Machos set up LDAP Authentication using the CLI

Are you a Macho? if you use the any CLI or any kind of shell, then you are!!!

Recently I've took a Citrix netscaler class to understand and better manage the appliance. The netscaler is just a powerful device that will deliver data from one end to another in an efficient way. It could be load balancing the requests, persists the communication flow, caching, handle SSL through acceleration, apply access controls lists, you name it, almost everything can be done with this device.

Basically the class instructor drives you through the whole process of configuring the device from its basic start up to high available environments. You'll get two books one theoretical, another one for labs, they compliment each other providing you with a very well written and designed piece of information to help you during your training.

Basically, I want to talk about the labs, which are the most interesting piece of all. They are divided in two sections: the GUI and the CLI step-by-step guide. The GUI as its name implies is a tool provided by the netscaler that will help you set up the device in an easy and intuitive way. The CLI on the other side is more like the gold in the mine, like the icing on the cake, is that tool that actually will not help you set up the device easily and in an intuitive way. Hey! but don't get me wrong is beautiful! Why? Did u got it? not yet? well... imagine for one second that you have a fairly large infrastructure, hundreds of this devices, how do you configure them in an efficient, fast and semi unmanaged way? yeah!!! That's it, through the CLI. Also because is really bad to have a GUI running on highly available / maxed capped devices.

So I decided to do the whole class using just the CLI, no GUI. I think the experience will be more vivid, as I know now, harder.

So... if you have a step-by-step guide what is the big deal? well, one of the labs didn't have the guide. So I had to figure it out (actually not all by myself, but with the help of a co-worker that took the class as well). This post is just as simple to help you out configure and configure LDAP authentication using the CLI. I hope that this will help someone else.

Here are the steps:

add authentication ldapAction [name of the auth, Ex: my_auth] -ldapBindDnPassword [password] -ldapBase [dc=example,dc=com] -ldapBidDn [admin@example.com] -ldapLoginName [login] -serverIP [IP]
add authentication ldapPolicy auth_ldap_policy ns_true my_auth
bind system global auth_ldap_policy
add system group [group]
bind system group [group] -policyName [superuser|read-only|etc]

There you go, easy, just 5 steps.

If you have any questions, just shoot me an email or leave a comment.

Thank you.

Ruminant Blob?

Well, yes... after a few years of being "Brain Cubbies" I decided that I needed a more original name. Even that I liked a lot the old one I thought it was a little bit... cheesy. Let's see if I can keep up with the new nice name. I really love it.

dead every enourmous piece
of nonsense which itself must call 

a state submicroscopic is- 

compared with pitying terrible

some alive individual 

ten centuries of original soo

nor make it ten times ten are more 

than not entitled to complain 

-plunged in eternal now if who're 

by the five nevers of a lear

-- E.E Cummings

On the search for the #perfectlatte

A few days ago something got stuck in my gray matter... something very important; maybe not that important for some people, but like every other thing in this world, some things are like candy some things are like dirt. So... Did I say stuck? Oh yes... so how about a great, perfect, silky, smooth froth milk over a velveteen cup of coffee? yeah right? Isn't that great? I would say yes... but the problem is... I haven't found one yet.

So I decided that since I moved to one of the biggest cities in the world, with one of the most coffee to person ratio and the best places to eat in the world, there have to be a place where the coffee is almost perfect, right? So here @ the south bay and San Francisco area, today, my quest starts: "In the search for the perfect latte".

A few years ago I went to the great city of Chicago, there, I stumble @ Intelligentsia just by simple serendipity (I always wanted to use this word). I was walking to the Sears tower, craving some coffee and I saw an empty almost deserted Starbucks and on the other corner a line of bodies coming out of a small coffee shop. Just right there, at that moment I knew I'll be making one of the best decisions of my life (a little bit melodramatic right? :-) ). What an amazing little coffee shop, cozy, the quality of the industrial machines, the smell of just roasted coffee, the display of love around it was just mesmerizing. I don't want to extend this little blog post, so going just to the facts. One of the best lattes I had in my life. The Barista crafted the art with love, carefully cleaning up the machine on each brew, hot water and a little brush will left the portafilter pristine just for you. Fresh ground coffee carefully leveled and pressed. Milk frothed to perfection, silky with the right temperature not to hot not to cold, just right. Served with a lovely coffee/milk art, just slowly and with perfection stoping just right at the verge of the cup. One sip and it was enough to say, one of the best if not the best... so far.

So, from now on I'll be comparing - don't know if is right or not - new lattes against this one that I had a while ago.

So let's start with Barefoot Coffee Works located at 5237 Stevens Creek Blvd, Santa Clara, CA 95051. It was a pleasure to go to this place. Great attention, cozy, a lot of people inside and outside the place (is a great place to hang out, talk or do some work) which told me right out the bat that the coffee had to be good. 

There is a coffee bar and a espresso bar, the coffee bar is pretty interesting because the coffee is brewed by hand one cup at a time - per customer. The barista was being really careful on his job, very attentive to detail. Since I really don't like normal watery coffee I can't speak for it's quality, but I can tell you that there is a lot of effort in the making of it. On the other side is the espresso bar, right just when I got there I was greeted by the barista and asked very politely what I would like to drink. Asked for a nice 2% milk latte and the barista replied "Sorry, we don't have 2% milk,  just whole and non fat" My expression of disappointment trigger a solution from the maker and she offered to mix whole with non-fat (sorry I don't like it like that) I declined and asked for non-fat (not a big deal, but it would be nice to have different kinds if you will). A few minutes later I got a really nice crafted latte, great texture, silky milk and right temperature. The taste of the coffee was not great but it wasn't bad. I was a great coffee well crafted (coffee art was there ;-) ) buy still not the perfect one. If you are near by and want a nice latte go ahead, have one, maybe you'll love it!

The second place of the day, recommended by my friend Chet was Red Rock Coffee in downtown Mountain View @ 201 Castro St, Mountain View, CA 94041. Great, great place. Up to now my favorite coffee in the bay.

Just got inside and was packed of people at 4:45pm (they were closing at 5:00 pm) on a Sunday, so by this you can guess that the quality of the place is great. Very cozy as well, a lot of people with their wireless devices plugged into the matrix, a lot of them talking and playing board games as well. Got to the cashier and asked for my latte on a cup (real plate and cup) with 2% milk as well. Same answer, "no 2% milk, sorry, but the barista will mix it for you". I'm telling you I think I'm using the wrong milk or something, but this no 2% milk is driving me crazy!!! ;-) . So I said yes, what the heck and just right there, just right there I glance at the industrial espresso machine... It was the same used by Intelligentsia, so I said to myself, this has to be good!!!

Great barista, latte well done, silky milk, no bubbles, coffee art as well, temperature on the spot, but... and there is always a but... they gave me the coffee on a cardboard cup... this really threw me off, I asked for a real cup, because that is they way I enjoy my coffee!!! Oh, man, Oh, man... silently mad, but with hope I grabbed my coffee and sat on one of the tables... very calmed, I started to sip my coffee and enjoy the smell and the beauty of it. To my happiness, the taste of the coffee was amazing, a very different flavor compared to Barefoot. I was able to forget and enjoy my latte, sitting on a warm cozy establishment.

By the end of the day, and just forgetting the 2% milk. I can tell you that this two places are great to enjoy a nice cup of coffee, great customer service and lovely atmosphere. Is not the perfect latte, I haven't found it yet, but the cool thing about it is that I'm still in the search for the perfect one.

Good latte!!!

1953 International R110 Truck - HDR

Originally uploaded by [ Roberto Bouza ]

Sonoma, CA

About it

The International R series replaced the L-Series in 1953. It was mostly a facelift of the light and medium models, but also a remarkable set of changes. The busy front style seen on L series was cleanly and easily redesigned to become the R line. In place of the ornate grille of the L line was a simple retangular opening with a tapered bar running across the center, and the IH "man on a tractor" logo planted firmly and obviously in the center. The heavy duty models (R-185 and higher) were changed only slightly in appearance, in that four of the seven vertical bars in the upper grille were removed.

There were actually few changes in the R line, other than facelifts. Of course, there was a wide range of engines, 29 to be precise, which were available. Both Cummins and Buda Diesels were now offered in the RD-190 and RD-200 Series, whereas only Cummins had been available, and even then only in models larger than the 190/200 Series.

In the light pickup truck arena, the new R-110 pickup was a handsome little rig. The clean lines of the grille, hood and front fenders were simple, but pleasing. Exterior chrome plating was used only sparsely, on the identifying logos and on the door handles, but the design did not need chrome to look good. The 115 in wheelbase model featured a 6.5 foot pickup box, and cost $ 1,384.00.

The shot

This past weekend I went with the family and some friends to the beautiful country wine in California. To my happiness I saw this truck parked on the front of the amazing restaurant we had lunch. Basic shot, sun to the right, Canon 50D using a Signa 10-20mm on a tripod. HDR using Photomatix Pro and simple enhancements with photoshop (curves and sharpness).

I hope you like this shot as much as I do. :-)