Monday 14 December 2009

Blank screen when logging in to VMware server




I use vmware server a lot and unfortunately this happens way too frequently. I'm not sure if the bug lies in Firefox or VMware but there should be a username and password entry box in the middle of that screenshot.

So far I have not found a cure for it.

I do have workaround however, but it's not a pretty one.

Basically, what you have to do is hit ctrl+shift+r quickly and repeatedly until the dialog appears. Stop every half a dozen or so presses to let it catch up and hopefully the dialog will appear. If not, rinse, lather, repeat until it does.

Hardly an elegant solution I know, but at least you will be able to log into your console.

P.S. Performing the same procedure using F5 does not produce the same result (well, not for me anyway)

Sunday 6 December 2009

Inheriting group ownership for shared files

Use the SGID attribute to allow users to create files that can be opened by other users in their group.

When the SGID (Set Group Identification) attribute is set on a directory, files created in that directory inherit its group ownership. If the SGID is not set the file's group ownership will be set to the user's default group.

To set the SGID on a directory or to remove it, use the following commands:
chmod g+s directory
chmod g-s directory

When set, the SGID attribute is represented by the letter "s" which replaces the "x" in the group permissions:
ls -l public
drwxrwsr-x 10 brett users 4096 2009-012-10 17:40 public

Wednesday 2 December 2009