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:

• Enterprise Automation and DevOps.
• Infrastructure and Operations.
• Business Agility and Continuity.
• Cloud Mobility.
• Transition, Integration & Process Optimization.
• Big Data, BI and Knowledge Management.
• Standards, Governance & Security.
• Cloud Adoption & Case Studies.

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.

Yet another great app has been released by Tim Burgess: SMART Monitor!  Seasoned administrators know that hard disks fail on a regular basis -- it's not a matter of if, but when.   The SMART Monitor app analyzes the reliability of hard drives and predicts drive failures.  Yes, you can detect a hard drive issue before it cause a system failure and potential downtime.  

Tim's app is available for $10 (one-time) via Marketplace.

ClearOS SMART Monitor

- SMART Monitor - User Guide

We are happy to announce the official launch of the new ClearOS translation tools!  We have integrated the output from the translation server system into the ClearOS web framework.  This web-based translation system makes it possible for collaborators from around the globe to contribute.  In addition, a new Developer App provides a way to see the results of new translations just minutes after making updates on the translation server.

For more information, please see Getting Started. If you would like to contribute, please send a message to developer@clearfoundation.com and we can get the ball rolling.

We Need The Community's Help - Please Vote!

ClearOS, on behalf of the ClearFoundation has been nominated as one of the choices for this years New Zealand Open Source Awards :: People's Choice Award! 

Votes must be cast by Oct 26th.  

Simply follow this link and click on the 'thumbs up' icon next to ClearOS.  That's it!

Thanks again for the opportunity to come together to build, use and continually improve such a worthy project as ClearOS.

ClearFoundation Team.
info@clearfoundation.com

Vote for ClearCenter . 

Select the 'Add' link next to ClearCenter and scroll down and select 'Vote'.

Why Vote for ClearCenter?

ClearCenter is dedicated to, and a pioneer in Hybrid Cloud technology and services sector. ClearCenter provides a unique ability to quickly and seamlessly deploy hybrid solutions in almost any environment.

Hybrid IT is the delivery of IT applications and services through a seamless integration of cloud and on-premise resources. Hybrid IT leverages the best elements of cloud applications and services as well as on-premise security and efficiency to offer the most productive open source IT platform available.

Hybrid Cloud Technology (Cloud Applications & Cloud Services) is bringing sophisticated and complex applications to global IT at ever lower costs - some for free. On Premise resources can therefore be consolidated to critical network, gateway and server functions. Combined with the evolution of comprehensive Open Source Applications and Open Source Services, Hybrid IT is a dominating trend that is yielding the highest performance for the lowest cost. Hybrid IT harnesses the strength of these three growth trends - (1) cloud computing, (2) on premise applications and services and the ever strengthening (3) Open Source movement.

The open source revolution in the software industry has made it possible to provide ClearOS software at no cost. Among other features, anti-virus, anti-spam, VPN and content filtering are built right into the software. With ClearOS, you can avoid costly vendor lock-in and proprietary formats; instead, you can embrace open standards and protocols as well as the ability to develop new features and integrated with existing systems using the Open Source software.

Dominating IT trends evolve from a combination of IT growth trends in the global IT market. Recent growth trends include Open Source Software and Open Source Services, and Cloud Applications and Cloud Services, and the consolidation of on-premise resources. Hybrid IT is a dominating trend evolving from decades of momentum and development around these key growth trends.

So again, why vote for ClearCenter?  Because ClearCenter has been and will continue to be a global leader in Hybrid Cloud Solutions. vidmate

Another great app has been released by Tim Burgess: BackupPC! The software is a high-performance, enterprise-grade system for backing up Linux and Windows systems to a ClearOS server. You can find more detailed information and features on the BackupPC web site. To install this free app, please do so via the Marketplace on your ClearOS system.

Starting Friday September 7, at least one member of the ClearOS team will make an effort to be available on IRC on Friday afternoons (Eastern Time, North America).  Hopefully we'll be able to be around a lot more than that in the future, but we're going to keep it simple for now.

#clearfoundation on Freenode

ClearOS Community 6.3.0 has arrived! Along with the usual round of enhancements, this release introduces new apps focused on the mail server stack. Anchored on the Zarafa for ClearOS solution, you can now implement an on-premise or private cloud mail server using ClearOS. This release includes the following new apps: Zarafa Community for ClearOS, Mail Antivirus, Mail Antispam, Antispam Updates, Greylisting, and more.

For businesses and organizations, ClearOS Professional 6.3.0 also includes Zarafa Professional for ClearOS, Mail Antimalware Premium powered by Kaspersky and Gateway Antimalware Premium powered by Kaspersky. The Zarafa solution provides Outlook support (calendaring, tasks, etc.) as well as integrated mailbox backup.

- Release Notes
- 32-bit ISO, 64-bit ISO, and links to virtual machine images

Yep...that's right. ClearOS 6.3.0 Beta1 is ready for testing. ClearOS 6.3.0 Beta1 contains new additions to its powerful server, network, and gateway features by adding powerful mail features not contained in ClearOS 6.2.x. ClearOS continues the trend of integrating free modules from ClearFoundation and commercial applications and services from ClearCenter and partners. ClearOS does this by re-introducing open source mail improvements and commercial grade mail services using Zarafa. In addition, wireless support is starting to work its way into this release and a framework for inclusion in the general release is ongoing in development. If you are looking for a powerful and easy to use solution for your small business or distributed enterprise, ClearOS 6.3.0 is your answer.

For more details, please reference the release notes for ClearOS 6.3.0 Beta1. Installers are also on the mirrors so to get started with new ISOs just head to the testing directories and have FUN!

For those of you who missed the first announcement, 16 new mail server apps are now in beta.  You can get a big picture overview of these mail apps in the first announcement Zarafa and Mail Stack Beta 1.  This second beta release is ready for real-world use.  It is still a beta mind you, so the usual word of caution.

Next: Installation and Configuration

Congratulations Samba Team!

The Samba Team has announced the release of Samba 4 Beta 1!  Why is this good news?  Well, Samba 4 supports Active Directory** logon protocols.  In other words, Samba 4 can act as a Microsoft Active Directory server much in the way Samba 3 can act as a domain controller (PDC).  That's a game changer.

Have no fear, ClearOS 6 was re-designed with Samba 4 in mind.  We'll be posting more information about the ClearOS Samba 4 roadmap in the near future.  For now, it's hats off to Samba!

** Marks belong to their respective owners

A new implementation guide is available for those of you who would like to deploy a ClearOS Content Filter using users and groups from Microsoft's Active Directory. The guide goes through the steps for deploying a ClearOS system in gateway-mode using the ClearOS Professional Active Directory Connector app.  This tight integration provides a number of advantages for those running Active Directory on their networks:

- No need to use different tools to manage users and groups.

- Single sign-on support for the web proxy and content filter. A user only needs to login to Windows and there is no need to login again to access the web.

- Integration with other ClearOS apps too, for example, PPTP Server

Read on: Content Filtering with Active Directory Connector

We are happy to announce a cool new toy for developers - an Android app to get you started with mobile development! Please keep in mind, this is a developer demonstration with open source code to get started.

Installation

On your ClearOS system, install the server-side app for the Android app:

yum --enablerepo=clearos-updates-testing install app-mobile-demo

Once installed, you can find the demo under System > Developer > Mobile Demo. From that page you can click on Download & Install to get the app from Google play.

ClearOS Mobile Demo - Android

Tips

- After you have added a new system to the application, you may have to wait up to 10 minutes before you start to see data synchronizing. This all depends on how many other sync accounts you have (GMail, Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, etc). This is apparently "normal" behavior.

- The app will install on Android 2.1 and up, but older API versions do not support periodic data sync, this has to be done in some manual way. Periodic sync works from API level 8 (2.2.x FROYO) and up.

- The password you use to authenticate with is never stored on the phone. It is used once to obtain a session cookie. These cookies will expire after 2 hours. You will be notified with a sign-in error when the session expired. I will be updating the ClearOS framework to extend sessions time-outs dynamically so this won't be an issue for future real world apps.