Archive for October, 2016

Using a scanner often results in large files. OS X preview program allows to export to multiple formats. Choosing filetype pdf enables the option to apply quartz filters (generic export dialog; shortcut export to pdf does not show quartz filters in OS X 10.11.6). The builtin quartz filter reduce file size does create tiny documents but text might get unreadable.

But the builtin tool ColorSync allows to modify and create quartz filters (german howto with screenshots here). If a newly created filter should show up in the export dialog of the preview program it has to be copied from
/Users/your_name/Library/Filters to /Library/PDF Services
(tested in OS X 10.11.6).

Example of settings for small but (rather) readable pdf files:

  • Image: pixel per inch = 100; quality = high; all other settings empty
  • Image (gray): pixel per inch = 100; quality = high; all other settings empty
  • Image compression: jpeg; quality = slider one tick below medium position

To shrink multiple pdf files the custom quartz filter can be used from the command line:

  • Open Tools / Automator and create a new workflow
  • add action pdf / apply quartz filter
  • do not add other actions
  • save this workflow, e.g. as /yourpath/pdfreduce
  • copy all pdf files which should be converted to a new folder
  • open a terminal and cd to the folder with pdf files which should be shrinked
  • to convert one file run: automator -i yourdoc.pdf /yourpath/pdfreduce.workflow
  • multiple files: for f in *.pdf; do echo “$f”; automator -i “$f” pdfreduce.workflow; done

Nagios is a perfect server monitoring tool and a NAS runs 24 hours a day. ndo2db grapher displays realtime graphics.nagios_graph

Resources:

ndo2db grapher on exchange.nagios.org (Version 0.3.2) with a minor patch: ndographer.diff (background); installation as described on exchange.nagios.org

nagios 4.2.1 from github

nagios plugins 2.1.2 from nagios.org

ndoutils 2.1.1 from github (made by the makers of nagios): ndomod.o and ndo2db to transfer nagios data to  a mysql database.

jpgraph 3.0.7 from sourceforge

Hardware: qnap TS-119P II with Optware-IPKG app installed (gcc, automake, make, … installed); apache, php and mysql are part of qnap firmware (currently 4.2.2).

Installation notes:

Nagios:
configure options:
--prefix=/opt/nagios --enable-nanosleep --with-init-dir=/opt/etc/init.d
edit Makefile and replace

-o root -g root by -o admin -g administrators
run make all; make install; make install-init; make install-config; make install-commandmode
symlink /opt/nagios/share to /share/Web/nagios
edit /etc/config/apache/apache.conf and set Options +ExecCGI for directory /share/Web/nagios/cgi-bin
and add group nagios to qnap apache user: usermod -a -G nagios httpdusr

Nagios plugins:
configure options:
--prefix=/opt/nagios
run make all; make install (installs to /opt/nagios/sbin)
symlink /opt/nagios/sbin to /share/Web/nagios/cgi-bin

Ndoutils:
configure options:
--prefix=/opt --with-ndo2db-user=nagios --with-ndo2db-group=nagios --enable-mysql
copy ndomod-4x.o and ndo2db-4x to /opt/nagios/bin/ndomod.o and ndo2db
use phpmyadmin (installed as qnap app) to create the database and to import db/mysql.sql
(ipkg install mysql5 installs the mysql library and headers required to compile ndoutils with mysql support)
set the broker module in /opt/nagios/etc/nagios.cfg:
broker_module=/opt/nagios/bin/ndomod.o config_file=/opt/nagios/etc/ndomod.cfg
set
output=/opt/var/ndo.sock in ndomod.cfg and enter database name/user/password in ndo2db.cfg
and set lock_file=/opt/var/ndo2db.pid
run /opt/nagios/bin/ndo2db -c /opt/nagios/etc/ndo2db.cfg

Ndo2db grapher and jpgraph:
copy the tar archive content to /opt/nagios/share and create directory /opt/nagios/share/ndographer/jpgraph
patch choose_nagios.php and display_nagios_info.php using the patch file
copy the folder src contained in jgraph-3.0.7 archive  to /opt/nagios/share/ndographer/jpgraph/src
edit ndographer/nagios_graph_conf.inc.php (database name, user, password and
$cache_directory = “/opt/nagios/share$cache_htdocs”;
$pre_generated_image_path = “/opt/nagios/share/nagios-cache”;
create directory /opt/nagios/share/nagios-cache/cache and set owner to httpdusr
(and symlink /opt/nagios/share/nagios-cache to /share/Web/nagios-cache)

System configuration:

Configuration of nagios:
Either set http(s) authentication (see below) or disable authentication in /opt/nagios/etc/cgi.cfg
use_authentication=0 (warning: only if access to your_ip_adress/nagios is otherwise restricted!)
Add a notes_url line to every service which should display a graph
notes_url   /nagios/ndographer/display_nagios_info.php?name1[]=$HOSTNAME$&name2[]=$SERVICEDESC$
(displays in “service status details for a host a white icon (“view extra service notes) which opens the graphic; add other variables to set options like &max_value=20; first define settings by webinterface and check which variables are used in resulting url); to submit the changes to nagios run
/opt/etc/init.d/nagios reload

Start and stop nagios automatically:
1) enable optware start/stop scripts in /opt/etc/init.d (already described here; /dev/mtdblock5 instead of /dev/mtd5 with qnap firmware 4.2.2)
mkdir /tmp/config
mount /dev/mtdblock5 /tmp/config
– copy K010optstartstop.sh to /tmp/config (with extension ‘.sh’, not with extension.txt; partly found here and here)
chmod +x /tmp/config/K010optstartstop.sh
umount /tmp/config
2) nagios make install-init has created /opt/etc/init.d/nagios (=file daemon-init in nagios source folder)
3) create script file /opt/etc/init.d/S61nagios, make it executable and edit it:
#!/bin/sh
if [ -f /opt/etc/init.d/nagios ] ; then
[ -f /opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf ] && mv /opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf /opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf.bak
cp /etc/config/ssmtp/ssmtp.conf /opt/nagios/etc/ && rm /opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf.bak
/bin/chgrp nagios /opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf
/opt/nagios/bin/ndo2db -c /opt/nagios/etc/ndo2db.cfg
/opt/etc/init.d/nagios start
fi

4) create script file /opt/etc/init.d/K39nagios, make it executable and edit it:
#!/bin/sh
if [ -f /opt/etc/init.d/nagios ] ; then
/opt/etc/init.d/nagios stop
killall ndo2db
fi

Http authentication:
All qnap apache helper binaries are in /usr/local/apache/bin
/usr/local/apache/bin/htpasswd -c /etc/config/apache/.htpasswd.nagios your_user_name
and add to /etc/config/apache/apache.conf:
<Directory “/share/Web/nagios”>
AuthType Basic
AuthName “password required”
AuthUserFile /etc/config/apache/.htpasswd.nagios
Require valid-user
</Directory>
and run
/usr/local/apache/bin/apachectl configtest
/usr/local/apache/bin/apachectl graceful
Then add your_user_name to /opt/nagios/etc/cgi.cfg:
use_authentication=1
authorized_for_system_information=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
authorized_for_configuration_information=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
authorized_for_system_commands=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
authorized_for_all_services=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
authorized_for_all_hosts=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
authorized_for_all_service_commands=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
authorized_for_all_host_commands=nagiosadmin,your_user_name
and run
/opt/etc/init.d/nagios configtest
/opt/etc/init.d/nagios reload

Configuration of sendmail on qnap:
qnap firmware installs ssmtp with config in /etc/config/ssmtp/
(and the start script S61nagios copies ssmtp.conf to /opt/nagios/etc/ and sets group nagios)
use webinterface: control panel /system settings /notification
to define the smtp server of your mail account
Then edit /etc/config/ssmtp/ssmtp.conf:
hostname=localhost
and /etc/config/ssmtp/revaliases (use same smtp server as in ssmtp.conf):
admin:you@yourdomain.org:your_smtp_server:your_smtp_port
nagios:you@yourdomain.org:your_smtp_server:your_smtp_port

and run (logged in as admin user):
echo "first message" |sendmail your_receiver@your_mailbox.org
This sends mails from admin as mails from you@yourdomain.org; (if this command runs without errors check your inbox and your spam folder).
Repeat this test as user nagios:
cp /etc/config/ssmtp/ssmtp.conf /opt/nagios/etc/; chgrp nagios /opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf;
su nagios; echo "second message" |sendmail -C/opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf your_receiver@your_mailbox.org; exit
Nagios notifications use the program printf which is in /opt/bin/printf (which gets installed with ipkg install coreutils)
and edit /opt/nagios/etc/objects/commands.cfg:
/usr/bin/printf has to be replaced by /opt/bin/printf
and the subject line has to be moved from sendmail to printf:
sendmail -s "........." has to be replaced by sendmail -C/opt/nagios/etc/ssmtp.conf
and printf "%b" "****** Nagios has to be replaced with printf "%b" "Subject: .........\n\n****** Nagios
Reload nagios with /opt/etc/init.d/nagios reload and try to send a forced host (or service) notification from nagios web interface: Host (or Service) state information
(Change debug level from 0 to 164 and debug_verbosity from 1 to 2 in /opt/nagios/etc/nagios.cfg to search bugs; debug logfile: /opt/nagios/var/nagios.debug; normal logfile: nagios.log)
The comments given by the user in notifications manually sent by the user may be included into the message using variable $NOTIFICATIONCOMMENT$ (reference).

Firmware update woes:

  • nagios section in /etc/config/apache/apache.config has to be reinserted
  • ipkg install procps; ipkg install inetutils: ping and ps in /opt/bin are kept
  • but nagios needs ping (and nagios initscript needs ps) non busysbox verion in /bin:
    • cd /bin; mv ping ping.bb; mv ps ps.bb; ln -s /opt/bin/ping ping; ln -s /opt/bin/ps ps