Over the next few months, we will be migrating ClearOS source code to GitHub. This week, the code to all the internal packages (i.e. not upstream) used in ClearOS was migrated to https://github.com/clearos-packages. The real GitHub fun will start when the apps are migrated... but that's for another day.
We have updated the ClearOS development tools and documentation. If you are interested in building apps, you may want to check out the new Hello World Tutorial. The tutorial - which includes video demonstrations - can guide you through the process of getting an app up and running in no time!
The ClearOS Community 6.4.0 ISOs were updated. The default partitioning scheme was not configured to use all available disk space -- not a great default of course. Only the ISOs were updated, the virtual machine and Amazon EC2 images were not changed.
For a few months now, ClearFoundation has been using Amazon EC2 for bits of infrastructure and we really like it. We eat our own dog food when we can, and Amazon EC2 is a great place to implement a master node in a master/slave architecture.
For ClearFoundation, all the users and groups are managed on the ClearOS master node running in EC2. Across the Internet, two ClearOS slave nodes are used for hosting source code (SVN running on good old hardware) and hosting the beta translation server (running in a virtual machine on-premise). The accounts on the master node are automatically replicated to these two slave nodes and the slaves can run quite happily without a connection to the master node. In other words, we can shutdown the master node on Amazon and the two slave nodes will hum along just fine.
Enough blabbing about clearfoundation.com infrastructure. If you are looking for a hybrid cloud / on-premise solution, Amazon EC2 can certainly be part of the puzzle. To install ClearOS in Amazon, please review the documentation here:
- ClearOS Amazon EC2 Install Guide
If you run into any issues, please post a message in the forums or send an e-mail to developer@clearfoundation.com. We like squashing bugs, so send those reports our way!
The Storage Manager is currently available in the (beta) Amazon EC2 ClearOS Professional builds, but the app can be installed and implemented on any ClearOS system. If you want to start using the Storage Manager on an existing ClearOS system, the following technical guide walks through the details:
Storage Manager Technical Guide
If you have any questions or run into any problems, please feel free to post a message in the forums or contact technical support if you have a ClearCenter support subscription.
If you are outside the United States, you know the frustration of getting locked out from content providers like Hulu, Netflix, Pandora and others. With ClearOS and the new ibVPN app, you can now invisibly and securely access these services.
Using the ClearOS Marketplace, install the ibVPN app on your ClearOS gateway and start routing devices on your local network via your favorite country: US, Canada, UK, and many more. For example, an Apple TV system can be routed through the US while leaving other systems on the network as is. Here's how it works.
- Install the app from the ClearOS Marketplace
- Sign up for an account from ibVPN (link includes an affiliate ID... beer money)
- Configure your ibVPN settings in the ClearOS app
- Select the country VPN server (US, UK, Canada, etc)
- Specify the devices on your network that should go through ibVPN
Enjoy!
The folks over at terasaur (by ibiblio) have provided a nice spot for grabbing ClearOS Community 6.4.0 via BitTorrent. We are adding a couple of seed nodes right now, so feel free to torrent away!
ClearOS Community 6.4.0 is now available! Along with the usual round of bug fixes and enhancements, this release introduces a new reports engine, a storage manager, an antimalware file scanner, RADIUS, a basic POP/IMAP server, and mail retrieval.
What's next? After a bumpy start with ClearOS 6, we are now happy with the stability and maturity of the version. Version 6 required a major overhaul under the hood, but it provided ClearOS with a modern and secure web application platform. So what's currently in the pipeline?
- A beta release of the new QoS engine
- Samba 4 / Samba Directory preview
- The ibVPN app (coming next week!)
- A new Administrators app
- Additional network support: VLAN and static routes
- The Network Map tool, which will enable IP-based content filter filter policies (Professional Edition)
OwnCloud, Captive Portal are other potential developments are also floating around in various stages of development. Stay tuned!
ClearOS Community 6.4.0 Beta 2 has arrived! Along with the usual round of bug fixes and enhancements, this release introduces a new reports engine, a storage manager, an antimalware file scanner, RADIUS, a basic POP/IMAP server, mail retrieval (fetchmail) as well as upstream proxy support.
Over the last few weeks, there was a lot of focus on squashing bugs and improving little usability issues. From the modernized installer to the easy to use Marketplace, ClearOS 6 has matured to be our best offering. It's not only the core platform that has had a facelift, but also the individual apps and solutions. For example, Zarafa's solution with two great webmail interfaces, Outlook support, and out-of-the-box mobile synchronization brings enterprise-level mail to small organizations.
- ClearOS Community 6.4.0 Beta 2 - Release Notes and Download
The build of ClearOS Core 6.4 packages from upstream sources is completed and rolling out to the mirrors. All in all it took about 32 hours from the time the packages showed up to having them fully built. We are busy adding Core to the current ClearOS Community and Professional trees and should have some great new features and hardware support. 6.4 Core is useful for techies and hobbyists but we shall all be able to set our sights on the future release of ClearOS 6.4 Community and ClearOS 6.4 Professional.
Cant wait to get started with ClearOS? Then don't wait. 6.3 will upgrade to 6.4 when the time comes and the licensing is all the same. Stay tuned for more updates on the features of 6.4.
We are happy to announce the availability of the Static IPsec VPN app from Tim Burgess! This app makes it possible to create IPsec VPN connections between your ClearOS system and third party systems including Cisco, Sonicwall, Linksys, pfSense, Watchguard and others. Static IPsec VPN also supports road warriors, dynamic tunnel management, dead peer detection, advanced settings for IKE, ESP, etc, and more. The app is available in ClearOS Marketplace for a one-time price of $50 and includes forum support -- a place to find help with interoperability, security and fine tuning.
A basic version is also available for free. If you need to connect your ClearOS system to other ClearOS systems, the free version will get you up and running. Though there's no support for dynamic IPs and the software is provided as-is, it is certainly a great solution for non-mission critical scenarios. For those of you looking for support for dynamic IPs and need mission critical reliability for ClearOS-to-ClearOS connections, check out Dynamic VPN -- a free app included in ClearOS Professional Basic/Standard/Premium.
For the hackers out there, the new ClearOS QoS engine is ready for testing!
A few years ago, the old Bandwidth Manager was introduced as a way to manage Internet bandwidth usage for a local network. The tool allowed administrators to reserve enough bandwidth for high priority traffic, and shuffle low priority traffic into a small slice of the pipe. It works, but it only solves half the problem and arguably the less important half. The other half is QoS (quality of service) – a way to prioritize network traffic that needs to move quickly. VoIP is probably the most important service that benefits from QoS, but terminal services and other traffic can benefit from QoS as well.
If Netflix, Youtube, and (pick your audio streaming service) are causing hiccups with your VoIP system, then ClearOS QoS will be your new best friend.
(curses at blog software... continues in the wiki)
Here comes another app from Tim -- Transmission BitTorrent for ClearOS! With the Transmission app, you get a web-based BitTorrent client with powerful features: encryption, peer exchange, magnet links, and more. It's open source, free, easy to use and lean. You can install the app through Marketplace (see screenshot).
When you couple Transmission with a mobile client, you have a great way to manage your torrents while out and about town.
Transmission in ClearOS
ClearOS Community 6.4.0 Beta 1 is now available! Along with the usual round of bug fixes and enhancements, the 6.4.0 release introduces a framework for Samba 4 integration, an improved reports engine, a storage manager, an antimalware file scanner, a basic POP/IMAP server as well as upstream proxy support. Here are the app details:
- Storage Manager
- Basic IMAP/POP Server
- Upstream Proxy Support
- Antimalware File Scan
The DNS and Resolver infrastructure in ClearOS has been updated to support the introduction of Samba 4. If you are used to configuring your DNS servers from the command line, please take a look at the following technical document for important details.
You can find important release and download information in the Release Notes. For those of you interested in the ClearOS Professional 6.4.0 release, expect to see Amazon EC2 Images, Network Mapping, Samba Directory / Samba 4 Beta, and more!
Cloud Computing Award We are proud to announce that ClearCenter won the "Best Hybrid Cloud Solution 2012", at the Up-Start 2012 Cloud Computing Awards, held in San Francisco in Dec 2012. The UP-START Cloud Awards recognize innovative companies that advance cloud computing to business and technology communities around the world. Consistent social media outreach and thousands of votes secured ClearFoundation as finalists, advancing the company to the final round of voting. Participating companies ranged from startups in the Silicon Valley area to industry giants such as IBM, Microsoft, and Salesforce, as well as international companies from Europe, Asia and the Pacific region. Finalists in our Category were Alfresco, Hewlett Packard, Eucalyptus and Virtustream. We would like to thank those from the ClearFoundation Community who supported us by voting during the first phase of the Up-Start Cloud Awards.
Your votes helped ClearCenter obtain 4th position prior to the 2nd phase of voting, conducted at the Up-Start Conference 2012 only by those in attendance where we ended up obtaining 1st place position for the Best Hybrid Cloud Solution 2012 category. The opportunity to present at the conference helped drive awareness about ClearOS and what ClearCenter is doing for the Hybrid Cloud in relation to the other finalists.
Special thanks to the ClearFoundation Community members for the continued effort to help drive awareness for ClearOS around the world and for helping ClearCenter to receive such a recognition.
Congratulations to the Samba Team on shipping Samba 4!
For those of you who don't know, Samba 4 not only includes the high quality file server solution that we have come to depend on for many years, but also an Active Directory** logon environment. Yes, you will be able to start replacing those Windows Active Directory servers with a Samba 4 implementation. For all the gory details, you can find the Samba 4 feature list here and in the release notes.
So, how does Samba 4's directory integrate with ClearOS? Well, ClearOS uses a driver model for the accounts system (users and groups). One of the steps that you see when you configure a ClearOS system is the account system driver selection as shown in the following screenshot:
ClearOS with Samba 4 Accounts
Once selected, ClearOS will use the driver in its normal and native way. In the case of Samba 4, there's no synchronization going on between Samba's directory and other directories or user databases. When Samba 4 is running, all apps and services on ClearOS query Samba Directory directly. The current internal Samba Directory app has been tested with FTP, PPTP, Squid, SSH, and other apps and it all works great!
ClearOS Professional 6.4, which is expected to be released in the next few weeks, will include this new Samba Directory app. Please keep in mind, we are going to be cautious with the release of the app -- it will be beta until we figure out all the gotchas. Oh, you can expect a public preview in the next few days... stay tuned.
Home users don't need the complexity of a full blown directory: Kerberos, SIDs, Base DN, and all that other jargon should not appear anywhere in ClearOS Community Edition user interface. In home and small office environments, we are going to keep things as simple and slim as possible. Our plan is to release ClearOS Community with Samba 4 implemented just as it is right now -- as a solid and reliable file server.
** Trademark is the property of the respective owner. ClearCenter and ClearFoundation are not affiliated with Microsoft.
Orem, Utah. December 2012 Recently ClearCenter, was notified by Susan Allen, UP-START 2012 that ClearCenter had qualified as a finalist in the “Best Hybrid Cloud Solution” category for the 2012 UP-Start Cloud Awards. The UP-START Cloud Awards recognize extraordinary achievements. These prestigious awards are the result of a huge vote from people at the heart of the cloud. The very best of the best for 2012 will be announced during the conference in San Francisco.
ClearCenter is honored to reach the award finals, given the calibre of the other finalists that included the likes of Alfresco, Hewlett Packard, Eucalyptus and Virtustream. Michael Proper ClearCenter's CEO and ClearFoundation's Chairman stated that the nomination is a reflection of the value that ClearOS users have obtained from ClearCenter's Hybrid Service Provider Model and ClearCenter's Hybrid Appliances coupled with the hard work that the ClearFoundation Team & Community continually add value to our customers and partners.
This is only the third time that these awards have been held and the voting process for them is conducted in two phases. The first phase collected votes from the public through an online voting form. This phase was completed on Nov 23, 2012 and thanks to those from the wider ClearCenter & ClearFoundation community for your many votes. The next voting phase is limited to only those people who attend the 2012 UP-Start Cloud Computing Annual Conference in San Francisco on December 12, 2012.
Welcome to UP 2012
The Third Annual Global Cloud Computing Conference is an annual review of cloud computing developments and trends and the impact on the global economy and society
One of the biggest and oldest cloud events with world class lineup of speakers, providing solutions, that can be applied today and tomorrow. Conference covers following topics:
If you still haven’t made your mind up as to whether you might attend we have been able to get a 20% off discount for our supporters for the Expo Only ticket and here is the code http://up.eventbrite.com/?discount=VOTE. Upon check-in supporters will receive a ballot with a list of all finalists, which has to be filled and deposited to the ballot box to register your vote.
Come join the fun. http://up-con.com/vote
We're getting an early jump on ClearOS Community 6.4.0 by releasing Alpha 1. Along with the usual round of bug fixes and enhancements, this release introduces a new reports engine, a storage manager, an antimalware file scanner, a basic POP/IMAP server as well as upstream proxy support. Here are the app details:
- Filter and Proxy Report
- Resource Report
- Network Report
- Storage Manager
- Basic IMAP/POP Server
- Upstream Proxy Support
- Antimalware File Scan
You can find important release and download information in the Release Notes. This is alpha software, so expect to hit the command line to test out all the features. We will be releasing Beta 1 before December holidays.
For those of you interested in the ClearOS Professional 6.4.0 release, expect to see Amazon EC2 Images, Network Mapping, Samba Directory / Samba 4 Beta, and more!
The release of version 6 brought a new mindset to ClearOS: apps can no longer be "just good enough", apps need to be well put together. Almost every single report in ClearOS 5.x was in the former category. So today, we are happy to announce the beta release of the new ClearOS Reports engine! 3 new reports are available:
- Network Report
- Resource Report
- Filter and Proxy Report
The new report engine will continue to evolve throughout 2013, but the engine is already a big improvement over what was available in ClearOS 5.x:
- Tighter integration (3rd party reports are no longer hacked into the web interface)
- Unified look and feel
- Interactive charts
- Sortable and searchable data tables
In the future, live reports, PDF and weekly mailings will be added to the report engine. If you would like to install the beta version of the reports, please run the command below (subject to change!). The reports will be available via the Marketplace in a future test release.
yum --enablerepo=clearos-updates-testing install "app*report*"
A new app from the ClearFoundation development team has been added to the Marketplace this week. The app integrates a Dropbox client onto your ClearOS server, providing users with the ability add a Dropbox folder to their home directory on the server and have the ability to access that folder from any device (smartphone, tablet, laptop etc.) with a Dropbox sync to the same account.
The app is available free of charge. It's pretty simple in it's configuration and inner workings (think version one dot oh) and doesn't use any Dropbox API's (a GUI-less Linux client from binaries provided by Dropbox are used), but if anyone in the community would like to add features, please connect with us to continue on with this app's development.
Documentation for the Dropbox app can be found here.
The ClearCenter team will likely be looking at GoogleDrive and Dropbox for Teams in the near future for cloud based file storage/sync for our end-users in companies, education, distributed enterprise and government.
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