Argh – Postfix refuses to do stuff

Postfix is a mailer, it needs a lot of help with spf – thats dns, and dkim message signing but email is still reveleant.  However one day all our dns lookups stopped, apache (a webserver)  was using it but not postfix.  It was time to troubleshoot.  Nothing had changed in our configurations* and dig lookups to the block list service returned what they should [dig ip.some.blocklist.at.a.tld].

I check the config commands and they are also the same.   Its a silly thing, so one evening the thought resolv.cfg pings into my monkey head. and that’s it when next day i update it and discover that network manager changed it knocking out nameserver 127.0.0.1, after some copying of the file to the right place – postfix demands a copy in a non /etc directory and things start looking up in postfix land.

Client host [209.43.22.5] blocked using bl.spamcop.net

Argh well at least postfix was not to blame and network manager was and networking has not changed either.  Oddly dkms signing with private keys and a public key in dns kept working so although that’s not part of native postfix dns stuff was working in a manner.

* note plural not singular

Breaking debian testing and learning some stuff as well

I changed repos and things began to break or have missing things- The solution is do not use backports in testing. it will break it.  Fixed now.

I have had it with gnome

Several months ago I changed to kde on the zoos server to kde on the odd occasion when it get used.

That terminates any liking of gnome (my blog)

A good mix – http cups and windows

Windows network printing sucks – move off local* (usb), and smb with nmb then things that might have worked before then don’t in windows on rebuild not that i do then very often.  I got rid of samba and used cups direct in vista.  Our old server finally died and i did not have to reconfigure a whole lot of windows clients to get printing functioning again.

Nice although i am sure Mircosoft will fuck that that up in a new os in the future.  So I recommend cups with windows.  Expect Microsoft the break this for not being something of there’s.

* on windows

doing the time warp with arch linux

Bananas likes linux and runs lots of things with it, bsd is a bit of guess here in the zoo and with some release media i decided to give arch the once over.

Confusingly being a total newbie with arch archos goes to a hardware company, anyhow with 370mb iso and virtualbox and an 8gb disk with 50 pages of a newbie guide printed i was on my way.

Arch reminds me of early linux distros however the cd image is competent although cryptic without those printed pages.  Its not a live cd per say but an install platform / fixer disk which if you screw up you can get back to the step you where on without doing it all again from scratch a critism can make of debian media.

I made mistakes in virtual box with arch with grub and booting but once back in it can be fixed (issues with grub-makeconfig  -o),  being able to use vi helps which i dont mind. Not for the newbies is arch

I have a page of notes – mystifying me is a gb environment of keyboard locales, which is eluding me although i can fix with loadkeys.  X works without a lot of configuration settings and arch is fast it lean and mean.  pacman needs some skill that i would have to practice more and a lack of a gui makes it a bit hit and miss with package names.

The arch way has advantages and disadvantages, and  while a little retro is something i would consider using  outside of virtualbox in the future provided the wiki keeps loading which was a bit intermitant when i was experimenting with it

The game with no players and why ea games should also hated by linux people

MR POO we presume

Bananas in the Falklands (who is an ape) does not play video games – on account that we run linux and I am not doing technical support just to get x working in emulation and then find that is cheating by say steam.  Anyhow occasionally  I subscribe for a month of a indie game and find that it has no players above a count of ten.

It is a large and souless place with the odd human with the one greifer, a couple of veterans go and then sound totally bored with the game and newbies whom dont or cant read.  Recent developments of the game go to one place full of people whom have no charm in game or i assume out of it.

This is a game i can run without wine, and works on phones in a fashion, all it needs is players then again its not an ea game.  It would be nice if those ea haters tried it along with other games not made by ea instead of whinging about ea games and how it works.

I also have no intention to support ea games linux attempt. Why well if windows idiots hate ea why should i like them.    However at least i try to support independents.  Humans …..

Having fun with a dd-wrt router

dd-wrt routers can be flashed to a non router makers firmware.  It runs linux/bsd in a small environment.   I been using one for ages.  Anyhow back in December the thing started to play up by not giving Microsoft clients an dhcp address, and rebooting on the hour.

After lots of comments (Linux handles it better, than the crap microsoft coder does) i eventually get round to looking at the thing and find that a setting that was off is now on.  I ssh the device and find that despite the config saying i can not i can.  A disparity between what the control panel and ssh say.

I still like dd-wrt firmwares and recommend them.  In fact i had a backup plan with another dd-wrt router firmware, the model from Baffalo was very desirable.  That makes the shopping easier when the existing router dies (although i dont want it to)

Saying goodbye to liferea another gnome thing gone bye bye

Cave dwellers amoung you might not know that liferea is an rss and related ilk feed reader.  I started using it with gnome 2, and it survived in lxde when gnome 3 went mickey mouse.  If your not up to date i have taken a shine to kde since and one of the joys of debian testing is that things do break sometimes without me realising.

One morning i go and execute liferea & and i a told its gone.  A dependency has broken.   So time to change readers and a better kde one is chosen..  So that just about stops any intentional use the gnome environment by bananas in the monkey house.

No i dont miss it.

Apache 2.2 to 2.4 prediction.

Will be something that will need special attention and fail when either i next change  debian release version.  Going from 1.3 to 2 (my blog) caused a few headaches.

I like Linux

The zoo has a ten year old pc, it is ancient and has a 10gb harddisk enough to run Debian in.  It still works and although a bit slow it can also function as an xhost for a faster machine.

Try doing that with a microsoft product