Remote management with Rails

The Rails demo for remote systems management with WS-Man is available at the openwsman web site.
Just follow the install and configure instructions. In short you need

• openwsman
  An open source implementation of the ws-management standard.
• rwsman
  Ruby bindings for openwsman client operations.
• Ruby On Rails
  Web development that doesn't hurt
• Railsapp
  Rails demo application for rwsman

Once everything is properly installed, start the Rails web server with ruby script/server. Now point your browser to http://localhost:3000 and you'll see the startup page. Click on the text, then click on Discover and the Discovery page will appear.

Look closely at the Actions line for each host and you'll notice the YaST action for the openSUSE client. This client has my openwsman-yast plugin installed.
The demo application allows to start and stop the desktop (the xdm service to be precise) and to switch the desktop environment between KDE and GNOME. YaST operations

Doc has videotaped a demo, you can find it in the idea.opensuse.org blog.

YaST as a WebService

Thanks to openwsman and openSUSE hack week, Linux systems with YaST installed can now be remotely controlled via a WebService.

My idea is now available as a package in the openSUSE build service.

Today I itend to use the openwsman ruby bindings and its Rails demo application to show true remote management.

Stay tuned ...

A clean start

So, here it is now, my shiny new blog space. But how to start ? What to blog about first ? Sometimes the small things are the hardest ... But slashdot to the rescue. This post gave me a good idea for a good start.

How does YOUR keyboard look like ?

Those of you having a cleaning woman wiping the keyboard once per week can stop reading now. All the others, wanting to get rid of THIS sight read on ! I will show you how to make your keyboard shiny-and-almost-new by putting it into the dishwasher.

Using the dishwasher for keyboard cleaning

The following description is for simple Cherry keyboards, other brands might need a different approach. With the right tools and technique, this should work for any kind of keyboard. Here's a picture of the dirty keyboard I'm going to disassemble. Putting the complete keyboard into the dishwasher might work, but after all its just the keys which need cleaning, not the electronics, cable or key mechanics. To start disassembly, turn it around to get access to the notches holding the case together. The upper and the lower case of the keyboard are held together with a number of L shaped notches (see picture below for a close-up), which have to be bend aside. (Is notch the right word for this ? Maybe a native speaker can come up with a better word.) Go and grab your toolbox and find a flat screwdriver or use a simple scissors, as I do. Be careful not to break it. The Cherry keyboard has four notches on the upper and five on the lower side. There are also three small ones in the middle, but these usually pop open without the need for a tool. Now the upperside of the keyboard can be lifted to open the case. As you can see, the upperside holds all the keycaps, the underside contains the mechanics and electronics. A lot of dirt usually accumulates on the black rubber mat which is used instead of coil springs you'll find in older (or more expensive) keyboards. Just take the rubber map out and clean it with a damp cloth. Below the rubber map, two plastic sheets with a metal layers (forming a capacitor) appear. The plastic sheets are wedged by the small circuit board in the upper right corner. Further disassembly needs a T8 Torx screwdriver. Removing the plastic sheets reveals a metal plate. This simply gives the keyboard some weight and keeps the downside from breaking if keys are pushed too hard. The metal plate is not fixed to the case and can easily been taken out. Ready for the dishwasher. Better use the economy setting, this should keep the washing temperature low enough to prevent the plastic from melting. Although normal dishes get dried to 'cupboard ready', water will still be hidden in the keycaps. Simply put the keyboard to a dry place for a couple of hours to let the remaining water evaporate. Reassembling is easy. Put the metal plate in, the plastic sheets, screw the electronics back in (ensure that the plastic sheet is below the circuit board), and put the rubber mat on top. Be careful and don't force it. All pieces have holes and guidance support from the underside of the keyboard case. As the last step, put both sides of the keyboard back together and press gently. You should hear a noticable 'click' as the notches snap back it. Thats it, now enjoy your shiny-and-almost-new keyboard !