September 2020 - Talk - lists.gtalug.org

war story: power failure makes CentOS system unbootable
by D. Hugh Redelmeier 30 Sep '22

30 Sep '22

tl;dr / spoiler: change fstab so that /boot/efi is not automatically mounted. See the recommendation at the end of this message. My gateway computer is a little PC running CentOS. It does not come back after a power failure. The reason (as best I can tell) is interesting and I think that I have a fix. My system is UEFI. It boots from a UEFI system partition, known as /boot/efi to Linux. If this gets corrupted, it won't boot. It is a VFAT partition. On my gateway (a Zotac Zbox RI321, a cute little box with two ethernet ports), the UEFI firmware apparently won't boot if the dirty bit is set in the system partition. CentOS normally runs with /boot/efi mounted. So when the system isn't shut down cleanly, the dirty bit will be on. Consequence: the system is not going to boot after a power failure. Odd observation 1: if I put a live Fedora 25 USB stick in the system and try to boot in this otherwise-unbootable state, CentOS boots from the main disk. So this really looks like a firmware bug/quirk. Odd observation 2: fsck doesn't seem to automatically fix the system partition. Once CentOS 7 booted, I dismounted /boot/efi and did an fsck on it. $ sudo fsck /dev/sda1 fsck from util-linux 2.23.2 fsck.fat 3.0.20 (12 Jun 2013) 0x25: Dirty bit is set. Fs was not properly unmounted and some data may be corrupt. 1) Remove dirty bit 2) No action ? 1 Leaving filesystem unchanged. /dev/sda1: 16 files, 2420/51145 clusters Googling got me to <https://www.centos.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=50917> In particular, this advice seemed quite good: ==== recommendation ==== Two other changes I recommend for UEFI systems, to each OS's /etc/fstab. - For the /boot/efi mountpoint, add the mount options x-systemd.automount,noauto - Change fs_passno (last column) to a 1 or 2; the canonical fstab instructions suggest 2, but systemd treats 1 and 2 as the same. The first change means the EFI System partition will not be automatically read-write mounted at boot time; it's a bad idea this is the default because it puts the ESP at risk especially if ther are crashes, FAT has no journal and will therefore always be marked dirty in such a case; no other UEFI OS mounts the ESP by default. Second, if anything tries to access /boot/efi (read or write), systemd will automatically mount it, and because of the fs_passno 1 or 2, it will fsck it first and that fixes and clears the dirty bit in case it's set. Right now without these changes, it's just a matter of having the right number and bad timing of crashes to render the EFI System partition corrupt.

3 9

YAD-Zenity-GTK on Pi - assistance needed
by Giles Orr 30 Jan '21

30 Jan '21

YAD ("Yet Another Dialog") is a fork of Zenity - essentially a way to display GTK+ dialogues from shell scripts. I've chosen YAD because it supports a couple things Zenity doesn't have, namely form buttons and tabs. I've created an ugly but functional interface that's meant to go on a 3.5" touch screen on a Raspberry Pi. But here's the problem: by the time it gets on a screen that small, the buttons are too small to reliably poke with a finger. So I want to increase the font size. All that was needed to fix that on my Fedora desktop was: # file: ~/.configs/gtk-3.0/settings.ini [Settings] gtk-font-name = Sans 32 And voila, 'yad' appears with a super-huge font. However - this behaviour isn't replicated on the Pi. It's an old(ish) Debian stretch install on an old Pi B (not Pi 2 B, just "Pi B"). I'm pretty sure that ~/.configs/gtk-3.0/settings.ini is the right file, because when I mis-configured it, 'yad' complained loudly. But it ignores the font setting that works fine on another host. I tried 'yad --font' which throws up what amounts to a GTK font selection dialogue, and "Sans 32" is a valid font on the Pi. Anyone got any ideas on this? -- Giles https://www.gilesorr.com/ gilesorr(a)gmail.com

4 6

security threats of Open Source
by D. Hugh Redelmeier 25 Nov '20

25 Nov '20

<https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-spots-malicious-npm-package-stealin…> This article list six cases of malware contributed to npm (the repo for sharing node.js and JavaScript source). How many undetected cases exist? I've alway pretended that Linux distros vet their code. I'm not sure how true that is. Probably the greatest protection is the time delay between contribution and distribution. I wonder what can be done about this problem. I've said so at our meetings a few times too. Of course the problem is worse with closed source: it is impossible to audit the source. But closed source might have fewer contributors and more supervision. Of course much closed soure is built on top of open source and thuse all its weakness

7 12

USB power reporting Type-c super speed skirmish and libpartd error
by Russell Reiter 23 Sep '20

23 Sep '20

I had a power outage a couple of weeks ago which lasted longer than my UPS battery life and have had a number of USB issues since then. While I was separately recharging the UPS, which took about 5 hours, I rebooted the system which then immediately froze on boot with an USB over current condition. This appeared to be related to the MB front panel connection and at first I thought that somehow a surge made it through the UPS and had toasted the motherboards own front port connection. This turns out not to have been the case. It’s what happened next that puzzles me tho. I have an external NVME enclosure with a PCI-e X4 512 G M.2 storage which I have been tinkering with. After disconnecting the front ports on the MB and, I do have a PCI-e 5 port card with 4 x A + 1 Type-C connectors, which I had configured to provide four more front ports, with two of them Type-C. NB I don’t have the supplemental power connected as I was anticipating only to use these ports to use data, for the time being. (This is part of what makes me think the voltage demand reporting might be the culprit) When the front adapter is plugged in this also isolates the Type-C port on the actual PCI-e card from being used. After I removed all connections from that card and I plugged my M.2 device into the motherboard’s one Type-C port the system turned off like a light switch, no hang, just off. After much fooling around, starting with connecting the keyboard and mouse to the onboard legacy USB 2.0 slots, I’m sort of back where I started. The two stock USB 3 front ports are connected and working. The supplemental front ports are connected to the expansion card and working, sort of, Type-A works, Type-C does not. Connecting the device, if I connect using a cord adapter to Type-A, the mounts show up in /run/media. It is configured as a boot device. At first I thought the over current was related to the fact that that particular cord adapter is 3 ft long, but I’m rethinking that although consistent power negotiating and impedance seem to be part of the problem. What did happen was that the M.2 drive had lost it’s type label and I thought I did the right thing by using gdisk to relabel the volume, but now it shows up as W95 Ext d (LBA). Also, gparted now shows a libparted error for the actual volume I am currently booting from, although gnome-disks is fine with it. Perhaps the libparted error is related to my kernel version and non complementary libparted updates. I have seen this as an old issue of out of but I cannot so far consistently switch from connecting the device via Type A and Type C connections. Maybe this is a memory hangover concerning the voltage requested by Type-A vs Type-C My current kernel. Linux archon 5.8.8-100.fc31.x86_64 #1 SMP Wed Sep 9 20:29:23 UTC 2020 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux Here is what happens when I’m using the Type-A to C adapter cable. Everything is detected and mounted in /run/media udevadm monitor monitor will print the received events for: UDEV - the event which udev sends out after rule processing KERNEL - the kernel uevent KERNEL[1144.231633] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4 (usb) KERNEL[1144.236767] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[1144.250366] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4 (scsi) KERNEL[1144.250424] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/scsi_host/host4 (scsi_host) KERNEL[1144.250509] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[1144.250602] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4 (usb) KERNEL[1144.251689] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0 (scsi) KERNEL[1144.251774] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) KERNEL[1144.251822] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_device/4:0:0:0 (scsi_device) KERNEL[1144.251933] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_disk/4:0:0:0 (scsi_disk) KERNEL[1144.252009] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_generic/sg2 (scsi_generic) KERNEL[1144.252393] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/bsg/4:0:0:0 (bsg) UDEV [1144.259793] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4 (usb) UDEV [1144.261835] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0 (usb) UDEV [1144.262732] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4 (scsi) UDEV [1144.263715] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/scsi_host/host4 (scsi_host) UDEV [1144.264976] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0 (usb) UDEV [1144.268728] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4 (usb) UDEV [1144.269850] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0 (scsi) UDEV [1144.270851] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) UDEV [1144.271941] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_device/4:0:0:0 (scsi_device) UDEV [1144.272716] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_disk/4:0:0:0 (scsi_disk) UDEV [1144.273540] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/bsg/4:0:0:0 (bsg) UDEV [1144.273563] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_generic/sg2 (scsi_generic) KERNEL[1145.985198] add /devices/virtual/bdi/8:16 (bdi) UDEV [1145.987911] add /devices/virtual/bdi/8:16 (bdi) KERNEL[1145.988867] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb (block) KERNEL[1145.989065] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb1 (block) KERNEL[1145.989186] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb2 (block) KERNEL[1145.989308] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb3 (block) KERNEL[1145.989450] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb4 (block) KERNEL[1145.989584] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb5 (block) KERNEL[1145.990843] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) UDEV [1146.031257] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb (block) UDEV [1146.035268] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb4 (block) UDEV [1146.045437] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb1 (block) UDEV [1146.046036] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb3 (block) UDEV [1146.046869] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb2 (block) UDEV [1146.051277] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb5 (block) UDEV [1146.052469] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.4/4-1.4:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) This is what the Type-C connection reports on the front panel (w/o the supplemental power connection from the card to the expansion panel) when I attempt to hot switch from Type-A to C, even if I had un-mounted the partitions from the disks app GUI, The first event is unbind. udevadm monitor monitor will print the received events for: UDEV - the event which udev sends out after rule processing KERNEL - the kernel uevent KERNEL[1460.229192] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2/4-1.2:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[1460.229310] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2/4-1.2:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[1460.230680] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2 (usb) KERNEL[1460.230806] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2 (usb) UDEV [1460.235695] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2/4-1.2:1.0 (usb) UDEV [1460.236812] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2/4-1.2:1.0 (usb) UDEV [1460.237925] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2 (usb) UDEV [1460.238627] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb4/4-1/4-1.2 (usb) KERNEL[1460.434274] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2/3-1.2:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[1460.434407] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2/3-1.2:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[1460.436020] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2 (usb) KERNEL[1460.436183] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2 (usb) UDEV [1460.439331] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2/3-1.2:1.0 (usb) UDEV [1460.443163] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2/3-1.2:1.0 (usb) UDEV [1460.445660] unbind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2 (usb) UDEV [1460.446564] remove /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.2 (usb) Here is what udev reports with the front extension panel disconnected from the PCI-e card and the drive is plugged into the expansion card's single Type-C connection. udevadm monitor monitor will print the received events for: UDEV - the event which udev sends out after rule processing KERNEL - the kernel uevent KERNEL[93.288656] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3 (usb) KERNEL[93.297154] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[93.297182] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3 (usb) UDEV [93.303112] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3 (usb) KERNEL[93.310552] add /module/usb_storage (module) KERNEL[93.310602] add /bus/usb/drivers/usb-storage (drivers) UDEV [93.311904] add /module/usb_storage (module) UDEV [93.312259] add /bus/usb/drivers/usb-storage (drivers) KERNEL[93.312655] add /module/uas (module) UDEV [93.313198] add /module/uas (module) KERNEL[93.324476] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4 (scsi) KERNEL[93.324491] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/scsi_host/host4 (scsi_host) KERNEL[93.324517] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0 (usb) KERNEL[93.324525] add /bus/usb/drivers/uas (drivers) UDEV [93.324646] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0 (usb) UDEV [93.325326] add /bus/usb/drivers/uas (drivers) KERNEL[93.325718] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0 (scsi) KERNEL[93.325745] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) KERNEL[93.325760] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_device/4:0:0:0 (scsi_device) KERNEL[93.325772] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_disk/4:0:0:0 (scsi_disk) KERNEL[93.325837] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_generic/sg2 (scsi_generic) KERNEL[93.325898] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/bsg/4:0:0:0 (bsg) UDEV [93.329778] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3 (usb) UDEV [93.331051] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4 (scsi) UDEV [93.332395] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/scsi_host/host4 (scsi_host) UDEV [93.334102] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0 (usb) UDEV [93.335352] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0 (scsi) UDEV [93.336749] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) UDEV [93.338326] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_device/4:0:0:0 (scsi_device) UDEV [93.338504] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_disk/4:0:0:0 (scsi_disk) UDEV [93.339426] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/scsi_generic/sg2 (scsi_generic) UDEV [93.340162] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/bsg/4:0:0:0 (bsg) KERNEL[94.516320] add /devices/virtual/bdi/8:16 (bdi) UDEV [94.519016] add /devices/virtual/bdi/8:16 (bdi) KERNEL[94.520794] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb (block) KERNEL[94.520944] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb1 (block) KERNEL[94.521091] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb2 (block) KERNEL[94.521209] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb3 (block) KERNEL[94.521326] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb4 (block) KERNEL[94.521431] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb5 (block) KERNEL[94.523245] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) UDEV [94.603863] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb (block) UDEV [94.611530] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb4 (block) UDEV [94.700559] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb1 (block) UDEV [94.716164] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb2 (block) UDEV [94.731543] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb5 (block) UDEV [94.737275] add /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0/block/sdb/sdb3 (block) UDEV [94.738283] bind /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1c.1/0000:72:00.0/usb3/3-1/3-1.3/3-1.3:1.0/host4/target4:0:0/4:0:0:0 (scsi) KERNEL[113.079306] add /devices/virtual/bdi/0:39 (bdi) UDEV [113.083466] add /devices/virtual/bdi/0:39 (bdi) Unfortunately the cable for connecting the supplementary power to the front expansion port was too short so I’m wondering if this is at all related to the system registering one voltage demand for the Type-C connection and not releasing that info and then re-probing for the increased voltage the SS port connection allows for. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can unwind some of this? Perhaps sourcing a longer cable for connecting the expansion cards power to the slot might do the trick. I can't say for sure, but I don't recall this being an issue before the power issue. -- Russell

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good deal on tiny Dell desktop
by D. Hugh Redelmeier 16 Sep '20

16 Sep '20

<https://forums.redflagdeals.com/dell-dell-precision-3240-compact-workstatio…> I bought one of these. - save $200 by opting for Ubuntu rather that Windows 10 Pro! Okay, I admit it: I only saved $100 by not selecting Windows 10 Home. - very small: limited expansion and performance. - business class (well built, stodgy, well supported (3 yr. warranty)) It is a real adventure game finding and stacking all the discounts. Well described in the article. Read the whole thing, but 95% is in the first page. - Join Rakuten Canada (formerly called ebates) and go through their site to get 8% cash back on Dell for Business purchases (don't be fooled by the more prominent 2% regular Dell cash back offer). - join the Dell mailing list for a one-time 10% discount code. If you are on the mailing list already, it appears you can join again with the "+" in the username trick (i.e. mail to joe+anything(a)example.com should go to joe(a)example.com) - the article lists a stackable $50 off coupon Configuring the system is interesting. Key: choose a cheap HDD and add a third-party NVMe SSD drive after you get the machine. Choose 8G single-stick of RAM. Add more after you get the machine (one SODIMM slot will be empty). I chose an Intel WiFi/BlueTooth card. That gets the chassis wired for an antenna.

2 2

Notes for September meeting are up
by Christopher Browne 15 Sep '20

15 Sep '20

Busyness kept me from posting this sooner :-( https://linuxdatabases.info/blog/?p=260 -- When confronted by a difficult problem, solve it by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger handle this?"

2 2

odd connector for parallel printer port
by D. Hugh Redelmeier 10 Sep '20

10 Sep '20

I just noticed that the latest printer that we bought (Brother HO-L5000D) came with an odd cable (matching an odd connector on the printer). On one end, there was the conventional-since-the-IBM-PC DB25M connector. On the other end, there was a 3-row, 26-pin mail D connector. I don't remember seeing this connector before. When did this get invented? I don't think that I've noticed it before. (Parallel ports for printers are pretty much replaced by USB these days. I do have antique computers that are pre-USB but I don't print from them.) Why did this get invented? Was this to prevent serial/parallel confusion? I do remember being annoyed at IBM selecting the DB25 instead of using the industry-standard "Centronics" connector because serial and parallel could so easily get mixed up. I will probably save the cable forever. I'll probably never use it. If I need to, I'll probably be unable to find where I've stored it.

2 1

Meeting tonight
by Alex Volkov 09 Sep '20

09 Sep '20

Sorry everyone, I forgot about the meeting. Jitsi server is now working the meeting room is here -- https://jitsi.flamy.ca/GTALUG

1 0

Meeting should be on, but not yet :-(
by Christopher Browne 08 Sep '20

08 Sep '20

Due to confusion, our Jitsi server isn't up right now, and our Usual Suspects for Zoom addresses haven't responded yet... However, hopefully the following zoom address https://zoom.us/j/6476576575 may function enough to get us going... -- When confronted by a difficult problem, solve it by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger handle this?"

1 0

Seeding of some September discussion ideas
by Christopher Browne 08 Sep '20

08 Sep '20

The September "etherpad" has been seeded with things that I saw this month that struck me as interesting... https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/gtalug-september Please, by all means, add more -- When confronted by a difficult problem, solve it by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger handle this?"

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