 2 percent increase in fatal and injury collisions compared to a decrease of 12.7 percent in the camera-free intersections that were used as a control group (page 21).

In fact, the non-camera intersections fared better than the camera intersections in every accident category.

Quoted from the study:

“Exhibit 2 indicates the red light running treatments have:

* Contributed to a 4.9 per cent increase in fatal and injury rear-end collisions; and
* Contributed to a 49.9 per cent increase in property damage only rear-end collisions.

The rear-end collision results are similar to findings in other red light camera studies.”