Posted by Don Kruse on Feb 10, 2009 in server | 1 comment
Back in late November I tried to get iCal Server running on some older hardware and this is what happened…
I ran iCal Server + iCal in a test environment on a older Xserve–Dual G4 1GHz 2GB RAM Mac OS X Server 10.5.5–in this test environment with only a couple of test users and I noticed a significant increase in CPU activity due to iCal but it seemed that it wasn’t something the server couldn’t handle. A month later when I rolled out the service to 60+ users the server was brought to its knees. It ramped up to 100% CPU usage as more users logged in and by about 11AM that business day it ceased to be functional. Anyone trying to connect timed out before they received updates.
I have not been able to track down any specifics as far as something I can “fix” to prevent this problem as my iCal Server install is Apple default and other than running the CPU load at 100% there was not a single error reported/logged. I’m going to use brute force to work around the issue but I would like to find a better approach.
I am going to try to roll out this service again but hosted on a brand new Xserve 3.0GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 16GB RAM (I’m lucky in that I work for a bunch of lawyers).
Now two months later I think I have finally got it working…
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Posted by Don Kruse on Jan 6, 2009 in Apple, mac, MacGeek | 0 comments
It is 7:30am and I’m inside where it’s warm waiting for this years MacWorld keynote. Last year at this time I was outside in the cold with 4000 other attendees.
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Posted by Don Kruse on Oct 8, 2007 in mac | Comments Off
A “system” will help quantify and qualify the stuff so it can be dealt with in an organized, efficient, and responsible manner. Right now the Help Desk staff fully bears the burden of managing “stuff” and it would be more efficient to distribute this burden. In the end those extra few seconds or minutes spent creating the tickets I believe will result in a faster resolution of problems (especially critical ones). It may also result in time being freed up to actually provide TRAINING which has been a big issue as you have observed. Read on…
The Problem with “stuff”
Getting Things Done succeeds because it first addresses a critical barrier to completing the atomic tasks that we want to accomplish in a given day. That’s “stuff.” Amorphous, unactionable, flop-sweat-inducing stuff. David says:
Here’s how I define “stuff:” anything you have allowed into your psychological or physical world that doesn’t belong where it is, but for which you haven’t yet determined the desired outcome and the next action step. [pg. 17]
Stuff is bouncing around in our heads and causing untold stress and anxiety. Evaluation meetings, bar mitzvahs, empty rolls of toilet paper, broken lawn mowers, college applications, your big gut, tooth decay, dirty underwear and imminent jury duty all compete for prime attention in our poor, addled brains. Stuff has no “home” and, consequently, no place to go, so it just keeps rattling around.
Worst off, we’re too neurotic to stop thinking about it, and we certainly don’t have time to actually do everything in one day. Jeez Louise, what the hell am I, Superman?
So you sprint from fire to fire, praying you haven’t forgotten anything, sapped of anything like creativity or even the basic human flexibility to adapt your own schedule to the needs of your friends, your family or yourself. Your “stuff” has taken over your brain like a virus now, dragging down every process it touches and rendering you spent and virtually useless. Sound familiar?
- David Allen, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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Right now I/we receive incoming requests by the following methods:
1. Email
2. Phone
3. iChat
4. Verbal
5. Observation
A web form input is not used at all at the present time.
This “stuff” needs to be triaged and managed primarily in my head which then can’t be shared with other staff members efficiently. By reducing the input of “sfuff” to primarily just one method (web based form) and two secondary methods (phone and verbal) it will make it more efficient to triage and report to others on how much stuff there is to do, what has been done, and what might need to change in the future.
I’ve found over time that nearly 90% of all verbal request aren’t sufficiently important enough to require a response. If they had been important the user would have emailed or called.
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Posted by Don Kruse on Oct 8, 2007 in mac | 0 comments
He does so much: Managers servers, manage the desktops and laptops, plus helps us figure out how to use iTunes or our iPods. Plus we have a kick-ass interoffice chat system that is secure and easy to use. . – FB
Don can fix anything. Really. A problem sent to him is finished. That’s the end of that problem. We work in a mid-sized Family Law firm in Portland, Oregon and run an all Apple system. I know this is a rarity, as people call from all over the country call to seek advice from Don (after an article about our firm was placed on the Apple website). So, not only does Don help this company to run more effectively and effciently, he helps companies all around the country. Aside from his complete competency, he also happens to be an easy going, humerous person who makes the office more enjoyable each day. I can’t think of anyone I’d rather have working as our System Administrator than Don Kruse, and I’ve worked with a few good ones.. – FH
Don makes our world work. We are completely reliant on our computers to even know our name. If there is an issue, it is fixed, sometimes before we even know there was a problem. Don has an unique ability to explain complex computer jagon in english so that we can learn what we are doing wrong and how to stop it. Don is also approachable with questions and concerns and he is always looking for ways to make our system work better.
As a working mother, Don made it possible for me to have complete access to the computer system from home so that I can be here and there at the same time. He is our life raft. – DL
I think Don would make an awesome candidate for SysAdmin of the year because he is a patient, level-headed individual. He flys from the Portland office all the to the Bend office to fix any office product bugs we come across. He never gets irritated or half-asses the office maitenance problems we have, even if they are simple problems that could have been fixed by us originally. We really appreciate his dedicated, hard-working IT skills or the office would one big electrical mess. THANKS! – CS
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Posted by Don Kruse on Oct 18, 2006 in mac | Comments Off
Probably not but below is a sampling of the comments I’ve received so far. You can vote for your favorite sysadmin too:
http://www.sysadminoftheyear.com/
“Don is able to maintain control of the machines, while the machines maintain their control of us.” – JH
“Don can do it all and faster than anyone else.” – EB
“Don is a well versed IT guru who has successfully facilitated an office of attorneys using solely apple products for their IT needs. I ibelieve this alone would qualify, but will continue anyway. Don and our other IT manager Tim, set up a system of inter-office I chat so ground breaking and secure that our firm was contacted by the department of defese on how they did it.” – AKS
“For amazing IT developments, hard work and being so easy to work with, Don should be your sysadmin of the year.” – BRS
“Without Don’s magical talent with our system our world would come to a complete stop!!!! He is the best!!” – LCS
“He is extremely helpful and is always willing to take the time to solve a problem. We are a big firm with multiple branch offices – he services them all. He has a “can do” attitude and will not stop until an answer or a problem is solved. He is pro-active about solutions and always keeps abreast of recent changes and developments in software and hardware to improve our daily life. He is also an all around good guy who appreciates coffee and the occassional donut. He takes his commitments seriously to our firm and his family.” -AS
“Always quick to fix the problem… need I say more?” – SS
“Best keep the “computer compromised” guys and gals in line man arround” -JLS
“Don not only fixes our computers, he can help me figure out my iPod.” – SM
“Because he is the all knowing super geek !” – KW
“Don is exceedingly helpful both at work and at home. He is always patient with his coworkers, at a law firm, not many of them really understand what goes on with a server, it’s not a tech firm but a family law firm. He often travels to the branch offices peppered throughout Oregon and Washington, for he is the server guru for the entire company, wherever they may roam, and strives to make everyone feel supported even if they are not a part of the main office. He works until a problem is solved. This often means for me, his wife, that dinner is delayed, or a weekend day is a work day, but he cares about his job even outside of regular work hours. He is constantly working to create better solutions on his own initiative, and never waits for someone else to tell him what to do next. And after all those long hours at the law firm…he still comes home and will cheerfully help me out with my computer if it is being fussy. He makes my life easier by keeping the home system running smoothly, and it’s a joy to watch his hard work affect and improve the worklives of others around him. Sure, I am biased, but he really does give his best both at work and at home in terms of being the resident super server geek. I love my geek!” – CLSK
“Because he is my own personal SPAM blocker!!!” – AG
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Posted by Don Kruse on Oct 16, 2006 in mac | Comments Off
My co-worker sent a link to me in iChat this morning which discussed an article written by a legal consultant. In the article the author discusses the intelligence of a consultant who can’t figure out the basics of the Mac OS, which I might point, out most schoolchildren manage without the assistance of their teachers.
Can you trust a lawyer who is too dumb to run a Mac?
http://www.mac360.com/index.php/mac360/comments/would_you_trust_a_lawyer_who_cant_run_a_mac
And in the lawyers own words:
http://www.law.com/jsp/legaltechnology/pubArticleLT.jsp?id=1160730321685
And don’t forget to check out the lawyers own web site, where he promotes his consulting skills:
http://www.larrybodine.com/
Judge for yourself, is the Mac as difficult as Larry Bodine says? Also why would an “intelligent” man like Mr. Bodine buy a $4000 top of the line Mac instead of a more economical $1800 iMac?
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