Linux / Ubuntu help needed ?

Having problems installing that new stick of memory? Found some great software or having issues with something? Or maybe want to chat about your PlayStation, X-Box, Nintendo, Sega, even your old Spectrum 48k....! Or maybe something you want to sell or acquire (computing related of course!). Let us know here...
Post Reply
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Linux / Ubuntu help needed ?

Post by UBT - Timbo »

Hi all,

Anyone here uses Ubuntu for BOINC ? I've just upgraded a PC to Ubuntu 14.04 and I've installed BOINC on it.

However, I can't seem to edit the cc_config.xml file, (that's residing in etc/boinc-client folder), as although I'm logged in, this file "belongs" to boinc and hence I don't have permission to edit it.

My guess is that I need to login as "root"...but I've set Ubuntu to log in as me and I thought I'm the admin !!

Also, where do I place an app_info.xml file, as I can't find the project folders :(

So, I'm stuck trying to "fine-tune" this piece of hardware...

Anyone offer any clue as to how to get this sorted out?

regards
Tim
Last edited by UBT - Timbo on Mon Jul 27, 2015 9:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Re: Linux / Ubuntu help needed ?

Post by UBT - Timbo »

UBT - Timbo wrote:However, I can't seem to edit the cc_config.xml file, (thet's residing in etc/boinc client folder), as although I'm logged in, this file "belongs" to boinc and hence I don't have permission to edit it.
OK, so I've figured out if I use:

Code: Select all

sudo nano /etc/boinc-client/cc_config.xml
then I can edit this file, after giving nano my admin password.

However, I've then tried to use nano to create a file, named app_info.xml, in the same directory, and it won't allow me to save it.

I've then used "cp" to copy the cc_config.xml file as app_info.xml and then tried to edit this, but nano cannot see the app_info.xml file, even though it's in the same folder :(

And when I check the properties of app_info.xml, it's owned by "root", whereas, given that the cc_config.xml file is owned by boinc, I was expecting the copied file to be owned by boinc too.

...and one wonders why Windows is so popular - it's because Linux is a pain !!

regards
Tim
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

Hi all,

So, bit by bit I'm teaching myself Linux...but this is one sh*t piece of cr*pware....

[RANT TIME]

At every attempt to try and do stuff on this OS, I get stopped by it telling me I don't have permission. :(

Well, Ubuntu, I do - I installed this junk, followed all the prompts correctly and set my account up...so therefore I'm the admin and if I want to edit/change something, then it's MY right to do so....

Likewise this OS is on version 14.04 - and it feels just like Win 2.0 (as nothing is as bad as Win v1.0 - except maybe GEM).

This PC is a twin core Celeron with 4Gb or RAM and a 500Gb HDD....and yet it feels like it's running off a 5.25" single sided floppy...and there's no easy way to change anything - my 20" LCD monitor isn't recognised, so I'm stuck on 1024x768 graphics...excuse me ???

[RANT MODE OFF] (for now.

So, I've now found out where the BOINC project files are...they are in /var/lib/boinc-client....

And surprise surprise, I can't actually view the folders in the projects folder (as I don't have permission !!).

I had some BU tasks already, so I shut down BOINC Manager, as the BU tasks wouldn't crunch as the ASIC I am using (for test purposes) wasn't seen by BOINC Mgr.

So, BM was closed and then I had a quick look at a Windows PC and I find that the BU project files should be in a folder called:

www.bitcoinutopia.net_bitcoinutopia

So, I've used nano to create an app_info.xml file in the /var/lib/boinc-client folder

and then used cp to copy it to the BU project folder.

So, all should be good.....

Restarted BM and NOTHING - the (already downloaded) BU tasks have vanished, and in the Entry Log, there is no mention of app_info.xml being loaded.

So, the PC is crunching away on some CPU tasks (so I know BOINC is working as is the PC)...

But BU is NOT.

So, back to the drawing board, I guess.

regards
Tim
UBT - Mikee
Marvin the Dalek
Posts: 4395
Joined: Wed Mar 15, 2006 12:00 am
Location: North Wales

Post by UBT - Mikee »

Nice to see someone else have a rant!

Hope you feel better for it :-)

Best thing I suppose is to leave it alone for a while then when you get back to it it will mysteriously start to work and you'll think 'why didn't I do that in the forst place - it was obvious!'

Or maybe not...

Mike
Follow us on Twitter... http://twitter.com/UKBOINCTeam

Image Image

Image
Joshrandom
Posts: 5602
Joined: Sat Jun 23, 2007 1:00 am

Post by Joshrandom »

I really like Ubuntu, I like Windows too but I actually prefer Ubuntu. Yes Ubuntu can be a pain to modify or install stuff into, but that also explains why it is largely immune to adware/viruses etc. That said, if I want to change or install something in Ubuntu, I usually have to spend a bit of time on google figuring out how first.

Of course it took a long time for me give up on DOS and Win3.1 and move onto something newer (it was XP by the time I got around to it) and I've never gotten used to the way that, as an OS, Windows seems to be just a little too helpful for it's own good.  :roll:

Anyhow, I hope you got things sorted Tim, if not I'm more than happy to join you in blessed confusion until someone who really knows Ubuntu shows up.  :wink:

James.
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

Hi James,

Thanks for the kind offer :)

I've tried "playing around" with this PC to get it crunching BU...but I've had two issues which I need to sort out:

1) The PC recognises a BFL ASIC, but not an R-Box....so, I guess that's a driver issue, but I've not seen anything on the web that indicates that an R-Box driver for Linux is available


2) Despite having the correct <count>1</count> parameter in the app_info.xml file, if I set the PC to 100% use of the CPU (which means both are working) then 2 instances of BU start running, even though there's just the one BFL connected.

My guess is BOINC Manager is not seeing the XML file(s) and hence the PC is not configured for BU correctly.

One other thing is that one would expect to be able to run non-BU tasks as well, but that's not happening either and the non-BU tasks are just sitting "Waiting to start". :(

I'll take another look at it tonight and see if I can figure this out ;)


One thing that would be helpful - some way of using the GUI and being able to edit / delete / move files around without the damn OS telling me I can't do something, as I don't have "permission".

Is there a GUI File Manager for *nux that can be set as "root" or "admin" ??

regards
Tim
scole of TSBT
The Scottish BOINC Team member
Posts: 46
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 12:00 am

Post by scole of TSBT »

I'm not a Ubuntu expert, but here's what I know...
1. If you don't log in as root, you have to prefix every command with sudo, which is "super user do"
2. By default, Ubuntu does not setup a password for root, but there is a way to set it if you want to just log in as root. Google it, easy to find and easy to do
3. If you're not going to log in as root, the easiest thing I found to do was first cd into any folder that has files or folders you want to add/change/delete and run "sudo chmod 777 *" to give everyone all permissions on the files and folders
4. I don't mess with the linux BOINC manager. I just setup a gui_rpc_auth.cfg and remote_hosts.cfg to allow to connect a different BOINC Manager to it.
5. The BU message board has a thread about to configure Linux to run BU. I've setup several Raspberry Pi systems to run the 32 Gh/s and R3 blades, but not a BFL. Ditch the BFL if possible . It's a power hog and when it fails it will ruin your PSU. It uses at least double the lecky of rockminer.
Image
Joshrandom
Posts: 5602
Joined: Sat Jun 23, 2007 1:00 am

Post by Joshrandom »

UBT - Timbo wrote:Hi James,

Thanks for the kind offer :)

I've tried "playing around" with this PC to get it crunching BU...but I've had two issues which I need to sort out:

1) The PC recognises a BFL ASIC, but not an R-Box....so, I guess that's a driver issue, but I've not seen anything on the web that indicates that an R-Box driver for Linux is available
Hi Tim,

All my R-Boxes are connected to my main Windows machine, so I've never tried running them with Ubuntu, but, as Scole points out, many people are using a Raspberry Pi with their R-Boxes and, as I understand it, these use a stripped down version of Linux (I believe that both Raspbian and Ubuntu are based on Debian), so it ought to be possible. :?

UBT - Timbo wrote:2) Despite having the correct <count>1</count> parameter in the app_info.xml file, if I set the PC to 100% use of the CPU (which means both are working) then 2 instances of BU start running, even though there's just the one BFL connected.

My guess is BOINC Manager is not seeing the XML file(s) and hence the PC is not configured for BU correctly.

One other thing is that one would expect to be able to run non-BU tasks as well, but that's not happening either and the non-BU tasks are just sitting "Waiting to start". :(
I seem to remember having similar problems at one point, and I think it had something to do with how I installed BOINC in the first place. As I recall I tried installing from the repositories as some recommend, but I really only had success when I downloaded the software directly from the BOINC download page. However, trying to do it both ways did cause some conflicts, how did you do it?

UBT - Timbo wrote:One thing that would be helpful - some way of using the GUI and being able to edit / delete / move files around without the damn OS telling me I can't do something, as I don't have "permission".

Is there a GUI File Manager for *nux that can be set as "root" or "admin" ??


I was going to suggest that might try creating a user profile and password that allows you to log in as root, but Scole beat me to it, so I'll just say that when I first tried Ubuntu I had many of the same frustrations that you are experiencing, and my solution was to log in as root. This worked for a while, but eventually I reached the point where I'd messed up the OS to such a degree that I had to format and reinstall (something I've only had to do once with Ubuntu but many, many times with Windows), so now I welcome the difficulty of messing around with system files and leave them well alone.  :lol:

James.
scole of TSBT
The Scottish BOINC Team member
Posts: 46
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 12:00 am

Post by scole of TSBT »

Tim,

Did you follow the process to how to install and configure BU to run on a Raspberry Pi? If not, try it. Should work for Unbuntu server also. Here's a clean thread instead of sifting thru the BU thread...
http://www.dunadd.co.uk/seti/forum/view ... 113&t=2474

Not as straight forward as a Windows install...

(and let's just keep this between us. could get me in dutch with the gang  :) )
Image
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

scole of TSBT wrote:I'm not a Ubuntu expert, but here's what I know...
1. If you don't log in as root, you have to prefix every command with sudo, which is "super user do"
Hi Steve

Thanks for the tips - here's where I'm up to.

I found a utility called gksu, which is supposed to help allow you to give root priviledges to specific GUI programs...so, I was hoping to do this with gedit or nano so I could edit the cc_config.xml and app_config.xml files.....but even though I've installed it, I can't "find" it to use it :(
2. By default, Ubuntu does not setup a password for root, but there is a way to set it if you want to just log in as root. Google it, easy to find and easy to do
3. If you're not going to log in as root, the easiest thing I found to do was first cd into any folder that has files or folders you want to add/change/delete and run "sudo chmod 777 *" to give everyone all permissions on the files and folders
From what I've read, it's not a good idea to use the "root" login, as Ubuntu doesn't like it...and having spent time getting it installed and running (if not successfully with BOINC) then I'd be hard pressed to fix any issues, except by re-intalling the OS :(
4. I don't mess with the linux BOINC manager. I just setup a gui_rpc_auth.cfg and remote_hosts.cfg to allow to connect a different BOINC Manager to it.
5. The BU message board has a thread about to configure Linux to run BU. I've setup several Raspberry Pi systems to run the 32 Gh/s and R3 blades, but not a BFL. Ditch the BFL if possible . It's a power hog and when it fails it will ruin your PSU. It uses at least double the lecky of rockminer.
Messing with the CFG files is both beyond me and it'll only be possible if I can edit them, which knowing Ubuntu & BOINC I won't be able to !!

I'll give it another go in due course, and based on feedback received here, plus whatever else I can dig up off the webby :)

Thanks again
Tim
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

scole of TSBT wrote:Tim,

Did you follow the process to how to install and configure BU to run on a Raspberry Pi? If not, try it. Should work for Unbuntu server also. Here's a clean thread instead of sifting thru the BU thread...
http://www.dunadd.co.uk/seti/forum/view ... 113&t=2474

Not as straight forward as a Windows install...

(and let's just keep this between us. could get me in dutch with the gang  :) )
Hi Steve,

Yup - I was able to get that sorted...thanks mainly to NATE1 :)
BUT, my issues with the Pi's was simply down to getting all the bits of hardware working together, mainly because:
1) I didn't have a working PSU to run the Pi on a 24/7 basis
2) I was trying this out at home, where I have a TV with HDMI input...but I was going to run this at work, but I don;'t have a monitor with HDMI input yet. I do have one that can take a composite video signal, but I been moving offices and need to sort out a suitable video cable
3) The work move has meant I'll need to re-configure the network that various PC's and other devices need to work... ;(

So, I have a pile of bits that need to be fashioned into some sort of housing, so I can link it all together so it works OK.

Once I have some time to spare !!

regards and thanks again
Tim
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

Joshrandom wrote:Hi Tim,

All my R-Boxes are connected to my main Windows machine, so I've never tried running them with Ubuntu, but, as Scole points out, many people are using a Raspberry Pi with their R-Boxes and, as I understand it, these use a stripped down version of Linux (I believe that both Raspbian and Ubuntu are based on Debian), so it ought to be possible. :?

Hi James,

Thanks for your comments.
I seem to remember having similar problems at one point, and I think it had something to do with how I installed BOINC in the first place. As I recall I tried installing from the repositories as some recommend, but I really only had success when I downloaded the software directly from the BOINC download page. However, trying to do it both ways did cause some conflicts, how did you do it?
The talk I found about running BOINC on Ubuntu, is to *only* install from the Ubuntu app space....as there are some files that "their" version sets up, which the Berkeley version doesn't....hence why the version of BOINC Manager available on Ubuntu is several versions older.
I was going to suggest that might try creating a user profile and password that allows you to log in as root, but Scole beat me to it, so I'll just say that when I first tried Ubuntu I had many of the same frustrations that you are experiencing, and my solution was to log in as root. This worked for a while, but eventually I reached the point where I'd messed up the OS to such a degree that I had to format and reinstall (something I've only had to do once with Ubuntu but many, many times with Windows), so now I welcome the difficulty of messing around with system files and leave them well alone.  :lol:
As I've mentioned in a reply to scole, I've found a utility called gksu, which allows one to resolve this issue...I installed it, but I can't find it, in order to run it and see if it helps !!

One other issue I found is that I installed the 64bit version of Ubuntu, as that was the recommended version. But then I found that some projects don't have 64bit apps and hence you can't run certain projects.

So, yesterday, I downloaded the 32bit-i686 version of Ubuntu and tried to install that - I say tried, as even though the USB stick I had only had the 32bit ISO on it, when it was done, I checked and somehow Ubuntu had re-installed the 64bit version.... :(

So, as things stand, I think I'm going to give Win XP a go on the relevant PC and see if I can get that working - at least I know I can administer the OS and BOINC to work as I want, rather than being stuck in a loop, trying to do something which the OS won't let me do (because *I* don't have "permission" - well, b*ll*cks to that)

If any Linux whizkids are out there, then join this forum and explain to me exactly WHY you make users go through hoops in order to do basic admin stuff...and IF I could make BOINC Manager run under DOS, I'd happily go back....;)

regards
Tim
scole of TSBT
The Scottish BOINC Team member
Posts: 46
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 12:00 am

Post by scole of TSBT »

Maybe I should have backed up. Most of my systems, particularly the linux systems, are all headless. I do have to connect them up to a monitor and keyboard to do the initial install, but after that, it's all remote access.

I've always installed Ubuntu server and set it up to easily access and modify files remotely. When going though the install process, I select to have it install SSH server and SAMBA. After the install is complete, you can log in and add a password to root and configure SAMBA.

To change root password...
Type the following command:
sudo passwd

The following message will appear:
[sudo] password for [username]: [Type your user password and press return]

After that another message will appear, the following:
Type new UNIX password: [Type the root password you want]

Now the last thing you need to do, the following:
Retype new UNIX password: [Retype the root password you chosen before]

The following message will appear:
passwd: password updated successfully

If the above message showed up on your terminal, you can now use the root privileges by typing:
su

And then type the password you chosen. That's it! Else, start over the steps of the answer, you probably typed something wrong.

To create a network share using SAMBA...
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/How%2 ... rief%20Way

To add root to samba so you have full file permissions on the network share...
Type the following command:
sudo smbpasswd -a root

The following message will appear:
[sudo] password for [username]: [Type your user password and press return]

The following message will appear:
New SMB password: [Type the root password and press return]

The following message will appear:
Retype new SMB password: [Type the root password and press return]

The following message will appear:
Added user root.

This is what I added to the end of my smb.conf file...
[root]
path = /
available = yes
valid users = owner , root
force user = root
read only = no
browseable = yes
public = yes
writable = yes

Now restart Samba by entering...
sudo service smbd restart

After the network share is configured and Samba is restarted, you can go to any Windows system on the network, use Windows Explorer to access that system by entering \\<ip address>\ in the Windows Explorer address bar, press enter. You should have full root access to all files.

If you ever need a terminal window, just use any freeware SSH program like putty or Bitvise SSH client. (need to figure out how to add root to SSH).

If you ever need to bounce the boinc client, you can do it remotely by opening an SSH terminal window to restart the boinc-client service...
/etc/init.d/boinc-client start (starts it)
/etc/init.d/boinc-client stop (stops it)
/etc/init.d/boinc-client restart (restarts/bounces it)
/etc/init.d/boinc-client status

(had to update to remove reference to do some things as root. additional setup needed to do SSH and SAMBA as root. will update when I have it figured out)
Last edited by scole of TSBT on Thu Aug 27, 2015 8:22 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Image
Joshrandom
Posts: 5602
Joined: Sat Jun 23, 2007 1:00 am

Post by Joshrandom »

UBT - Timbo wrote:The talk I found about running BOINC on Ubuntu, is to *only* install from the Ubuntu app space....as there are some files that "their" version sets up, which the Berkeley version doesn't....hence why the version of BOINC Manager available on Ubuntu is several versions older.
Hi Tim,

As I said above, BOINC only worked properly for me when I installed the older version on the BOINC download page. Doing things this way had the added advantage of installing the manager in my Home folder, which means I can edit all the files I want without having to bother logging in as root.
One other issue I found is that I installed the 64bit version of Ubuntu, as that was the recommended version. But then I found that some projects don't have 64bit apps and hence you can't run certain projects.

So, yesterday, I downloaded the 32bit-i686 version of Ubuntu and tried to install that - I say tried, as even though the USB stick I had only had the 32bit ISO on it, when it was done, I checked and somehow Ubuntu had re-installed the 64bit version.... :(
I've installed both 64 and 32bit versions in the past, and never experienced anything as weird as this, did you format the HDD between installations?
So, as things stand, I think I'm going to give Win XP a go on the relevant PC and see if I can get that working - at least I know I can administer the OS and BOINC to work as I want, rather than being stuck in a loop, trying to do something which the OS won't let me do (because *I* don't have "permission" - well, b*ll*cks to that)

If any Linux whizkids are out there, then join this forum and explain to me exactly WHY you make users go through hoops in order to do basic admin stuff...and IF I could make BOINC Manager run under DOS, I'd happily go back....;)
It took me a while to get used to all of Ubuntu's little idiosyncrasies when I first started using it, but eventually I came to understand that it wasn't Windows, it wasn't better or worse than Windows, it was it's own thing and now I wouldn't want to be without it. ;)

James.
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

Joshrandom wrote:Hi Tim,

As I said above, BOINC only worked properly for me when I installed the older version on the BOINC download page. Doing things this way had the added advantage of installing the manager in my Home folder, which means I can edit all the files I want without having to bother logging in as root.
Hi James

TBH, I didn't know you could do that (ie install in /home folder...it certainly didn't seem to be an option when I installed it... :(
I've installed both 64 and 32bit versions in the past, and never experienced anything as weird as this, did you format the HDD between installations?
Ah - I have to take it back - as I checked the USB stick afterwards and there are both versions (32bit and 64bit) and the installer program obviously decided to install the one it thought was best for my CPU. So much for allowing users some control over what is actually installed.
It took me a while to get used to all of Ubuntu's little idiosyncrasies when I first started using it, but eventually I came to understand that it wasn't Windows, it wasn't better or worse than Windows, it was it's own thing and now I wouldn't want to be without it. ;)

James.
Yup - I've used some Linux OS before, but these have been non-GUI and as such, it was easy to deal with, esp. as they were simply web servers and didn't rely on having desktop apps installed.

And I couldn't install Win XP, as the OS is too old to work with teh CPU & motherboard. So, I've now installed Win 7 on it and it took about 20 mins to get that done and to then set up the mobo-generic drivers for Ethernet/Display/Audio etc. So, the PC is now running and sometime tomorrow I'll see if I can get BU crunching on it.

regards and thanks
Tim
UBT - Timbo
UBT Forum Admin
Posts: 9673
Joined: Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:00 am
Location: NW Midlands
Contact:

Post by UBT - Timbo »

scole of TSBT wrote:Maybe I should have backed up. Most of my systems, particularly the linux systems, are all headless. I do have to connect them up to a monitor and keyboard to do the initial install, but after that, it's all remote access.

I've always installed Ubuntu server and set it up to easily access and modify files remotely. When going though the install process, I select to have it install SSH server and SAMBA. After the install is complete, you can log in and add a password to root and configure SAMBA.

snip
Hi Steve,

WOW - thanks for that.

For now, I've put aside the idea of using Ubuntu on this specific PC, as it was causing me endless frustration and, what with an office move, it's something which I cannot spend a lot of time on.

However, I have another PC (still in it's box) which I'll try again with Ubuntu and I'll follow your tips and see if I can get it working nicely - so I'm not "walking away" from it...but I do have some other important stuff to sort out first. And I'll come back to this in due course.

So, many thanks for the great advice and I'll make sure I let you know how I get on with it. Just don't hold your breath !!

regards
Tim
Post Reply