iSCSI Security with CHAP
The first line of defense in iSCSI deployments is to properly define and bind targets to a target portal group (TPG) via a tag on the target (TPGT). ACL's then provide yet more security by not only restricting how you get to the target, but which initiators are even allowed to connect to a given target. Beyond that, you can use password authentication via CHAP to ensure only the persons you want connecting can. This can be useful in ...
Getting Involved in an Open Source Project
I found this "Ask Slashdot" question interesting: Good Ways To Join an Open Source Project? There are several ways to look at this... why is this really a question? why is this still a question? what makes you think its difficult? But, I'll admit, it is a question that a lot of people have. Its kind of like asking: "How do I join a club?" Simple, you just do. But, frankly, if no one is holding a "Prospective Members Sign Up Here!" ...
IP Filter in OpenSolaris
IP Filter is easier than ever to use in Solaris. I don't do a lot of firewalling, but I have a strange case where I need to block access to a single port on a remote server from all but a single (my) IP. I'm no big security nut, but in this case I'll write about it because most of the docs out there have the wrong procedure for using IP Filter on Solaris if your using something newer than build 52. So, here is the procedure for setting ...
All I Want for Christmas: 10Gb Ethernet with iSCSI and TOE
This gives me hope... Chelsio's 10GbE Storage Accelerators. Featuring iSCSI, RDMA, and TOE on a single card. Just think of the possibilities. Grid nodes with a single cable out of the back on which you can iSCSI boot (OpenQRM anyone?) and completely virtualize my network topology such that I can reconfigure any box in any way without having to go onsite and recable. Ultimate flexibility and all the bandwidth you need for years to come. ...
Tape Rants and Raves: LTO4 Rules
LTO makes tape sexy. I've been a fan of LTO-3 for some time now, but flipping through "Storage" magazine I just saw an ad for LTO Ultrium 4 tapes... 800GB UNCOMPRESSED! 1.6TB COMPRESSED PER TAPE! And speeds up to 240MB/s! Holy crap! Thats a tape infrastructure I can get behind. ...what the.... boy, I've been out of it! I just wanted to see if ADIC had any LTO-4 libraries yet. They were aquired by Quantum!!! its too bad that ...
OpenSolaris Turns 2
Happy, Happy Birthday from all of us to you....... OpenSolaris is 2. Just like a child, it feels like much longer than that and you're not quite sure what you did before they arrived. The last year has been a good one for us. A lot of growing pains still, but we're getting our footing and growing. The OGB has finally been replaced with a proper board. The code has surpased the number of builds leading up to Solaris 10's initial GA. ...
ZFS in OS X
So it was just announced that ZFS won't be the default filesystem in Leopard. Talk about a bummer... but not shocking really. I feel bad for Jonathan, not because he was wrong, but because its really easy for misunderstandings to come from a single comment. Lets review: "In fact, this week you'll see that Apple is announcing at their Worldwide Developers Conference that ZFS has become the file system in Mac OS 10," Schwartz said. ...
OpenSolaris Picnic: June 16th
Yes, thats right, on Saturday June 16th OpenSolaris will spend the day in the park with friends, family, coworkers and everyone associated in any way with Solaris. This all started some time ago. I'm not a Sun employee but I work closely with many. I always thought it'd be awesome to be at a Sun Company picnic, because I'm a family man and I really like to not just meet people but meet the whole family. Our spouses and girl/boyfrie...
Ian Murdock at SVOSUG: The Movie
I've put up the video from the Silicon Valley OpenSolaris Users Group meeting last month when Ian Murdock discussed Project Indiana. I'm sorry but the video is in Quicktime h.264/AAC and will work great on Mac and Windows but probly not so well on Solaris... sorry, I don't have an X86 iMovie plugin for DiVX. Anyway, its up, have a look at make your own judgments. URL: http://cuddletech.bingodisk.com/public/SVOSUG-IanMurdock.m4v At ...