Zimbra error - Unable to determine enabled services from ldap

Symptoms: Zimbra users unable to log in to webmail, admin user unable to log into web interface, error "Unable to determine enabled services from ldap" if issuing command
$ opt/zimbra/bin/zmcontrol start

Cause: Zimbra's internal certificate has expired

Fix (as root):

# /opt/zimbra/bin/zmcertmgr createca -new
# /opt/zimbra/bin/zmcertmgr createcrt -new -days 365
# /opt/zimbra/bin/zmcertmgr deploycrt self
# /opt/zimbra/bin/zmcertmgr deployca
# su zimbra
$ /opt/zimbra/bin/zmcontrol restart

Windows Vista – Control Panel Inaccessible

If you cannot access your Windows Vista Control Panel, try this:

Select Start button –> Run –> enter “sfc /scannnow” –> Select OK

System files will be checked and repaired if possible; you might be prompted for your original Vista install media so that corrupted files can be replaced.

Making a Bootable Ubuntu USB Flash Drive Using Isostick.sh

If, like me, you're too lazy to find a blank CD every time you want to try a new flavour of Ubuntu, these instructions might be useful. This needs to be done on an Internet-connected Linux machine, follow these steps at your own peril (worked for me):

1. If you haven't done so yet, get your favourite Ubuntu .iso file here

2. Whilst it is downloading, get the isostick.sh script here

3. Install syslinux : $ sudo apt-get install syslinux

4. Observe the output of : $ sudo fdisk -l

5. Pop in your empty >= 1GB USB flash drive and repeat step 4, noting the additional lines to indicate the presence of your flash drive. You want to find its path which will be something like /dev/sdb1 or /dev/sdc1. For the remainder of this example, we will use the unlikely address of /dev/sdz/ and /dev/sdz1 - insert the address relevant to your own system.

CAUTION: be sure - if you're not sure, remove any other external storage devices and try steps 4 and 5 again. If you're still not sure, don't proceed. Save yourself the chilling horror of discovering that you've just nuked something you didn't mean to. Seriously. Be sure.

6. Just to be safe, unmount your flash drive (in the event of the OS having mounted it automatically) : $ sudo umount /dev/sdz1

7. Now we need to partition your flash drive (note that we're referring to the drive itself here, not an individual partition, so we omit the 1 from the end of the path) : $ fdisk /dev/sdz

8. Enter p to list existing partitions on the drive, enter d to delete them (follow the prompts), enter n to create a new partition (follow the prompts), enter t and set the type to 6, enter a followed by 1 to make your new partition bootable, enter w to write the changes and your flash drive should now be partitioned with a FAT16 partition, ready for formatting

8. Enter : $ sudo mkfs.msdos /dev/sdz1

9. To save some hassles, copy your Ubuntu .iso and the isostick.sh script to the same folder and cd to it in your command line. Alternately enter the full paths in the following command.

10. To actually write the image to the disk using isostick (no need to be alarmed by the error messages) : $ sudo isostick.sh ubuntu-9.04-desktop-i386.iso /dev/sdz1

11. See if it boots - remember that not all PC's will automatically boot from a USB device - you might need to set your boot order in your BIOS when the PC is starting up, or look for an instruction to press a certain key to access the boot menu / boot options during startup (before the OS starts loading).

Credits and links:

Thanks to ricey for his useful page over here, which put me onto the isostick.sh script

Additional information from our Ubuntu friends on USB booting

One source for the elusive isostick.sh script

Rant

So, I've had a Nintendo Wii for about 3 months now. Somewhat unfortunately, for the past 3 months, I've also been fairly bankrupt and thus unable to afford any games for it. The novelty of the included Sports bundle is starting to wane, but when I read about the new game World of Goo there seemed to be light at the end of the tunnel.

As soon as I read about it, I wanted it. With trembling hands I went online Wii shopping, only to discover that the WiiWare version is only available in the US. That would be great for me, IF I WAS LIVING IN THE US!!! But alas, I'm not, so have to wait until next year for my Goo-dness.

But I ask you, with gleaming eyes, in this time of globalisation and an ever-shrinking planet, HOW AND WHY CAN A GAME BE RELEASED IN AN ONLINE STORE AND ONLY BE MADE AVAILABLE TO ONE COUNTRY??? And yes, I did check my Wii options to see if I could tell it that I was living in the US, but the bastard killjoys were apparently one step ahead of me on that one as well.

Blackberry + Mobipocket Reader - SD Card Access

After unsuccessfully fiddling around with getting Mobipocket Reader to successfully transfer files to my Blackberry BES handheld (inside / outside firewall errors and memory errors), I found this recipe worked:

- Install the latest version of the handheld client software through the desktop Mobipocket Reader software

- On the corporate BES, I had to loosen the IT policy to "Allow internal connections" and "Allow external connections". Once this policy was applied, the client application on the handheld would start without the firewall error message. If you're unable to arrange this change, you're probably SOL.

DO NOT FOLLOW THE OFTEN RECOMMENDED INSTRUCTIONS TO WIPE YOUR BLACKBERRY HANDHELD POLICY - you will probably end up losing everything on the device, having to do a full re-install and pissing off your IT administrator(s). I cannot believe that this is an advocated solution to this problem. Also, don't go about downloading random policy files which are made available on the web as a solution to problems similar to these, unless the handheld is your personal posession and not under the control of a BES.

- Carefully follow these instructions: https://wwww.mobipocket.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7622&sid=d161b23c5aa511d560dbc0c6984057b0
Contrary to most of this instructions online, you need to have mass storage mode OFF on the handheld for the Mobipocket software to be able to access the SD card.

Unfortunately there is a lot of conflicting information on this topic, both on the web in general and specifically on the Mobipocket forums.

Project Asterisk - Part 1

[DRAFT] Introduction

I have implemented a few Asterisk installs at the office for various functions, including a conference bridge host with dedicated numbers for our various departments and Hylafax integration for an inbound fax server. These projects were in the earlier days of version 1.4. In order to integrate with our Avaya ACD at the office, it was necessary to use an H.323 trunk, which I could only get to connect using version 1.4.x. At that time, all the "packaged" Asterisk distributions I could find (Trixbox, FreePBX and others) were based on 1.2.x.

This was in Ubuntu 6.06's heyday, which also only included an older 1.2.x version in the package tree. This necessitated having to download and build Asterisk from source. Building Asterisk from source is a well documented affair. It is very satisfying when all the bits fall into place and you log into your first softphone and are able to successfully place your first test call. Establishing the H.323 trunk was the most difficult part - there is no particularly concise information on this topic and the various flavours of H.323 channel drivers exist in varying states of obscurity.

To cut what is turning into a long story short, through this process I got a bit of insight into the manual configuration aspects of Asterisk and was very impressed with how powerful the software was.

Installing Asterisk on Ubuntu 8.04 Edge Eft

$ sudo -i
# apt-get install asterisk
# apt-get install build-essential
# wget -zaptel-
# ./configure
make modules
make install-modules
modprobe ztdummy

Google is Cool

Search for "via nano motherboard cpu buy"

and the first link is to a Slashdot article on the Via Nano vs Intel Atom.

Cool.