Slicehost

We want to make you aware that beginning in September, due to a change in our underlying subscription arrangements with Red Hat, we can no longer offer a daily pro-rated billing option for RHEL instances. Slicehost customers will be billed for RHEL instances on a monthly rather than pro-rated daily basis.

However, the total cost of service for most RHEL customers will likely go down under the monthly billing model.

Both Rackspace Cloud and Slicehost will begin charging RHEL customers a monthly $20 licensing fee. This license fee won’t be prorated, so every Slice you spin up with RHEL will be subject to a full month’s license fee.

What this means for Slice customers:

• Instead of being billed for your RHEL license on a pro-rated daily basis, customers using Red Hat will be billed on a monthly basis (normal monthly billing cycle).

• The Slice itself will continue to be billed on a pro-rated basis - this only affects the RHEL license.

• The new fee for RHEL has been reduced to $20 per month per Slice.

• Every Slice you spin up with RHEL will be subject to a full month’s license fee, no matter how long you use it. If a Slice with RHEL is running for any portion of a month, then you will be billed for that month’s license fee.

Thank you for your understanding as we shift to monthly billing for RHEL users. If you would like help understanding how this might affect your personal usage please feel free to submit a ticket via the SliceManager, email us (support@slicehost.com) or pop into chat 24/7.

A new kernel, 2.6.35.1, is now available in the SliceManager for all slices located in our STL-B, DFW, and ORD data centers. Additionally, it is now set as the default kernel when rebuilding an existing slice or for any new slices that you may add to your account.

If you would like to upgrade the kernel on your pre-existing slice, you can do so by following the steps described in this blog post. Please keep in mind that this process will require a reboot of your slice in order to fully complete.

If you have any questions or run into any issues, we are available 24/7 in SliceChat. We can also be reached by submitting a ticket through the SliceManager or emailing us directly at support@slicehost.com.

Another article series is up, this time concerning using cron to schedule tasks in Linux. If you need to run a script regularly (like calling Drupal's "cron.php" page nightly, or backing up a frequently-changing file every hour), then cron will serve the purpose nicely.

This is one of those topics that can be as simple or complex as you want it to be. The first article covers the simple part, so start there. If you're looking to read someone else's cron schedule in cron.d or a crontab, however, you'll want to continue to the other two articles. It can't be helped, sometimes life is complicated.

Basic Linux task scheduling with cron

Fine-grained task scheduling with cron.d

Multi-user task scheduling with crontab

Hopefully the explanations will de-mystify cron a bit and make it easier to automate some of your application maintenance.

As ever, pass your comments along if you like them, don't like them, or think they need changing. And if they baffle and confuse you, our techs are in support chat 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, ready to help you recover.

Thanks for reading!

We have added support in the SliceManager for a new kernel, version 2.6.34.1. The kernel is now available in our ORD, DFW, and STL-B data centers as of this blog post. We recommend that you upgrade your slice to this version as it does include quite a few bug fixes and security updates over the previously offered kernels.

I won't go into details in this post as it is rather lengthy, but if you wish to review all of the updates included in this kernel, the full changelog can be found here

Kernel 2.6.34.1 is now set as the default for all new slice builds. However, if you are running an older kernel on a pre-existing slice and would like to upgrade, you can do so by following the steps described in this blog post.

Please be aware that upgrading the kernel on your slice will require a reboot in order to complete.

If you experience any issues or if there is anything we can assist you with, please come visit with us in chat. We are available 24 hours a day and can also be contacted by submitting a ticket through the SliceManager or via email at support@slicehost.com.

Imagine a world where code used by the biggest clouds is freely available to any developer, anywhere. A world where that code was a standard used to build private clouds as well as a variety of new service offers. In this world, workloads could be moved around these clouds easily - you could fire your cloud provider for bad service or lack of features, but not have to rewrite the software to do it. Imagine an open source cloud operating system that lifts IT to the next level of innovation, just as Linux drove the web to new heights.  

Today, we at Rackspace launched an ambitious project called OpenStack that aims to make this new world a reality.

I want to lay out the thinking that got us here and why we think this moment will change computing forever.  

"The cloud" at its most fundamental level is all about a massive supply increase in computing power. The PC era was all about putting a computer on every desk. The cloud era goes a step further, putting the power of supercomputing at the literal fingertips of every individual at anytime.  Whether it's enabling a youth soccer coach to schedule practice across the online calendars of 18 families, or helping a scientist fold proteins to design new cancer drugs, or encouraging a frontline employee to instantly and cheaply test a new marketing campaign, the exponential growth in computing power and applications is changing every corner of our economy and society. And, this era is truly just beginning. We have seen only a tiny fraction of the potential gains that arise from cheap, ubiquitous computing power.  

As this landscape has evolved, some have dismissed cloud computing as just a return to the mainframe era. This view is fundamentally wrong.  Mainframes were available to only the smartest employees at the richest companies. The cloud is accessible to all, and usable by anyone, at low cost. Its ubiquity is the source of its power.

However, there is one area where mainframe concepts are intruding into the cloud - the vertically integrated technology stack. As hardware and software merge into services, the danger of locked down proprietary software stacks are emerging in the cloud space. The cloud world changes everything, and that is not good to many entrenched interests of the old guard. Core technologies from operating systems to hypervisors to databases are being used to tie cloud customers into an integrated view of the world.  

If the web has taught us anything, it is that open systems, portability, and choice drive innovation. The open Linux system brought us a mountain of software and tools to help accomplish almost any task. And, each component, whether a database or a widget could be moved in and out freely based on the job getting done.  

We at Rackspace have long talked about an "open" cloud. And as a service provider built on our Fanatical Support difference, we have never had an interest in creating technical walls around our service. But, given that no standards tools have emerged to build massively scalable clouds, we too have had to build custom software that creates some level of wall around our cloud offerings. For months we have debated how to drive greater standards and increase the velocity of cloud technologies in general. We finally converged on the obvious answer:  open source our cloud technology.

Today, we announced a new open source project that includes those core technologies: OpenStack.  And, we are not alone.  As we looked at all the projects that already existed to drive standards we saw that other efforts were underway that complemented what we have done. We saw a ton of promise in the Nebula computing project built by NASA and are making it a core part of the project.  Taking the contributions of Rackspace and NASA as a starting point, OpenStack forms a powerful foundation of technologies including, a scalable compute provisioning engine - OpenStack Compute - and a fully distributed storage engine - OpenStack Object Storage.  

The community, which we plan to actively support and drive, is live today at openstack.org with code available for download.  

Last week we assembled a strong group of cloud community leaders and developers to meet and review the architecture, engage on technology direction and contribute code. The effort attracted more than 100 participants from 25 companies including hosting companies, telecom providers, hardware manufacturers, cloud ecosystem companies and beyond. This enthusiasm and collaboration around OpenStack has laid the foundation for a vibrant and innovative approach to building the core software to power the future cloud world. 

What do we expect OpenStack to mean for the cloud community? Some pretty major things. One, anyone will be able to run this cloud and do it anywhere. Enterprises and governments will be able to build private clouds. Service providers will have the same technology used by Rackspace and NASA to build new offers. Choice and portability are inevitable in this world. Two, the whole tech ecosystem can build around this foundation. With wide adoption, there will be a market for new services all around this core engine. From storage systems to monitoring tools to management systems, there is no end to what can be attached to the core project. Three, the cloud will advance faster than ever. Between just NASA and Rackspace, an army of developers are committed to the continued advancement of OpenStack.  With our emerging supporters in the project, we expect to dramatically expand that army. Finally, a core set of standards will be freely available and totally open. New technologies can be attached. Better solutions will be driven into the product. And, the use of this powerful technology will not tie you to the use of any other technologies.

For our customers, we think there are many benefits that flow from these community gains. Not only will this help our offers develop faster and more transparently, but our customers can run private editions of our core systems in house or in our managed hosting operation.  

We could not be more excited about the launch of this project and the enthusiasm around it. As a company that has invested a great deal in the development of cloud technologies, we did not take the decision to open source lightly. We think this decision will serve our interests and those of our customers. While we at Rackspace hire top developers and engineers to make sure our technology is second to none, seeking a technology advantage has never been our approach.   We have our own vision about how to deploy this technology and serve customers - by giving them seamless access to scalable computing with the trusting partnership that comes through Fanatical Support. But, there will be many approaches and winning formulas. We think by welcoming those approaches and driving standards and more rapid innovation we will all win.  

We hope you join us in this cause. We know there are many parties who might want to join us in the effort, please reach out to us.  

We look forward to updating you as we make progress.

Author: Lew Moorman - President, Cloud and Chief Strategy Officer

More articles, that is. This time about a subject both esoteric and essential: File permissions.

Yes, Linux file permissions can be pretty scary, especially when you see your first "chmod 755" or "chown root:www-data". A lot of times explanations don't even help that much, and you only really start to understand permissions through trial and error.

But we've taken a shot at the explanation thing, covering aspects of file permissions ranging from what it means to own a file, to changing permissions with chmod, to setting the umask, to discovering that at least half of what you find on the Internet about the "sticky bit" is wrong (seriously, it turns out most of us were actually thinking of setgid).

In short, the articles range from beginner topics to advanced. They may not convey instant and complete understanding of file permissions (though I hope they do), but they should at least give you a head start that can make the trial-and-error stuff a lot easier.

The articles, in order, with links:

Linux file permission concepts

Checking Linux file permissions with ls

Using chmod, part 1 - symbolic mode

Using chmod, part 2 - octal mode

Umask and unusual file permissions

If you run into problems, post about them in the comments, email us, or hit SliceChat to get help from our tech support staff 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Thanks for reading!

We have a new article series up on using the logrotate service to, well, rotate logs. I recommend it to anyone with a slice, especially if they've never heard the term "log rotation" before (or did, but thought it had something to do with lumberjacks).

Understanding logrotate

It's a two-parter, with the first part discussing the basics of logrotate and why you'd want to use it, while the second part describes how to set up log rotation for virtual hosts and gives some troubleshooting tips.

Quite often when a customer comes to us with a disk space problem, or are concerned because their slice resize is taking a long long time, the culprit is a giant log or two. That's especially the case for virtual host logs, but it can also happen with custom applications that write to their own logs. Once logrotate is set up it will take care of those logs for you, making sure they don't get too bloated.

In the "worth mentioning" department, earlier this month Matiu posted the steps he used to upgrade PHP on an Ubuntu Hardy slice. Plenty of people are still using Hardy, so the instructions may prove useful to others.

Upgrading PHP on Ubuntu Hardy

As always, we have people sitting in slicechat and monitoring requests sent via email to support@slicehost.com. If you have questions, concerns, or an aching need for human contact, we're around 24/7.

Thanks for reading!

Earlier this week, we introduced a new kernel, 2.6.33.5, in the SliceManager. This kernel is currently available for all slices located in our STL-B, DFW, and ORD data centers and is now set as the default when creating any new slices.

In order to upgrade your pre-existing slice to the latest kernel available, we recommend that you follow the steps discussed in this previous blog post.

As always, please remember that this process does require a reboot of your slice.

Additionally, for those who wish to delve into the advanced practice of building kernel headers or compiling a module on their slice, we are pleased to be able to provide you with the following articles that we hope prove useful:

Downloading and using kernel source code

If you have questions or run into any issues, our friendly and knowledgeable support staff is available in SliceChat 24 hours a day. As well, please feel free to email us at support@slicehost.com if there if there is anything we can assist you with.

Arch Linux 2010.05 64-bit is now an available option in the SliceManager when building a new slice as well as rebuilding an existing one.

As always, please note that any existing data on the slice will be erased if you choose to rebuild a slice using this image.

On Tuesday, June 15th, we will be removing the previous Arch Linux image, 2009.02, as an available option. If you wish to continue utilizing this image, you can take a backup of an existing slice in the SliceManager.

If you have any questions or concerns, please come visit with us in SliceChat or via email at support@slicehost.com. We are available 24 hours a day.

We are pleased to announce that 32-bit and 64-bit support for Fedora 13 (Goddard) images are now available in the SliceManager.

In order to take advantage of these images, you can add a new slice to your account or rebuild an existing slice in the SliceManager. Please keep in mind that the rebuild process will erase any existing data on the slice.

We also have a few Fedora 13 specific setup articles to help you in configuring and securing your slice as soon as possible.

Fedora 13 Setup Part 1

Fedora 13 Setup Part 2

Furthermore, please be aware that Fedora will no longer support Fedora 11 (Leonidas) after June 25th, 2010. At this time, we will also remove this image as an available option in the SliceManager. If you wish to retain a Fedora 11 image after June 25th, you can take a backup of an existing slice to do so.

If you have any questions or run into any issues our support staff is available in SliceChat 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We can also be reached via email at support@slicehost.com

A new kernel, 2.6.32.12, is now available for slices in our STL-B, DFW, and ORD data centers. This kernel is not affected by the memory calculation bug that was present in our last two releases.

If you wish to upgrade the kernel on your slice to the latest available, you can do so with just a few clicks in the SliceManager. The following blog post details the steps that are necessary to upgrade your slice's kernel.

Please note that this process does require a reboot of your slice.

As always, we are available 24/7 in SliceChat or via email at support@slicehost.com to assist you with any issues you may have.

New articles on installing and configuring apache are up. They should be less version-bound than the older articles on the subject. Which were pretty good, mind you. The new ones are just, um, gooder.

There are eight articles in the series, with versions for Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, Debian, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux. A convenient portal to the first article of each is nestled in this article:

Installing apache

The subjects covered in each article are, in order:

• Installing apache

• Installing PHP

• Apache configuration files

• Configuring the Apache MPM

• Apache configuration part 1

• Apache configuration part 2

• Apache Virtual Hosts part 1

• Apache Virtual Hosts part 2

I did want to highlight the articles on "Configuring the apache MPM". The MPM is apache's engine for handling connections, and if it's misconfigured it can lead to apache trying to use more system resources than are actually available. Indeed, the default settings for the MPM tend to favor servers with 1 GB of memory available, which means a smaller slice with less memory runs the risk of becoming unstable when it's getting heavy traffic.

With that in mind, some direct links to the MPM article for each distribution, for people who already have apache running but have never tinkered with the MaxClients setting: Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, Debian, and Red Hat.

If you run into any trouble with those articles, or just with stuff in general, our friendly and knowledgeable support staff are waiting in SliceChat for your questions, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Thanks for reading!

CentOS 5.5 was released earlier this afternoon and we are happy to bring you a 32-bit as well as a 64-bit image that are now both available in the SliceManager.

These images are ready to be put to use for any rebuilds or new slice builds. If you do choose to rebuild your slice, please note that any existing data will be erased.

A big thank you to Major from our operations team for his hard work in making these images available.

If you come across any issues or have any questions, please feel free to come see us in SliceChat at any time. We are available 24 hours a day in chat and can be reached via email at support@slicehost.com as well.

Update: We have setup articles for CentOS 5.5 available as well:

CentOS 5.5 Setup - part 1

CentOS 5.5 Setup - part 2

On Monday, May 31st, we will be removing CentOS 5.3 as an available option from the image repository. As always, if you wish to continue utilizing this image, you can take a backup of an existing slice in the SliceManager. The CentOS 5.4 and 5.5 images will still be available.

Canonical released Ubuntu Lucid Lynx earlier today and we are pleased to announce that the 32-bit and 64-bit version are now available for your slice as well.

Something to take notice of is that this release is an LTS (Long Term Support) version. This means that Canonical will continue to provide security updates and bug fixes for the applications available from their repositories for a period of five years, as opposed to 18 months with a normal release.

If you wish to take advantage of this new Ubuntu Lucid image, please login to the SliceManager to create a new slice or you can perform a rebuild of an existing slice. Keep in mind that a rebuild will erase any existing data on the slice.

Our community liaison, Jered, was nice enough to put together a few setup articles to help you get started right away with configuring and securing your Ubuntu Lucid slice.

Ubuntu Lucid Setup Part 1

Ubuntu Lucid Setup Part 2

There is also an Ubuntu Lucid category where you can find other articles that have been tested for this distribution.

On another note, Canonical will end support for Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex tomorrow April 30th, 2010. Therefore, we will be removing this image as an option in two weeks time to avoid any complications. If you wish to preserve a base image of Ubuntu Intrepid, you can do so by creating a backup in the SliceManager.

If you have any questions or would like to speak directly with a member of our support team, we are available 24 hours a day in our official SliceChat room. Additionally, please feel free to email us at support@slicehost.com at any time.

We've added setup articles for our current CentOS, Fedora, Red Hat, and Ubuntu slice images. Each of the links below is to the first page (of two) for each tutorial. If you're setting up a new slice, the articles offer advice on some basic security practices and configuration tweaks. They're worth a look.

CentOS 5.3 Setup
CentOS 5.4 Setup

Fedora 11 setup
Fedora 12 setup

RHEL 5.3 Setup
RHEL 5.4 Setup

Ubuntu Jaunty Setup
Ubuntu Karmic Setup

Forum user dlrush is seeking feedback on a tool to dynamically and easily change a slice's firewall settings. The tool includes a tie-in to the Slicehost API so permissions can be automatically updated when you create new slices.

Slicehost isn't officially associated with the project in any way, but it does sound useful enough to link to. If this looks neat to you, check the forum post on the offering:

Easier Firewall Configuration - Safe Private IPs, using IPtables

As always, our friendly and knowledgeable support staff are waiting in SliceChat for your questions, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. So are the surly and knowledgeable ones that are good at acting friendly. Just you try and tell the difference!