[9fans] cpu/auth/file servers

[9fans] cpu/auth/file servers

[Peter Hull]

I've had some success setting up and using plan9 standalone and I have
moved on to trying a networked configuration.

Following the instructions I have set up a combined  cpu/auth server,
and a terminal booting with PXE.

When I boot my terminal it asks for my username (no password) and
starts rio. I can then access my home directory as read-only. I then
run 'cpu', which asks me for a password, and then I can write  my
files.

This doesn't seem right and I think the problem is that I don't really
understand how it's supposed to work. The terminal needs to see the
cpu's filesystem because that's where its root filesystem is coming
from but it shouldn't be able to get to files in /usr/ without a
password, surely. I've used X terminals in the past and I suppose I am
expecting some sort of XDMCP prompt like that.

Can anyone enlighten me or point to the appropriate place in the docs?

Thanks very much,
Pete

Re: [9fans] cpu/auth/file servers

[erik quanstrom]

> When I boot my terminal it asks for my username (no password) and
> starts rio. I can then access my home directory as read-only. I then
> run 'cpu', which asks me for a password, and then I can write  my
> files.

is your file server in allow mode?  or are you really booting a cpu server
with nvram?

- erik

Re: [9fans] cpu/auth/file servers

[Peter Hull]

On Wed, Nov 19, 2014 at 2:30 PM, erik quanstrom <quanstro@quanstro.net> wrote:
> is your file server in allow mode?  or are you really booting a cpu server
> with nvram?
The latter (I think) - the same system is the cpu, auth and file server.
I've got
bootfile=ether0!/386/9pcf
nobootprompt=tcp
in the terminal's plan9.ini

I've been using this document :
http://plan9.bell-labs.com/wiki/plan9/expanding_your_grid/index.html
and I am between 'level 2' and 'level 3' I suppose.

Pete

Re: [9fans] cpu/auth/file servers

[Peter Hull]

On Wed, Nov 19, 2014 at 3:00 PM, Peter Hull <peterhull90@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, Nov 19, 2014 at 2:30 PM, erik quanstrom <quanstro@quanstro.net> wrote:
> I've been using this document :
> http://plan9.bell-labs.com/wiki/plan9/expanding_your_grid/index.html
Not had the "AHA!" moment promised in this document...

Do I need to run the terminal as user None (and specify that as the
default in plan9.ini) so that the 'real' user can log on to the cpu
server with their credentials after rio has started?

I see how it would work where the terminal has some local resources
that are useful (including where you use drawterm from another OS) -
log onto the local terminal then log on to the cpu - but in the PXE
boot case the terminal isn't supposed to have any local storage or
even much processing power.

Pete

Re: [9fans] cpu/auth/file servers

[erik quanstrom]

> Do I need to run the terminal as user None (and specify that as the
> default in plan9.ini) so that the 'real' user can log on to the cpu
> server with their credentials after rio has started?

log into a terminal as yourself.  this way you are yourself on the file
server, and have expanded permissions.  the old arguments from unix apply.

> I see how it would work where the terminal has some local resources
> that are useful (including where you use drawterm from another OS) -
> log onto the local terminal then log on to the cpu - but in the PXE
> boot case the terminal isn't supposed to have any local storage or
> even much processing power.

my terminal is often much faster than the cpu server.  here the old arguments
from the plan 9 papers do not apply.  (well they do in some big environments,
but that's a different story.)  the main resource your terminal needs is a kbd and
mouse.

- erik