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Leveraging Citrix XenServer Tools

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

Ideally, you should use the “Quick Instances” and other VM templates provided by our Xen Orchestra Dashboard when creating virtual servers for your project. These have been optimised with tools and drivers designed to get the best performance from your virtual machine, and to access advanced features such as safe shutdown in the event of power outage. But what if your VM was built from scratch, can you still access these tools?

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How to Setup Unattended Upgrades on Debian Stretch

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

Debian is a volunteer project that has developed and maintained a GNU/Linux operating system for well over a decade. Since its launch, the Debian project has grown to comprise more than 1,000 members with official developer status, alongside many more volunteers and contributors. Today, Debian encompasses over 50,000 packages of free, open source applications and documentation. The popular distribution Ubuntu builds on the Debian architecture and infrastructure and collaborates widely with Debian developers, but there are important differences. Ubuntu has a distinctive user interface, a separate developer community (though many developers participate in both projects) and a different release process.

If you decide to use a Debian server for your project (good idea – it’s secure, robust and fast), then you should always have the latest security patches and updates, whether you’re asleep or not. This is actually pretty easy to do. Here’s how.

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Using a local APT Repository for your Student VM

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

Advanced Package Tool, or APT, is a free software user interface that works with core libraries to handle the installation and removal of software on Debian, Ubuntu and other Linux distributions. APT simplifies the process of managing software on Unix-like computer systems by automating the retrieval, configuration and installation of software packages, either from precompiled files or by compiling source code.

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Getting Started with Ubuntu Core and Snaps

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

Ubuntu Core is a transactional version of the Ubuntu Linux OS, made specifically for internet of things (IoT) devices and large container deployments. This OS powers many digital signs, robotics and gateways, and uses the same kernel, libraries and system software as the standard Ubuntu, but on a much smaller scale.

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Send Email from a Virtual Server in DkIT

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

The Cloud Virtualisation Platform we have built at https://xoa.comp.dkit.ie is a fantastic resource, comparable to AWS, Digital Ocean etc but yet free and importantly, secure because it is inside the DkIT Firewall. However, this same security can prevent useful features most server can do easily, like sending email.

This tutorial details how to configure your virtual server in DkIT to send email via the Microsoft Outlook Mail Server (which is actually the other side of the firewall).

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Managing WordPress with WP-CLI

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

WP-CLI is a command line interface which allows the users to manage their WordPress web sites from the command prompt. Upgrades can be performed, backups can be generated, new posts can be published and most of the regular admin actions can be performed with a set of commands.

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How to install Mono on Ubuntu 16.04

Watch out! This tutorial is over 7 years old. Please keep this in mind as some code snippets provided may no longer work or need modification to work on current systems.

Sponsored by Microsoft, Mono is an open source implementation of Microsoft’s .NET Framework based on the ECMA standards for C#and the Common Language Runtime. A growing family of solutions and an active and enthusiastic contributing community is helping position Mono to become the leading choice for development of cross platform applications.

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