I am working on setting up and configuring a new web server using Ubuntu 15.10 as the operating system rather than CentOS 6.7.

     The main reason for doing this is that php is messed up with some modules being the php community 5.6 distributions and others being the remi 5.6 distribution and attempting to fix it wrought major chaos.

     So the main incentive is to get a platform with a consistent install of php 5.6 so that ownCloud, WordPress, Forums, and other PHP applications will run without errors and be fully functional.

     Secondary incentives are to get a modern set of tools and a modern kernel.  The modern kernel will also be low latency preemptive so it will reduce latency in some operations.

     This new box is fighting me every step of the way.  I’ve been working on it all day and it’s just been one thing after another.

     For a limited time, or maybe indefinitely if this works…

     Get 10% off your next Eskimo North purchase by simply telling me about something that you need that we are not currently providing (in the context of Internet hosting services). This can be a new service or an enhancement to an existing service.

     Have you told a friend about Eskimo but they’ve stated that we lack something they need?  Tell us!

     To qualify for this discount, your suggestion must be something not previously suggested or already implemented here and must be related to Internet hosting in some way, something that we could actually provide.  If you ask for laundromat facilities, that’s not going to qualify.

    If you make a suggestion with the intent of taking advantage of this sale, be sure to tell me at the time you make the purchase.

     Tonights’ attempt to get the PHP installation consistent was a disaster.  When I got everything consistent with the remi distribution, anything that used object cache broke badly.  I somewhat expected this since precompiled code in the object cache would no longer be valid but clearing the cache wasn’t sufficient, it kept getting corrupted.

     I was unable to determine what was causing this behavior and so reverted the entire machine to a backup made on January 1st.  I also had to revert the database for the system WordPress, Forums, and ownCloud, to January 1st, but users databases remain current.  This is because when it corrupted object cache, it also corrupted the database for some of the WordPress installations in the system directory.

     I am not going to futz with php on this box anymore, too dangerous.  I’ve been wanting to move the web server off of CentOS 6 and onto Ubuntu 15.10 so I am just going to start building a new server and when I have it fully operational, will just replace the existing machine.

     I’m going to be taking the web and ftp server down around 11pm-ish this evening for about half an hour for backup and to expand the file system.

     I will be out of the office from about 2pm until early this evening.  Please leave a message and I will return your call upon my return, or use Support->Ticket to initiate a trouble ticket.

     Values below 200ms on average are important to achieve because Google ranks sites this fast or faster higher than others because they provide a superior user experience.

     Have a Happy New Year!

     If your celebration involves intoxicants, please be responsible and don’t drive under the influence.

     May the coming year, 2016, be your best yet!

     The next Eskimo North Users Meeting will be held on January 16^th at 2PM at Razzi’s Pizza on the Northwest corner of 85th N ST and Greenwood Ave N in the Greenwood neighborhood of Seattle.

     In spite of all the e-mail I got from people who would be out of town traveling at Christmas, the turnout at the last meeting was still around 20 persons, more than I expected, and warranting a banquet room.  Spiro’s was unable to accommodate us for this next meeting so it will be held at Razzi’s, another location suggested by one of our customers.

     I got a LOT of feedback regarding the last meeting so I will attempt to come better prepared for your questions.  It’s been a long time, I’m out of practice.

     I have installed ownCloud, provides similar functionality to dropbox but it’s all here and included with your ordinary account. I’ve set the file size limitations to a rather large 4.9 GB enabling sharing of full DVDs such as Linux distributions, etc. If this gets a lot of use I may need to resize some partitions.

     There is much functionality beyond what I presently have enabled as I am still learning it. But if you need a particular capability please let me know and I will focus on that.

     It is available at https://www.eskimo.com/owncloud .. or https://www.eskimo.com/ Web Apps -> ownCloud

    Reboots are all completed, now up on the most current kernel.  Hopefully it fixed some stuff and broke less new stuff.