linux - Cris' hacks

httpd Docker container issue: a possible workaround 2

Jul

8

2023

Last week I was deploying some Docker containers on a staging virtual machine and I faced an issue with a httpd:2.4 Docker image. The container started and then immediately exited with code 0. All containers worked fine, but the only one running httpd for some reason failed. The docker logs command showed something like this: ...

Written by Cristiano

LILO fails to install on Slackware 15.0

Mar

13

2022

Some days ago I tried the new version of Slackware on my desktop (dual boot with Windows 10) and during the installation I ran into the following error: The key of the problem was all in the statement: Fatal: open /dev/nvm: No such file or directory Investigating the content of /etc/lilo.conf I found a quirk ...

Written by Cristiano

Wireless access point with Zeroshell and Raspberry Pi

Apr

25

2020

A few days ago my powerline definitely died, so I had to set up a very basic wireless access point using Zeroshell and my Raspberry Pi. As you know, the version 3 of this device comes with built-in wireless capabilities. In this article I will briefly explain all the necessary steps to create the access ...

Written by Cristiano

How to start a Bitnami stack at boot on Slackware

May

5

2019

Bitnami stacks are a sort of self-contained sets of applications that allow you to run server-side software without touching anything on your operating system. After the installation procedure all the needed stuff is located into a folder which can be also relocated, if necessary. Bitnami logo In my opinion these kind of tools are very ...

Written by Cristiano

Vbox-autoinstall: an easy way to install Oracle VirtualBox on GNU/Linux Slackware 4

Nov

24

2018

Hi folks! Last weekend I had to manually update VirtualBox on my laptop. As you can imagine, in these kind of situations my laziness takes over and then I almost suddenly start to think a smart way to get rid of the dirty job. So I ended up writing down a simple bash script to ...

Written by Cristiano

A simple C++ library to drive a stepper motor using the Raspberry Pi 2

Oct

13

2018

About two years ago I wrote a simple C++ class to drive a small stepper motor using the Raspberry Pi. Recently I’ve done the last change to the code. In this post I will try to describe in a simple way how to use the library, also with the help of some examples. Hardware requirements ...

Written by Cristiano

Kernel patches: added support for HTTP mirrors 2

May

24

2018

In the previous post I talked about my attempt to create a script to automate the kernel patches installation procedure on Slackware (stable) and I reported the quick ‘n’ dirty instructions to run it, with also a video demonstration. A few time after, a dear friend tried the script and he pointed out to me ...

Written by Cristiano

How to install kernel patches automatically on Slackware 4

Feb

10

2018

For some strange reason, some time ago, I started to write down a simple Bash script that only detected the presence of new kernel patches on Slackware stable and installed the respective packages. Then I tried to improve it until I reached the actual version. I’m not so experienced in Bash scripting, but I decided ...

Written by Cristiano

Secure webcam streaming with mjpg-streamer and stunnel 2

Jul

9

2017

Last week I was trying to understand how to establish a secure connection with a webcam streaming server. The idea was to setup a kind of small homemade surveillance system to be used when I’m away. I knew of mjpg-streamer and I used it years ago, but I’ve never tried to encrypt the communication channel ...

Written by Cristiano

Virtual disk data recovery

Oct

24

2015

The last weekend was terrible. On Friday evening I was writing some VHDL code for a small project and testing step-by-step all the stuff through a VHDL simulator running on Windows. Obviously, to do this I used a VirtualBox virtual machine, since my host OS is a Linux distro. Once I finished to work I simply ...

Written by Cristiano