Re: [cobalt-users] Location of Apache Daemon

["Robert G. Fisher" <rfisher@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Wed, Mar 29, 2000 at 11:10:21PM -0500, Jim Jeup wrote:
> If you alter those layouts, you break what the Raq was purchased for... 

Really, no reason to alter the file layout from the distribution --
just a matter of familiarizing yourself where the files are put
in such a distribution.

> If you alter the Apache files, you break what the Raq was purchased for ...

Not exactly.  You also have .htaccess files, albeit, this can get
into trouble with the FP 2000 SERK, though to be fair, Cobalt isn't
at fault for those instances.

> One cannot use a RedHat book to learn the Cobalt system.

One can buy a book on RedHat and get familiar with the fundamental
ideas and system layout.  The main differences between Cobalt and
RedHat distributions are in the following direcotiries:

	/usr/admserv/
	/usr/lib/perl5/site_perl/Cobalt 
	/usr/lib/perl5/site_perl/auto/Cobalt 

Oh yeah, there's also /usr/local/sbin/monitor and then their
default configuration of analog (which RedHat doesn't include.)

Cobalt does have a manual that describes their interface, 
if you want to understand how it does each aspect, well the
code rests there easily readable.  

> I know the answer to this... just buy a Restore disk, and a
> spare-in-the-air... but, don't try to restore files to the Raq, because
> there is a bug... you can backup the system, but not restore.
 
> Most likely, before the system is changed over, the hard drive will be full,
> because the log files can't be deleted easily. But, this is not a problem...
> because there are NO man files about Cobalt's proprietary system.

Umm, in the RaQ and RaQ2, the rotations are done via logrotate and
cron jobs, both of which have man pages.  

> But, this is no problem... before you can find the information about the
> system (Raq3 is definitely not in the knowledge base), one of Cobalt's
> recommended packages will render your system unusable.

Don't have a RaQ3...Have yet to see an official package (pkg) file
introduce complete show-stopper bugs myself though.

> We're not asking for the world, just a book, or anything else that has
> pertinent information about the system.
> 
> I do use Linux, I do use Apache. These are simple and easy to understand.
> What Cobalt has done to the system could be documented, and hacked with
> little problem. If they had any truly pertinent information. Heck, I'd even
> pay for the darned thing.

If you know Perl, you can go through and read it.  Albeit, it would be
nice for the vast majority of Cobalt purchasers, who probably don't
understand Perl (or at least not overly well--there's a few lines
that still send me scrounging through perldoc -q and man perlop).

I could say that it'd be nice if Cobalt offered a book that described
what each function actually made in the way of changes to the config
file and to the underlying database (for RaQ2 and RaQ3) but I'm also
a little biased and think any systems administrator who is going to
work from a command line (as they all should :) should also learn
Perl -- it's just too prevalent in today's world for an administrator
to be able to avoid it.

> Imagine giving support (NOT AT $200) for the first unit. Gee, after that,
> the next 50/100 wouldn't even need support. It would have been done on the
> first unit.
> 
> Most of the clients that we have had to walk through hosting by the hand,
> have turned out to bring allot of referrals, and fewer questions.

You're a lucky man, I can't say my experience has been the same.
There are a few who bring in referrals, but the vast majority 
often have the same questions as before.  Some concepts just
take a while longer for some people. :-)


-- 
Robert G. Fisher		     NEOCOM Microspecialists Inc. 
System Administrator/Programmer      (540) 666-9533 x 116