This is a topic quite scattered though many threads in the forum so I thought of creating a common thread where the experts can weight in.

 

The 'wish' would be to be able to manage whatever platform we use from a webGUI. There are many tools out there, but it's quite confusing, specially for the less proficient users, (aka me :-)).

 

Any advice, recommendations, experiences will be greatly welcomed and appreciated!

 

EDIT 18/12/2013: Guide to install Archipel http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=30850.0

 

 

 

This is a topic quite scattered though many threads in the forum so I thought of creating a common thread where the experts can weight in.

 

The 'wish' would be to be able to manage whatever platform we use from a webGUI. There are many tools out there, but it's quite confusing, specially for the less proficient users, (aka me :-)).

 

Any advice, recommendations, experiences will be greatly welcomed and appreciated!

 

 

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This, amongst other things, is on my xmas holiday wishlist. Stay tuned... I am working on it.

I have tested the following so far:

 

oVirt

 

The Foreman

 

ConVirt Open Source

 

WebVirtMgr

 

Abiquo

 

I have a few more to test and then I will provide feedback on them all.

 

Have you/are you planning on testing archipel? It seems to be very aesthetically pleasant :-) and oriented purely to the virtual world.

 

I'm not afraid of the cli, for a newbie i do actually like it, but starting and stopping VMs or creating new ones for testing, etc, is just much easier (currently using ESXi).

 

I'm planning on moving to KVM,  probably on a centos minimal 6.5 distribution, and currently testing webGUIs on a centos VM.

 

I have installed ovirt, but seems that you have to choose between the cli and the webGUI.

 

Webmin seems good, I haven't played much with it though.

 

OpenQRM is another option I'm testing, interface seem nicer than webmin.

 

I wanted to test archipel, but it seems quite complicated for a newbie. Also, you need to install a xmpp server. Could this be installed in the same hypervisor or you need a different server? If so, could this be virtual? Got some homework for the weekend ;-)

 

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I tried archipel before but it was weird how it wanted a jabber server or something, I don't remember. Anyway, didn't get it working sadly.

 

Webvirtmgr was my target.

 

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I tried to get archupel working too, and could not get jabbered running no matter what I tried.

 

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Have you tried this

http://www.turnkeylinux.org/ejabberd

 

Turnkey appliances usually work out of the box.

This would also allow to install the xmpp server as a vm, which is quite convenient, although first option (for me) would be to install in the hypervisor

 

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I tried Archipel. Its uses a chat client to manage it. I did not like it.

 

Most Linux Distros have Archipel in their package manager. Did any of you try installing it that way?

Most Linux Distros have Archipel in their package manager. Did any of you try installing it that way?

I didn't , that should make it easy /easier.

Do you know if the xmpp server is also installed? What does it actually install server/agent/client?

 

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Most Linux Distros have Archipel in their package manager. Did any of you try installing it that way?

I didn't , that should make it easy /easier.

Do you know if the xmpp server is also installed? What does it actually install server/agent/client?

 

It's been awhile since I played with Archipel. The Package Managers are smart and it should install everything that is needed.

 

I am working on the Virtualizing unRAID in KVM on openSUSE 13.1 documentation at the moment. I should have that done here shortly.

 

After that, if you tell me what Linux Distro you are trying Archipel on, I will install it via the Package Manager, get it working and let you know how if there was anything configuration needed to get it working (there usually is).

I'm a Windows power user with no education whatsoever in computing. When started with Virtualization, about a year ago, i started playing with Linux servers. At the time I started with Ubuntu just because it's quite popular. I've read a bit and am starting with the cli (I've even done some scripts to schedule some simple backup con jobs). Not really relevant, but this is my background.

 

From following your posts, i learnt about archlinux and centos. Since I'm new to the Linux world, i thought archlinux was maybe too much for a newbie, so I thought 'centos it is then'.

 

What I'm trying to say, is that i don't really care the os because:

a.  I'm new,

b.  I'm looking for something headless,

 

So centos is good because I just started with it, but any option you feel more comfortable with would be ok, I'm looking for a webGUI as much as for learning something new

 

(sorry for the long post ;-))

 

 

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When started with Virtualization, about a year ago, i started playing with Linux servers. At the time I started with Ubuntu just because it's quite popular.

 

It's a great Distro to start with. Personally, I think Linux Mint is easier for those coming over from a Windows world. Same documentation for Ubuntu works in Linux Mint. According to Distrowatch, it's the most used / downloaded Linux Distro by a long shot.

 

I've read a bit and am starting with the cli (I've even done some scripts to schedule some simple backup con jobs). Not really relevant, but this is my background.

I would consider you Experienced Linux User if you are doing things like that. I do not posses that talent and cannot write scripts.

 

From following your posts, i learnt about archlinux and centos. Since I'm new to the Linux world, i thought archlinux was maybe too much for a newbie, so I thought 'centos it is then'.

I hope this all comes out in English...

 

Hell

 

Until the last year or so, all Linux Distro's used udev and Sysvinit (Ubuntu / Slackware / unRAID still uses this) for System Management (start / stop programs / services / daemons).

 

With udev and Sysvinit, it meant every Linux Distro had their own unique way of installing / starting / stopping programs / services / deamons / etc. and none were the same. Even for experienced Linux Users, that meant you had to "start over" and learn A LOT of things when you switched Linux Distros. It was also a headache for the people who make / create / maintain the various Linux Packages (For example: NFS, Samba, XBMC, etc.) and each Linux Distro Package Manager had to create / write a custom script for the installation and start up of their script. Also, Sysvinit is DUMB. They are basically scripts that fire off and enable, disable, start, stop, etc. It doesn't know / keep track of what is started, stopped, etc. Also, doing this in Ubuntu is quite different than say... Slackware or Debian. Each Linux Distro has their own method and scripts.

 

Example: Autostarting and stopping XBMC in Ubuntu isn't easy and varies from version to version. I centralize my various XBMCs into one database instead of maintaining 4 separate machines. Because my PC boots up so fast, its pure hell to find the correct start up method to make XBMC start after mysql has. I would have to google it and come up with 50+ ways of doing it and half of them do not work.

 

Heaven

 

Say hello systemd!

 

A system management daemon designed exclusively for the Linux kernel API. Like sysvinit, systemd is a daemon that manages other daemons. However, It's the first daemon to start and the last one to terminate (during shutdown) and it's SMART. It knows what is started, stopped, running, etc. and it's a STANDARD.

 

What this means...

 

Linux Distros that have switched over to Systemd all look / feel / work the same. A systemd daemon is agnostic to which Linux Distro it is running on. Really the only difference in between Linux Distros running systemd is the package manager. The same systemd daemon that works in CentOS also works in Arch Linux or openSUSE.

 

A real life example of systemd in action on various systemd Linux Distros:

 

To install XBMC:

 

yum install xbmc <---- For CentOS, Fedora, Red Hat
pacman -S xbmc <---- For Arch
yast --install xbmc <---- For openSUSE

 

To enable XBMC to start on boot:

 

systemctl enable xbmc.service <--- This works on CentOS, Arch, openSUSE, Red Hat, Fedora, etc.

 

If you want to start, stop, restart XBMC on any of the systemd Linux Distros:

 

systemctl start xbmc.service
systemctl stop xbmc.service <--- All of these commands work the EXACT same on CentOS, Arch, openSUSE, Red Hat, Fedora, etc.
systemctl restart xbmc.service

 

Again I wanted to start xbmc.service after mysql. Lets see how easy that is using systemd:

 

The XBMC systemd (looks the same on all systemd Linux Distros):

 

[unit]

Description = Starts instance of XBMC using xinit

After = mysqld.service <--- That is the only change I needed to make.

 

[service]

User = xbmc <---- If I wanted to change to user it starts at, look how easy that is.

Group = xbmc

Type = simple

ExecStart = /usr/bin/xinit /usr/bin/xbmc-standalone -- :0 -nolisten tcp <--- If I wanted to change how / where XBMC is located or how it starts... look hLook how easy it is to tell Linux what to do.

Restart = on-abort

 

[install]

WantedBy = multi-user.target

 

 

What this all means:

 

If you pick a Linux Distro that has Systemd and learn it. Switching from CentOS, Fedora, Red Hat, Arch, openSUSE, etc. is easy. The only thing you have to learn is the Package Manager and how to add "repos" to them. Everything else after that is the same.

 

If you haven't noticed, the reason I can't stand Ubuntu, Mint, Slackware, Debian, etc. is due to the fact they haven't switched over to Systemd yet.

 

Trying to write out a guide for doing Xen or KVM in any of those is a MFer too and it's way to hard to explain to Novices how to do configure it without it being 10 pages long. Trust me, I tried and failed.

 

What I'm trying to say, is that i don't really care the os because:

a.  I'm new,

b.  I'm looking for something headless,

 

So centos is good because I just started with it, but any option you feel more comfortable with would be ok, I'm looking for a webGUI as much as for learning something new

 

I would have steered you away from CentOS a few weeks ago not because it's a bad Distro (it's Red Hat which is great)... but due to it running a older Linux Kernel (2.6.32 which doesn't have all the latest and greatest passthrough code you will want / need). However, with the release of CentOS 6.5 a week ago. It now runs Linux Kernel 3.8.13.

 

Again, if you learn CentOS... You will pretty much know openSUSE, Arch, Fedora, etc.

 

My only advice...

 

Pick a Systemd Linux Distro.

 

If you were to ask for my help if you had a problem... I could easy tell you how to solve it regardless of which Linux Distro you were running (assuming it's a systemd one).

Thanks a lot for that grumpy, i do appreciate it. I've read it a couple of times but will have to go all over it again a few times so it sinks in

And of course if goes to my linux reference evernote notebook )

I'm traveling right now and won't have access to my server until the weekend. I'm going to try to install the client and the xmpp server on a centos vm in esxi. We'll see from there ;-)

 

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Thanks a lot for that grumpy, i do appreciate it. I've read it a couple of times but will have to go all over it again a few times so it sinks in

And of course if goes to my linux reference evernote notebook )

I'm traveling right now and won't have access to my server until the weekend. I'm going to try to install the client and the xmpp server on a centos vm in esxi. We'll see from there ;-)

 

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All you really need to know is pick a SystemD Linux Distro. If you do, if / when you switch Linux Distros... It won't be you learning something new. CentOS, Fedora, openSUSE, Arch, Scientific Linux, etc. all use Systemd. Stay away from Debian based Distros like Ubuntu and Mint.

Success! I finally got archipel working!

 

In my setup I have a VM in my Production ESXi rig holding the XMPP server and the client. I then configured KVM in CentOS 6.5 in my development machine, and got it connected. So far so good. Although to be honest, I don't really know my way around in KVM so I don't understand how archipel compares to other webGUI options. It looks beautiful though!

 

My next challenge is to get all the xmpp server, client and agent working in the hypervisor. Or should I try to get a better understanding of KVM?

 

Anyway, I think I'm to leave if for today, I have a couple of episodes of SOA to catch on :-)!

Success! I finally got archipel working!

 

In my setup I have a VM in my Production ESXi rig holding the XMPP server and the client. I then configured KVM in CentOS 6.5 in my development machine, and got it connected. So far so good. Although to be honest, I don't really know my way around in KVM so I don't understand how archipel compares to other webGUI options. It looks beautiful though!

 

My next challenge is to get all the xmpp server, client and agent working in the hypervisor. Or should I try to get a better understanding of KVM?

 

Anyway, I think I'm to leave if for today, I have a couple of episodes of SOA to catch on :-)!

 

Awesome, any write up of the steps you took? No matter how basic?

 

I had 0 luck with it and would LOVE to include it my distro... Well worth the effort by the look of the website..

sure, no problem, it'll take me a few days though, I want to try first to consolidate server, client and agent in the host

 

sure, no problem, it'll take me a few days though, I want to try first to consolidate server, client and agent in the host

 

Great I'm really in the mood to make my distro a whole community effort and if you can continue that part, well that's great.

 

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I'm going to put some guidelines so others can benefit of my efforts, BUT I don't think Archipel is ready for production, the product is still buggy.

I contacted the developer and he told he's been tight up with work and that he plans to resume this project next year, I don't think this  could be our Plan A.

Any other webGUI you can think of? I was thinking of WebVirtManager or ConVirt, any experience with those?

 

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For those interested, I posted a guide on how to install Archipel in a single machine (the host).

 

You can find it here: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=30850.msg277522#msg277522

Some of you asked me to provide a Guide / Explanation / Screenshot of what I meant when I said you could run Linux Desktop / GUI Applications on a HEADLESS Server from your Windows PC without having to install a full Linux Desktop.

 

On an Arch Linux HEADLESS Server every single window you see open below on my Windows PC... Is a Linux GUI / Desktop Application

 

 

On my Windows PC

 

XMing

 

Download and install xming

 

Configure XMing

 

1. In Windows, select Xming ? XLaunch

 

2. At the Display settings dialog box, select Multiple windows and set the Display number as 0. Click on Next.

 

3. Keep clicking on Next button till you reach the Finish configuration page, then click on the Finish button.

 

Putty

 

Download and Install Putty

 

Configure Putty

 

1. Start PuTTY.

 

2. In the PuTTY Configuration section, on the left panel, select Connection ? SSH ? X11

 

3. On the right panel, click on the Enable X11 forwarding checkbox

 

4. Set the X display location as :0.0

 

5. Click on Session option on the left panel.

 

6. Enter the hostname or IP address in the Host Name textbox

 

7. Save the session.

 

Arch Linux Server

 

1. Install the packages I need

 

pacman -S openssh terminus-font xorg-xauth xterm

 

2. Configure openssh for X11 Forwarding

 

nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config

AllowTcpForwarding yes
X11Forwarding yes
X11DisplayOffset 10
X11UseLocalhost yes
Compression yes <-- Had to add that one

 

nano /etc/ssh/ssh_config

 

ForwardX11 yes
ForwardX11Trusted yes <-- Had to add that one

 

3. Enable SSH to start on boot

 

systemctl enable sshd.service

 

4. Start SSH

 

systemctl start sshd.service

 

I "sexed" my xterm up by doing the following

 

NOTE: Each Linux Distro is a little different on where / how you "tweak" xterm. This might not work for you. However, the popular Linux Distros have wikis on customizing xterm.

 

nano ~/.Xdefaults <--- You create this file

 

xterm*dynamicColors:     true
xterm*background:        black
xterm*foreground:        white
xterm*utf8:            2
xterm*eightBitInput:    true
xterm*saveLines:        32767
xterm*scrollTtyKeypress: true
xterm*scrollTtyOutput: false
xterm*scrollBar: false
xterm*loginShell: true
xterm*jumpScroll: true
xterm*multiScroll: true
xterm*toolBar: false
xterm*geometry: 100x30
xterm*faceName: Terminus:style=Regular:size=10
xterm*selectToClipboard: true

 

Test if SSH with X11 Forwarding is working

 

xterm

 

NOTE: Will start xterm on the server and open the GUI on your Windows PC. You can either type exit in your xterm that shows up on your Windows PC or you can CTL-C to quit.

 

To run Linux GUI Programs in the Background and still have access to your SSH session

 

xterm &

NOTE: Putting a space and then a & at the end will start it and it will run in the background and allow you start more programs like virt-manager. If you close the window in Windows, it will close the program running on the server.

 

A few examples of programs you might want to run

 

virt-manager, gparted, makemkv, etc.

Thanks , will looking this tomorrow ! On a MAC it should be easier I think? Good guide!

 

//peter

 

 

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I like SolusVM Virtual Server Control Panel, not free but it is very powerful and regular updated.

 

http://www.solusvm.com/

I'm willing to pay for a quality solution, but $10 per month it's a bit high for a home server

 

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$10 a month ain't happening here either, not for something that isn't producing income for me :-O BTW Grumpy I tried your solution for headless X on my desktop and failed - Ubuntu was my target and it was running a full desktop too. I REALLY like the idea though and feel like I'm close to getting it!

 

If someone has Xen running already - is the XenDesktop management app worth looking at and does it work with more up to date Xen code?

 

 

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