System Guides
Backups and Quotas
Backups
From CCRMA Wiki
Your home directory is backed up automatically each day to a backup server. You can access these daily images by going to:
/usr/ccrma/backup/<username>
There, you will see directories with names like '20070804,' which corresponds to the date of the backup.
Inside this directory you'll see another directory named 'tree.'
/usr/ccrma/backup/<username>/<date-directory>/tree
'tree' corresponds to your home directory. So, inside it you'll see all the files and dictories backed up on that date. This is an 'image' or snapshot of what your home directory looked like at backup time. Backups are taken sometime between midnight and 8am generally.
You can read from (copy from) these directories, but cannot write to them.
So, if you deleted a critical soundfile from your home directory (e.g. ~/sounds/best-sound-ever.ogg) you could copy that file back into your home directory by visiting the most recent date directory where the soundfile exists and copy it back, somewhere into your home directory, like this:
~> cp /usr/ccrma/backup/<username>/<date-directory>/tree/sounds/best-sound-ever.ogg ~/sounds
The backup images are retained inside a 3 month window according to the following schedule:
| 0-2 weeks | 2 - 5 weeks | 5 - 12 weeks | beyond 12 weeks |
| Daily | MWF | F | none |
That is, for two weeks back from the present day, you have an image available for each day. Further back than two weeks, but less than five, you have MWF images available (T,Th,Sa, and Su images have been deleted). From five to twelve weeks, you have only each Friday's image available (M and W are deleted), and after twelve weeks, all images are deleted.
Backup Exceptions
There is a system in place which will allow you to prevent certain files from being backed up. You would want to do this if you have large sets of source material, generally sound or video files, which you have already backed up to DVD, but need on the network drive for some reason (e.g. to be accessed for computation or analyis of some sort). This would be data that is on the order of Gigabytes. You can exclude this data from backups by:
1) Creating a directory called '.ccrma' in your home directory.
~> cd ~> mkdir .ccrma
2) Then in that directory, create a file called: 'dirvish.conf' Dirvish is the name of the backup program.
~> cd .ccrma ~> gedit dirvish.conf
3) In that file place the directory names that you want to exclude from backups in the following syntax:
exclude:
/sounds/big-project
/temp
Where the the leading slash represents your home directory root.
4) Save the file
Dirvish will check this file first before starting the backup, and will not backup these directories listed in it.
If you somehow forget to exclude something big, please contact the SysAdmin Team and let us know so we can delete it from the backup server.
Quotas
CCRMA does not enforce quotas per se. We expect the community to respect reasonable usage of disk space, and to manage their data responsibly. That said, we do get daily usage reports including a 'Hog Report.' If we feel your storage approach needs some attention, you'll hear from us. If you have a big project coming up, please come and see us about how we might best configure the system.
Guestnet
CCRMA has transitioned to a login based network access system called [Chillispot], which will simplify access by allowing CCRMA users to login to the wired and wireless Guestnet network with their login name and password (subject to a usage timeout), no matter what personal computer you are using. Your wired or wireless devices will each require a lease if you intend to use both. Do not allow username and password caching when logging in. You will be given a one week 'lease' for that MAC address. If you use that device during the one week lease, it will be renewed for one week. You will only have to login again if you haven't accessed the network for one week.
Logging In
Enable your wired or wireless network device. Start your favorite web browser. If you do not already have an active lease for that device, you will be presented with a login screen like this:
Enter your CCRMA Username and Password. Alternately, you can log in using your Stanford credentials, by typing your Stanford login including ".stanford.edu" as your Username.
You will be assigned access to the CCRMA Guestnet network for that device, and you will presented with a browser window like this:
Closing this window has no effect on your lease or access. It's just for informational purposes. There is no reason to 'logout.' If your lease expires, just login again.
Passwords
Changing Your Password
You may change your password at any time using the 'passwd' command in your login shell. You will be prompted to enter your old password then to enter your new one, twice. Please see below for guidance on how to choose intelligent passwords. If you forget your password, you will need to see a System Adminisrator, who will let you choose and type in a new password.
Choosing a Good Password
From the 'passwd' man page:
Remember the following two principles
Protect your password.
Don’t write down your password - memorize it. In particular,
don’t write it down and leave it anywhere, and don’t place it in
an unencrypted file! Use unrelated passwords for systems con-
trolled by different organizations. Don’t give or share your
password, in particular to someone claiming to be from computer
support or a vendor. Don’t let anyone watch you enter your
password. Don’t enter your password to a computer you don’t
trust or if things Use the password for a limited time and
change it periodically.
Choose a hard-to-guess password.
passwd will try to prevent you from choosing a really bad pass-
word, but it isn’t foolproof; create your password wisely.
Don’t use something you’d find in a dictionary (in any language
or jargon). Don’t use a name (including that of a spouse, par-
ent, child, pet, fantasy character, famous person, and location)
or any variation of your personal or account name. Don’t use
accessible information about you (such as your phone number,
license plate, or social security number) or your environment.
Don’t use a birthday or a simple pattern (such as backwards,
followed by a digit, or preceded by a digit. Instead, use a mix-
ture of upper and lower case letters, as well as digits or punc-
tuation. When choosing a new password, make sure it’s unrelated
to any previous password. Use long passwords (say 8 characters
long). You might use a word pair with punctuation inserted, a
passphrase (an understandable sequence of words), or the first
letter of each word in a passphrase.
These principles are partially enforced by the system, but only partly
so. Vigilence on your part will make the system much more secure.