New Toy - SheevaPlug

I treated myself to a toy... a SheevaPlug. My long term plan is just to use this as a file server for the house, but first, I want to play with it and see if it could be a useful tool for Network Management.

First job, boot it up and get a useful environment installed... I'll report in when I've either got it working or finally given up.

Choosing which Linux to play with

Last time we discussed how to install Linux in a virtual machine. This time, I'm just going to post some links to interesting articles about choosing a Linux distribution to use.

Personally, because of my interest in Networking, I'm using CentOS to run an application called OpenNMS.

This article in The Register has a good brief introduction to Linux, and some of the most commonly used ones.

This article in The Register calls me a weenie, and talks about other ways of running Linux alongside or inside of Windows. I prefer to be a weenie who doesn't have to mess about with disc partitions on my only laptop.

Finally, this article from the Good Gear Guide links to some of the lesser used versions of Linux.

As I said, I'm happy with CentOS for most of what I do, but have a look and see if there is a distribution that interests you. If there isn't, then just pick Ubuntu as it's a fairly easy to use one.

Using VMware Player to run Linux on Windows XP

Back in the day, I tried to use Linux on one of my PCs and it was horrible. So for almost 12 years I gave up (there always seemed to be something more interesting to learn).

Then a few years ago, I tried Ubuntu on my laptop, but the support for the Broadcom wireless card sucked, so I gave up again.

Now, in 2010, I've finally got round to having another look at Linux, and everything seems a lot better.
My new laptop still has problems with unsupported wireless drivers on Linux, but this time I was told about VMWare Player.

VMWare Player lets you run software in a virtual machine in another operating system. In my case, I can run Linux inside Windows XP. And because it's a virtual machine, it can use the special magic VMware LAN drivers that actually just hook into your working Windows drivers. The advantage of this is that you can test Linux without losing access to the Windows applications you need on a daily basis - and if you muck the Linux machine up, you can delete it and reinstall it quickly.

So, today's learning is for Windows users to install Tiny Kernel Linux in a Virtual Machine (The principle is pretty much the same for any distribution of Linux... or even for other operating systems.)

1. Backup your laptop (but you already do that weekly, right?)
2. Go to http://www.vmware.com/products/player/ and download the free trial.
3. Install it.
4. Next, download Tiny Core Linux (just because it's small and will be quick to install; you can choose a different one if you really want, like Ubuntu or Fedora - more discussion of distros to come...). You need to download a .ISO file. An ISO file is an image of a CD-ROM; you can burn it to a CD-ROM if you really want, but with VMware, you don't have to bother.
5. Make a note of what Linux Kernel this distribution is based on. (It's 2.6 on 1st July 2010 when I'm writing this)
6. Open VMware Player; it should look something like this (you can see on the left that I've already created some VMs previously):
7. Choose "Create a New Virtual Machine", and select the .ISO file you downloaded:
8. Click the [Next>] button.
9. Select Linux and the kernel bit you wrote down in step 5:
10. Then give your new Virtual Machine (VM) a name:
11. Now assign it some disc space. As this is Tiny Core Linux, it should be safe to give it just 1GB, and to store it as a single file.
12. You'll come to the last screen of the New Virtual Machine Wizard, where it will confirm the hardware and memory configuration. You should be able to accept the defaults and click the [Finish] button.
13. Follow the install instructions (pretty much just pressing Enter!), and you should get this screen:
14. Now click the [I Finished Installing] button at the bottom of the screen.
15. You have successfully created a Linux VM image to play with. You can use the VMware Player menu bar at the top to power the system on and off, or use the options in the Linux window to shut the virtual machine down properly.
16. I don't really know much about using this Distro, other than it's small... have a play and let me know if you find anything useful.

Here endeth the lesson. 

Hello, and welcome.

I'm learning lots of new stuff at the moment at work, and wanted to share it.

Although my background is Network Design and Consulting, I am finally getting my hands dirty doing "proper" network work.

In the last month, I've been using Spam Filters, Firewalls, Switches, Network Discovery Tools and Traffic Analysis tools. I've been installing Linuxes into VMs on old Windows XP laptops. I've used Cacti, OpenNMS and NMAP. I've also had to do rubbish patching jobs and sit on the floor in dusty cupboards to replace broken hardware. It's been great, although I've learned not to wear my best suit for on-site work.

All of this stuff was new to me, and I'm still rather excited. From now on, when I learn a new technology, I'm going to share my experience on here in the hope it will encourage me to write my notes up clearly, and possibly help others. Plus, if I get anything wrong, there is always some smug git on the Internet who will feel the need to write and tell me, so I'll get to learn even more.

I hope you enjoy reading my blog.