How to install Ubuntu server
Hi there.
Here i`ll show you how to install Ubuntu sever edition. This is just the OS installation, i will use this blog post for future references.
We`ll be using the latest version of Ubuntu server which right now it 11.10 but the installation process should be the same for any version.
Linux can run even with just 8 mb of ram, so if you have an unused pc somewhere in your house you can use but depending on what you`re gonna do with it i recommend you have at least 512 mb of ram and 10 GB of hard drive space.
You can install Ubuntu on a dedicated PC or on a Virtual Machine. First things first, you need to get the .iso file that we`ll be using to install ubuntu which you can get here: http://www.ubuntu.com/download/server/download
I`ve got the x64 version but if you have an older PC, like before Intel Core 2 Duo era you can use the x32 version
After you`re download is finished you can burn you`re image to a CD or if you`re installing on a Virtual Machine you can just mount the image.
The Base System
Insert your Ubuntu install CD into your system and boot from it. Select your language:
Then select Install Ubuntu Server:
Choose your language again (?):
Then select your location:
Select your default keyboard layout.
The installer checks the installation CD, your hardware, and configures the network with DHCP if there is a DHCP server in the network:
Enter the hostname. In this example, my system is called server1.example.com, so I enter server1. You can enter what you want.
Please check if the installer detected your time zone correctly. If so, select Yes, otherwise No:
Now you have to partition your hard disk. For simplicity’s sake I select Guided – use entire disk and set up LVM – this will create one volume group with two logical volumes, one for the / file system and another one for swap (of course, the partitioning is totally up to you – if you know what you’re doing, you can also set up your partitions manually).
Select the disk that you want to partition:
When you’re asked Write the changes to disks and configure LVM?, select Yes:
If you have selected Guided – use entire disk and set up LVM, the partitioner will create one big volume group that uses all the disk space. You can now specify how much of that disk space should be used by the logical volumes for / and swap. It makes sense to leave some space unused so that you can later on expand your existing logical volumes or create new ones – this gives you more flexibility.
When you’re finished, hit Yes when you’re asked Write the changes to disks?:
Afterwards, your new partitions are being created and formatted:
Now the base system is being installed:
Create a user, for example the user Administrator with the user name administrator (don’t use the user name admin as it is a reserved name on Ubuntu 11.04):
Next the package manager apt gets configured. Leave the HTTP proxy line empty unless you’re using a proxy server to connect to the Internet:
I’m a little bit old-fashioned and like to update my servers manually to have more control, therefore I select No automatic updates. Of course, it’s up to you what you select here:
We need a DNS, mail, and LAMP server, but nevertheless I don’t select any of them now because I like to have full control over what gets installed on my system. We will install the needed packages manually later on. The only item I select here is OpenSSH server so that I can immediately connect to the system with an SSH client such as PuTTY after the installation has finished:
The installation continues:
The GRUB boot loader gets installed:
Select Yes when you are asked Install the GRUB boot loader to the master boot record?:
The base system installation is now finished. Remove the installation CD from the CD drive and hit Continue to reboot the system:
Now the installation is done, after the reboot you can simply login. We won’t install anything in this tutorial, as i said i will only use this tutorial for future references.
Some basic commands to get you started.
- To get root access use “sudo su”
- Use “apt-get” to install and update your software. To update we use “apt-get update” first so that apt-get can receive information about everything installed and then “apt-get upgrade” and it will install any updates available. To install use “apt-get install <name of the software>”.
If you did not install the OpenSSH server during the system installation, you can do it now:
“apt-get install ssh openssh-server”
After that you can connect to your linux server by using a SSH client like putty: http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html
I’ll use vi as my text editor in this tutorial.
“apt-get install vim-nox”
Also you should install Midnight Commander which is like Norton Commander from windows.
“apt-get install mc”
The network settings is set by default to dhcp. The settings can be found here:
/etc/network/interfaces
If you want to change to a static ip, you change it so it looks like this:
auto eth0
iface eth0 inet static
address 192.168.0.100
netmask 255.255.255.0
network 192.168.0.0
broadcast 192.168.0.255
gateway 192.168.0.1
Install Android Ice Cream Sandwich on HTC HD2
Hi there.
Here i`ll show you how to install Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich the easy way.
First of all you should download everything you need from the beggining.
HD2 Tool Kit: http://www.mediafire.com/?881bpw2xer88h23
Latest Android OS: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1090783
New Kernel: http://www.fileserve.com/file/V2tN9EH/kernel_tytung_r14_update_headphonefix.zip
We will install the current version of Android available now which is 4.0.3 made possible by the guys from XDA Developers site but you should always install the last version you find. Also i will assume that you have installed on your HD2 a bootloader, the HSPL.
1st step is to install and run HD2 Tool Kit which will look like this
Now what you want to select is MAGLDR Repartition, on the left side choose 250 MB size, and the cache size 50 MB like so
Now, with your phone shut off we need to enter into HSPL mode by holding the Down Volume key and the Power key in the same time until the phone shows some arranged colors, this shouldn’t take more than 2 seconds.
Now connect the phone to the PC via Micro USB cable, the phone should say USB Mode and after that return to HD2 Tool Kit and hit Wipe (Task 29)
After that it will ask you to accept some terms, just accept all of them.
After that you`re phone will show a progress bar which shows that it is flashing like so.
Ok, after this is done, you`re phone will reset if not you should reset it. After that pull out the battery and insert it again and then enter HSPL again by pressing Down Volume button and Power button with the phone off and also insert the Micro USB cable to connect your phone to your PC.
Now go back to HD2 Tool Kit and press Install MAGDLR. It will again ask you for some more accepting issues, just accept them.
After that you`re phone will reboot and will enter in Recovery mode. Now from your phone you can browse the menu by using the + and – Volume buttons and the Call (answer or green button) button as the Ok function. Now you have to press Down Volume until you get to USB Flash Mode and press Ok (the answer button) and the phone will say it has enter to flash mode.
Now go back to HD2 Tool Kit from your PC and on the left side select 45 Mb cache size and press the Repartition Button, it will ask you a few accepting questions, just accept them.
When it will install you`re phone will look like this.
Sorry for the bad quality photos.
After that install you`re phone will reboot again into Recovery mode. Now keep your phone USB connected and go back to HD2 Tool Kit and from the top tab select MAGDRL Update Recovery. Again browser your phone using the Volume Keys and select USB Flash Mode and from HD2 Tool Kit press the update button, it will ask you some confirmation questions, press yes and then a commander prompt windows will apear that will tell you to press any key to continue, do that and you`re phone will enter in Ad Recovery Mode.
Now with your SDCard inserted into the phone, you want to go to Mount and Storage, again using your Volume Keys. And then scroll down to Format SD Card, and then select Yes by using the Call button. This is so that there are no problems with the Sd card. And then go to Format SD EXT, and again pres yes.
Then go to USB Mount Storage and press mount. After you do this your computer will act like a USB memory stick has been pluged in which of course is your phone`s sd card.
What you want to do now is to copy the Android OS zip file and the Kernel Zip file to your Root Sd card. This will take about 1 minute.
When this is done you want to hit Unmount on your phone.
Now you want to hit the Back button a few times untill you see Install zip from sd card.
Go to Install Zip from SD Card, then scroll to Choose zip from sd card. After that select the Android Rom zip file, not the headfix. And click yes.
Now you can disconnect your phone from the USB while it is installing, the install should take about 2 minutes tops. Now just do the same thing with the kernel zip file (the headfix), this should only take a few seconds.
Now just hit the back button once and select the Reboot system now option.
You`re phone will now boot Android Ice Cream Sandwich for the first time, the first time will take a while, maybe up to 5 minutes.
While it is booting it will show an animation like so.
And this is how it looks like after everything it is done.
I`m sorry again for the bad quality phone shots but if you follow me closely you don’t even need them. Also for the end part you should know that the kernel file zip does not need to be installed every time you`re updating your ROM, this is just a fix for this ROM version, for the newer once you don’t need it. And always check your XDA Forums for mode ROM`s update for you`re HTC HD2 right here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1434860
Thanks and Best Regards
VirtualmJR
AllDro Speed / Aura LY-F1 / BRONCHO A710 / Moonpad2 – Review
AllDro Speed / Aura LY-F1 / BRONCHO A710 / Moonpad2 – Review
Hardware Specs:
Manufacturer’s sites:
LY-F1
Gallery: Allview
- Model: Aura LY-F1 / BRONCHO A710 / Moonpad2 / AllDro Speed
- Operating System: Android 2.3.4
- Display: 7”, 5-point capacitive touchscreen, 800×480 Resolution
- CPU Architecture: ARM Cortex A8
- CPU: AllWinner A10 1.0GHz
- RAM: 298/512MB ??? DDR2
- Internal ROM: 4 GB NAND FAST FLASHES
- Camera: VGA
- HDMI: 1080P
- 3G: USB 3G Dongle Support
- G-Sensor: Four-way
- Audio: Built in stereo speakers/Built in Microphone
- Battery Type: Lithiom-Ion 3200mAh
- Item Dimensions: W*D*H: 190*116*7MM
- Net Weight: 360 gramms
- Connectors:
1 x Mini USB
1 x MicroSD Card slot
1 x DC jack
1 x Earphone jack
1 x Mini-HDMI - Network: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
What it does NOT have:
Bluetooth
Haptic feedback / vibration
GPS
Packaging:
The device comes in a white box which simply says “Android™ Tablet PC” on the front.
The backside lists “Hardware Specs” which are actually false. (The device has no Bluetooth neither a Dual-Core A9 processor!). They just seem to have this device packaged into a random Box.
But you should not judge a device by its packaging so let’s take a look inside the box:
- User Manual
- Tablet
- Mini USB male to USB Type a Male Cable (standard data cable)
- Mini USB male to USB type a female Cable (for USB OTG/Host) (about 20cm)
- AC Power Adapter (100-240V -> 5V 2000mA)
The User Manual is in English and Chinese. It does not feature any information about the manufacturer or the device. It is just a “How to use Android” Manual.
I didn’t read it all through, but it seems to be ok (if you need it).
The USB Cables are standard, quality could be better, but it’s okay.
The AC Power Adapter’s quality was very bad. It almost broke by just looking at it.
It had an American wall plug and an Adapter for round EU Connectors.
But it did not fit at all. It was so loose, it fell of when plugged vertically.
I can’t show you pictures of it because the first thing I did seeing this unstable s**t
was to substitute the plug with a more sturdy one.
Look:
The device looks very good and sturdy at the first look although it is completely made out of plastic.
It is rather thin (10mm – thickest area), light-weight (only 360g) and the whole front is at one level.
The screen is reflective and covered with plastic (but I didn’t expect glass in a ~100$ device)
Above the screen (in Landscape mode) there is the VGA camera which supports video chat in Skype, on the top right there is a blue indicator LED and on the right there are three android-typical buttons: Menu, Home and back.
These are capacitive touch buttons which work very well and don’t break the surface.
Around the side of the device are three more buttons (normal buttons) for power and volume adjustment, the microphone and the connectors. On the back there is only the Speaker.
Performance:
The Android 2.3 UI is very fluid, browsing the Internet works very fast.
I have never owned a device this fast in this price range.
Games do work quite well – if you get them to run. F.e ‘gameloft’ Games did not work for me
Most Games run very fluid.
I also got GTA III running, unfortunately it lags. But there are very few devices which can handle GTA III’s wide open world.
The processor is based on the ARM7 rev2 and clocks at 1008Mhz. The GPU is a Mali400 which is the same as in the SGS2 !.
Severals programs only show about 298MB of Ram, I am confused of that.
Kernel says it got 1005.97 BogoMIPS
Screen:
The Screen’s resolution is adequate, not extremely sharp but okay. It is bright enough, but the viewing angle could be better. In 3 directions it is actually good, but it’s bad looking from below (Landscape).
The capacitive touchscreen is reacting directly, precise and recognizes up to 5 different contacts at the same time. I’m still amazed by the touchscreen – didn’t the one that good in a device that cheap.
Connectivity:
Wi-Fi signal strength is great and although it does only have only b and g it is still better than my Phone.
The mini-USB port works as connection to the PC (Mass Storage and Android Debug Bridge), but it also features OTG functionality which lets it act as an USB Host.
I tested several mice (also wireless), 2 keyboards and 5 USB Flash drives (must be in Fat32) and had no problems at all. 
I think this is a very useful feature as you can always exchange data without a PC.
There is also support for external 3G-Sticks but I didn’t test this – I always tether via my Phone.
The Speaker is okay – just like a smartphone speaker.
Webcam:
The Camera only does VGA resolution and has bad quality but it supports video chat over Skype and it does a good job as webcam.
It was a rather cloudy day so pictures aren’t great
The mini-HDMI Output worked great. Most Apps (as well as the android Interface) are only up-scaled to 1080p of course. There was an issue with my smaller TV: There were sound glitches and some artifacts in the image, but I could not reproduce it with other TV so it may be the TV’s fault.
You can’t change the resolution which would have been even greater, but it’s ok though.
Sound over HDMI worked (beside the issue with my one TV) great. Unfortunately you can’t listen to digital Output over HDMI and the Headphone Jack at the same time.
The device got no Bluetooth nor GPS
Video Playback:
The great support of several media and the ability to playback 3D movies were some of my most important reasons to buying this particular tablet, so I tested the video playback:
-several 720p Trailers: Worked fluidly
-1080p@8.5Mbps, DTS@768Kbps: Worked fluidly
-1440p@6.5Mpbs, AACØ140kbps: worked Fluidly
-2160p@7.5Mpbs, AACØ140kbps: worked Fluidly
-2160p@45Mbps, AACØ140kbps: Stuttered
-2304p(4K)@20Mps, AACØ140kbps: pied-colored screen, no rendering
I was positively surprised it plays MKVs with DTS Audio from stock.
Battery:
The Battery is rather weak (3 hours of watching HD Movie, 4-5hours Browsing with music) is maximum! The device uses up to 1.5A while running.
It also loads slowly via USB. The AC Power Adapter outputs 2A which makes it a lot faster.
You could also use a USB-Y-cable to double the Power and half the loading.
Personal stuff:
Apart from the tech review there are some personal things that i can say about this tablet. After about 3 weeks of intense usage i can say that you can use it a full day out by that i mean using google maps on the go, a bit of browsing and some gaming so the battery is ok on that side but if you plan to watch a movie or play a 3d game, don’t expect more than 3 hours wich isn’t really that much.
I really like the fact that i can take it with me in my pocket, a 10 inch tablet would surely not fit.
The bad stuff:
Google maps gets stuck very often and that is because the tablets CPU isn’t really that great even if on the box it says that it`s CPU clock is 1.2Ghz and in the hardware spec it has 1.5Ghz, in reality the CPU clock is 1008Mhz. The official statement is that the CPU could run at 1.5Ghz but they don’t allow you to use it at such high Clock rate because it is dangerous and the battery won’t hold up. That`s like adding a BMW M5 badge on a Reno Clio diesel, it`s just a lie.
Also skype video call doesn’t work at all, android market place does not find all apps that i can find with my android phone and after 24 hours of stand by you have to reset the tablet because it moves so damn slow, like that Reno Clio diesel actually.
Some more good stuff that are written on the box and in real life it doesn’t really works also includes the 3G access which it doesn’t work with any 3G modem i tried.
You can play full hd video quality on your TV via a mini hdmi cable but the video quality isn’t really that great.
Actually most of the good stuff that is written on the box that should be an advantage over and IOS device doesn’t really work that great, stuff like hdmi output, micro sd card reader, video call, micro usb connectivity like keyboard, mouse, usb stick, usb external hard drive. It all works but not as good as you might expect.
All in all the main problem is the Android OS 2.3.4 which is a phone OS rather than a tablet OS, they tried to adapt it but it isn’t working very well and you get a lot of settings on the device like bluetooth on/off switch, or vibrate on/off switch, settings that should not be there since the device doesn’t have them. They say that in February 2012 it will get an update for Android ICS 4.0 but for now you`re stuck with the Reno Clio Android OS.
The good stuff:
The main good stuff is the price which is about 150 euros, which isn’t that much actually. It`s also very light, you can carry it with you in your jacket pocket. Internet navigation is really good and the gaming part is not bad either.
Should you buy one:
No, not really. You shouldn’t accept this even if it is a present.
ViewMyCity – take a virtual tour of your city
Hello there.
Ever wondered how London or Paris looks. Check out www.viewmycity.eu
Here you can find all countries of the world nicely listed in a big forum where everybody can post some pictures or reviews of their city or country.
You should check it out.
Regards
virtualmjr
How to change battery for an APC 650va backup power supply.
Hey there.
Here i`ll show you how to change the battery for a backup power supply. The model in question here is an APC 650va but for most non commercial APC is about the same story.
Also i have to say, it is a very good backup power supply. It is usefull for me since 2005 and only a few days ago i had to change the battery.
The change is very simple in theory. You just turn the APC on the other side and then push and slide to open like in the picture.
The thing is it doesn’t really slide, you just have to push very very hard and try to slide out in the same time. Even if at some point it might seem that the plastic will break that is the only way to do it. It just is a very bad design for that cover.
You could try to force it with a screw driver or something similar or like i did, find a very strong man 
and ask him to do it.
After that it looks like this.
Now we just slide out the battery and remove the plus and minus power cables.
The cables should come out really easy, if not, don’t pull them very hard because they might get pulled from their socket. Instead you should gently move the socket from left to right until they let go a little bit.
After that you just replace the battery, that i find on the net for about 40 euros, the battery is an RBC17 model than most apc within 700 euros use.
That is it. Now it is ready for another 6 years i hope
Regards
virtualmjr
Looking for updated nokia and htc flash files? Use SFI Torrent.
Hello there.
Nokia and htc flash files are hard to get, especially updated or new ones. SFI Torrent offers one click install flash files, or self extracting ones. Simply put, if you are looking for very fast downloading flash files for nokia or htc and free than SFI Torrent is the way to go.
More information on how to use SFI Torrent or what you should do with your flash files you will find on the site.
Best Regards
virtualmjr
New Apple Mac mini 2011
Hello everyone.
My favorite computer has a new face Here it is.
As you can see from the photos, the new mac mini does not have an optical drive anymore. This is a good thing because it would`ve fail anyway.
The optical drive from any apple device is a pioneer drive wich is rubbish, i have 4 mac mini computers from the 2005 model to late 2009 and all of them have the pioneer optical drive that doesn’t work anymore.
I think it works about 6 months from opening the box then you have to get another one. And it is not cheap, a brand new one from apple is about 150 euros and that without including refitting. Also keep in mind that you change it and it will not for long.
Here it is. Spining well
So if you`re thinking of buying an older model of any apple mac mini device, keep in mind to check that the optical drive is working.
Well, let`s get back to the new model wich does not have an optical drive wich they say allowed them to make it even cheaper but it doesn’t it make`s it the same price, but i got used to apple`s stupid lies. Although maybe they ment it make`s it cheaper for them to build and they make more money, yep i think that is what they ment.
Anyway, another good thing about the new mac is that you don’t have to use a knife and three hands to open up a mac. Now you can just open the backend without needing a workshop to do it.
It also come`s with the brand new Max OS x lion, but i don’t really care because i use windows or linux on my macs and i`ll exaplain latter why is that.
Now let`s look at what new hardware make`s up the new mac mini.
Well, finally you can get the new proccesor from intel, the new i5 and i7 wich are much better than the previous core 2 duo.
It has a new video board, an ATI Radeon HD Graphics card with 256 ddram5 of dedicated ram which make`s it possible to play some new games like starcraft 2 quite ok. It doesn’t not compare with a pc, i tested this out with a mac and a pc with similar specs and the pc won big time but it`s not bad any way.
You also get the all new Thunderbold which i don’t really care about bacause the market you will focus more on usb 3.0 even if Thunderbolt is faster but i won’t get in to more details about this.
As for connectivity, you get about the same as old mac`s but now you have an hdmi out.
You also get a brickless power supply, a Gigabite Ethernet, a multy display port, a thunderbold useless port, 4 usb ports which is a shame since the last model had 5 ports but this is life. Also you get a multy card reader and that is about all you get.
Oh, also you get bluetooth and wifi but i think you know that
Ok, as i said early, i have 4 mac mini`s, from 2005 to late 2009 models but i don’t use mac os x on them. I mainly use windows or linux on them for a very good reason. I don’t need to use mac os x, i don’t even like it at all but i do like the hardware and as a pc person the apple`s mac mini is good because it is very, very small, i make almost no noise at all and it uses much less power than a box shapped pc.
The main reason i switched to a mac mini and still using windows on it it because of the noise the box shapped pc made. It is just unacceptable, it works ok for the first 6 months but after that the coolers go insane. And yes, i did make at some point a noiseless case from antec with noise absorbsion foam and so one but it worked for a limited period.
But i have to tell you, after about 5 years now using mac mini`s, i love them, i would not switch back to ordinary pc box in a million years.
I will buy the new model, maybe this year. But as you know apple products are not cheap. Although on the us apple page the say that the new mac mini costs from 599$ dollars, here in Europe, if you get a decent spec one, you get it at about 1200 euros which is a lot and if you get the one i want to buy which is the one with 8 gigs of ram and a 256 gigs ssd instead of a normal hard drive the price goes up to 1500 euros which is very expensive.
For me it is reasonable to buy a new computer every 3 years, and with that in mind i think is time to end this post.
Thanks for reading.
virtualmjr
Why use htop instead of top
Hello there.
Here i`ll show you why it is better to use htop monitoring system rather than normal default installed top. Top is installed in any default linux distribution and it shows you all kind of information wich you can use to increase your linux server or desktop performance.
But if you have a high traffic server or desktop it is possible that you have high load even if you cpu load, memory ussage, swap ussage .etc is low but overall server load is high, like 100.+ high. Your server or desktop in this case can crash or function very slow.
This is where htop becomes usefull.
With htop you can see even more information and if you press F6 you can choose wich part of the pc to monitor with much more details.
A good example is that if you have a high load due to low performing hard drive, that won’t show up just using normal top but you can with htop.
It can be very annoying if you are in this situation and you don’t know what the problem is.
So, overall, htop is a very simple program, very usefull.
To install it just use:
‘apt-get install htop’
To use just type:
‘htop’
Regards
virtualmjr
Hello tech world!
Hi there! I’m a tech person. Here, on this blog i`ll post some tech stuff
but not only.
I hope you like the blog. If you want to contact me you can mail me at virtualmjr@gmail.com
Long live the internet
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