[Server-devel] CentOS SME and the XS

[John Watlington]

On Feb 27, 2008, at 5:33 PM, Stefan Reitz wrote:

> Wad,
>
> maybe I lack the bigger picture.
> "My own school server distribution" is not what I am aiming at.
> Looking at the responses on http://forums.contribs.org/ so far,  
> this appeal won't go anywhere anyway...
> Having a working OLPC XS server is one important step towards  
> global success.
> An administrative interface (beyond bash) another one.
>
> German software development (no big thing) is - supposedly - with  
> the "DAU" in mind.
> This requires for lack of 1:1 translation a little linguistic  
> excursion:
> A commonly understood German acronym is the "GAU" = "Groesster  
> Anzunehmender Unfall". This term was coined with the implementation  
> of nuclear power plants and means litterally: "maximum credible  
> accident" and describes a worst case scenario.
> Software development later coined the term "DAU" = "Duemmster  
> Anzunehmender User". Which is literally close to "Dumbest Credible  
> User" - encountering the DAU leads for lots of software to a  
> similar (not only sounding) GAU. The closest English equivalent  
> seems to be PEBCAK (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PEBKAC) but it is  
> too wordy and lacks the allusion to (nuclear) desaster.
> Maybe we should have the DAAdmin in mind when designing the server...

I agree about designing for this user (although I would simply call  
them "lightly trained", nothing else).

> Right now the XS admin interface doesn't allow for much but  
> severely trained admins.
> This is potentially bad for sustained field usage.

There currently is no admin interface.   You are correct, bash is not  
acceptable.
I've been trying to automate the configuration as much as possible,  
using scripts

> I tried, but have not found documents on wiki.laptop.org  
> suggesting / outlining an administrative interface for the XS (as  
> guidance for those of us considering this relevant and who would be  
> willing to spend time implementing it). Is there something I missed?

Propose away.  Specifications are a great start.  I recommend sending  
them to this list, and after
some discussion moving them to the wiki.

> So far it takes well trained admins to get the server set up.
> Will it take less specialized personnel to replicate it (any given  
> XS) and keep it running?

Replicate ?  Right now the image built on disk is suitable for mass  
disk replication, with
any server specific configuration done after first boot.   Each  
machine will need some
initial configuration by the trained deployment teams.    After that,  
we can expect no one
capable of using an admin interface within a day's travel.    
Hopefully, we can remotely
administer servers which have internet connectivity.

> I am sorry. I feel like I am bashing someone for something that is  
> not his fault. This is
> not my intention.
You are not "bashing" anyone.  You are pointing out where improvement  
is needed.

> It is just that the XO is being turned loose before the environment is
> production ready. And I understand everybody's eagerness to get the  
> XO to its users
> (I am glad I got mine...). The de-facto timeline really puts a  
> sqeeze on the server
> development team.

You are preaching to the choir here.  There is no doubt that the  
server was sadly neglected
as effort was concentrated on the laptop.   For example, I spent  
three months last fall fixing
last-minute laptop hardware bugs, instead of working on the server as  
planned.   OLPC
and its partners absolutely didn't dedicate enough resources to the  
inrastructure needed
around the laptop.   RedHat had more than a handful of engineers (and  
continues to have
several) working full time on the laptop software, but none on the  
school server.

OLPC will be announcing a few hires in this area over the next weeks,  
but the real goal
is to get worldwide volunteers pulling in the same direction.
I'll admit I get worried when their suggestion is to change the only  
part working relatively well
(the underlying OS, drivers, and networking) instead of working on  
the sadly missing parts.

> No offense meant

None taken.

> P.s.: Another thing I couldn't find was a spreadsheet / graphic  
> describing the interaction of the various parts of the server (and  
> the XO).
> Like with respect to functionality and ports.
> Something of that sort would probably make it easier to contribute  
> to the project without getting entangelt in pre-existing  
> interdependencies.

Right now, the basic information (such as functionality and ports) is  
available at:
http://wiki.laptop.org/go/XS_Service_Description

You should be able to edit the wiki (you will have to create an  
account first, due to spammers)
to create longer lived discussions and add/change information.

The place to go to look for short term contributions is our bug  
database:
http://dev.laptop.org/
We try to enter all problems and planned fixes in there to allow  
distributed entry, work, and tracking.
Search for school server.   Unfortunately, there are many laptop bugs  
which mention the school server.
Keywords schoolserver or school server should be added to school  
server bugs.

Cheers,
wad