Updated Solutions to Classic Challenges
A personal website dedicated to helping IT professionals review where we've been, where we are, and maybe where we are headed.
Problem: I recently ran into an SSH Timeout error while trying to execute a “packer build” for an AMI on AWS. This was very confusing to me because the files were tested successfully in a different AWS account.
Read MoreSolution to Amazon EKS kubectl error: “Unable to connect to the server: dial tcp x.x.x.x:443: i/o timeout”
Read MoreDuring the pandemic a lot about our lives have changed, especially in how we work and communicate with our peers. I’ve especially noticed a rise in the use of video. It is more a part of our work than ever before. Customers too, have asked for more communication via video. This could be due to the fact that we’re all doing zoom / teams or similar such apps. But I’ve also noticed this impacting documentation. There seems to be an appetite for documentation to either be in the form of video or incorporate video in some way. Because of the desire to see more video documentation, I’ve had to expand my skillset beyond MS office apps like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. I’m trying to improve my proficiency in iMovie, SnagIt, and OBS.
Read MoreLog onto the AMI via SSH
Go to the log folder: type: cd /opt/bitnami/var/log
Get the username . type : sudo more pre-start.log |grep user
Get the password . type: sudo more pre-start.log |grep password
This error is encountered when attempting to connect to an EC2 instance via SSH with a .pem file that doesn’t have the appropriate linux filesystem permissions in place.
CD to the directory where the file exists
Type : sudo chmod 400 <filename>
The next time you run ssh it should work.
I ran into this issue on a Macbook Pro running OS X. My file permissions were “too open” for use. The file permissions before I made the change were set to 0644 which threw the error.
Many Tesla owners have expressed a desire to use Apple’s Music service in their cars. The preferred way to do this for most owners would be to use Apple Car Play. Car Play could be really amazing given the large amount of screen real estate to work with in Tesla vehicles. Ideally, it could be positioned in such a way that it doesn’t interfere with other screen activities. Unfortunately, we don’t have an officially supported method of Car Play. Recently, Tesla owners were given hope of access to at least the music portion of the Apple service via the newly released Apple Music Web App. It saddens me to report, however, that the Apple Music web app doesn’t work with the current browser version.
Read MoreMy most recent Azure cloud statement was shocking. In one month, I was able to run up a bill for close to $1000. Now, for a corporate account, that might not be much, but for a personal account, it’s a bit much. I’m just a regular guy with a wife and kids. I use Azure for learning and testing concepts that I pitch at work to customers. Proof of concept testing is usually quick and costs just a few dollars a month. I’ve never seen a personal account reach this number in a single month.
Read MoreSQL Server 2008 R2 is quickly approaching EOL. Some are still looking for ways to migrate their databases to newer releases of SQL Server such as SQL Server 2017. This blog post details a simple method for migrating simple databases using detach and attach. By simple, I mean databases without complicated transnational replication technologies such as mirroring. I imagine this method would used for databases supporting simple applications.
Read MoreAmazon has made available a new set of graphics in Visio, and other formats. These stencils are an excellent resource for architects and engineers who need to document cloud environments.
The symbols can be found here: https://aws.amazon.com/architecture/icons/
All the major file formats are available including: EPS, PNG, SVG, Visio, and PowerPoint. Interestingly, there are two sets of PowerPoint shapes. One supports light backgrounds. The other supports dark backgrounds. I’ve included an example of what each looks like for comparison.
Read MoreI ran into a strange error today. I attempted to launch SQL Server Configuration Manger on a server deployed in Azure, and I was greeted with an error dialog that implied either the server was unreachable or that I didn’t have rights. The error read, “Cannot connect to WMI provider. You Do not have permission or the server is unreachable. Note that you can only manage SQL Server 2055 and later servers with SQL Server Configuration Manager. Invalid namespace [0x8004100e].” After a bit of digging, I found a solution, and possibly even a root cause.
Read MoreKnowing I’d have a bit of a vacation this winter, I wanted to get in a bit of reading. I decided to pick my books differently this year. Instead of just seeing whatever was at the top of the NYT list, or some cool looking sci-fi, I decided to let the Silicon Valley folks pick out my books. The list is a mixture of texts found on the lists of Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and others from a Business Insider article that gathered recommendations from many in the tech industry.
Read MoreMicrosoft Azure provides the capability to use command line tools such as PowerShell without having it installed on your computer. This is accomplished via Azure Cloud Shell. Azure Cloud Shell can help you get working in Azure quickly on different platforms, or even from a loaner machine. There are many situations where you might not have your normally loaded computer, but you still need to work in Azure. Azure Cloud Shell can be quite handy.
Read MoreMeeting government security mandates can be challenging to say the least. It’s often a laborious and confusing process. A myriad of controls all need to be addressed and proven to assessors. Microsoft has assembled a collection of documents that assists Federal customers in understanding which security controls are inherited from Azure and which remain the responsibility of the customer.
Read MoreA few new images showed up on Azure. Looking through the images, one can now find images for both SQL Server 2019 and SQL Server 2019 CTP. This is an excellent way to test the new software before going live with it in production. One note is that at the time of this writing, the only version of Windows Server 2019 that’s available is datacenter.
Read MoreThe Dashboard theme in Azure can be changed. I didn't know this was possible until I came across a tweet by @msdev. I figured I'd pass this along and try to help spread the word for those who like to customize their experiences.
Read MoreI recently decided to try out the SoftNAS virtual appliance in my Azure account. The installation went as smoothly as any other Azure template install. All was good until I tried to login to the web interface. No matter what userid / password combination I tried, I could not get into the web admin GUI. Frustrated by this, I decided to do some digging.
Read MoreSubscribing to Microsoft Visual Studio Professional for 1 year is a great option for anyone considering putting time into Azure as a learning platform. The annual subscription for Visual Studio is $539 and includes $50 in Azure credits. Let that sink in for a second. Microsoft is giving away $600 ($50 x 12 months) worth of Azure for $539.
Read MoreI recently completed the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate exam. This blog post details some of my exam prep experience and testing tips.
Read MoreWhen using MS Azure to create Infrastructure as a Service based solutions, choosing an appropriate server type is crucial to not only performance, but controlling costs. B Series Servers might be the right option for your workload.
Read MoreSometimes you need a good set of icons to help create a design. I recently discovered just such a set and it's been a pleasant surprise in multiple ways. Not only are the images in this download available in Visio format, but SVG, PNG, and PowerPoint formats are also included.
Read More