Linux

I wanted an excuse to build a small real Linux app. Not a shell script. Not a giant desktop application. Not a kernel module. Just a focused program that talks to Linux through the interfaces the system already exposes, gives that data a shape, and presents it as something a normal desktop user can run. Desktop stutter turned out to be a good excuse. My own machine is not slow: modern CPU, fast NVMe storage, plenty of RAM, KDE Plasma on Wayland, and a current kernel. Most of the time it feels excellent. Then, once in a while, the pointer hesitates, a window animation misses a beat, audio gets a tiny crackle, or the browser pauses while a package update or build is running. ...

I have not switched back to Kubuntu yet. I am still daily-driving Manjaro KDE on my ASUS Vivobook Pro 15, with Plasma 6.6.5, Wayland, btrfs, and a hybrid Intel Arc + NVIDIA RTX 3050 setup. But I have been running Kubuntu 26.04 LTS in VirtualBox, comparing the two side by side, and asking a question I did not expect to ask again after several happy years on Arch-based rolling release: ...

Cursor is distributed for Linux as an AppImage, which works well on Manjaro because you do not need to wait for a package in the official repositories or the AUR. Before writing this post, I tried installing Cursor from the AUR, but it was not stable enough for me. I also did not love the extra Electron dependency, although that was not the main reason I moved away from that method. At the time of writing, there is no official Snap release, no official Manjaro or Arch package for Cursor either. ...

Linux networking becomes much easier to reason about when you treat interfaces as layers. A physical NIC can become part of a bond. A VLAN interface can sit on top of that bond. A bridge can sit on top of the VLAN. The host’s IP address belongs on whichever layer represents the host on that network. This post focuses on three building blocks that often appear together on servers, virtualization hosts, routers, and lab machines: ...

Bash scripting, a cornerstone of Unix and Linux system administration, offers powerful tools to automate repetitive tasks, streamline workflows, and handle complex operations. For those already comfortable with basic scripting, diving into advanced techniques can unlock new levels of efficiency and capability. This post will explore advanced shell scripting techniques in Bash, focusing on script optimization, robust error handling, and automating complex system administration tasks. Script Optimization Optimization is crucial for ensuring that your scripts run efficiently, especially when dealing with large datasets or intensive tasks. Here are some key techniques to optimize your Bash scripts. ...

Doctor Web has discovered a malicious Linux program that hacks websites based on a WordPress CMS. It exploits 30 vulnerabilities in a number of plugins and themes for this platform. If sites use outdated versions of such add-ons, lacking crucial fixes, the targeted webpages are injected with malicious JavaScripts. As a result, when users click on any area of an attacked page, they are redirected to other sites. What they can do? Upon their command, it is able to perform the following actions: ...

Update Release Name in Sources To start upgrading you need to change the /etc/apt/sources.list file and replace the name of your previous release with new one. So, for example if you are 20.04, replace every instance of focal with kinetic. If you currently have 22.04, replace jammy with kinetic. This process can be automated by using the following sed command: 1 sudo sed -i 's/jammy/kinetic/g' /etc/apt/sources.list Then, look in /etc/apt/sources.list.d/. Change any files in there the same way. ...

Ubuntu by default uses LTS Kernels: Canonical provides long-term support (LTS) kernels for Ubuntu LTS releases. Canonical also provides interim operating system releases with updated kernels every 6 months. For customers and business partners that don’t have specialised bleeding-edge workloads or latest hardware needs, the latest LTS release ”-generic” kernel is the best option for them such as the 4.15 default kernel in Ubuntu 18.04 LTS. Customers who need the latest hardware support capability can install the latest HWE kernel such as the ones contained in interim releases, keeping in mind the shorter support lifespan associated with these kernels (9 months). HWE kernel customers are recommended to upgrade to a newer LTS release that supports their hardware and/or software needs as soon as it is available. Another option for customers is to use point releases. For example, there is an 18.04.4 point release as of February 2020, which includes an updated 5.3.x kernel but is also considered LTS, exactly like the original GA 4.15 kernel in 18.04. ...

Microsoft researchers found a cross-platform botnet that originates from malicious software downloads on Windows devices & succeeds in propagating to a variety of Linux-based devices by enumerating default credentials on internet-exposed SSH-enabled devices. Microsoft researchers observed that the initial infection points related to the botnet were devices infected through the installation of malicious cracking tools that purport to acquire illegal Windows licenses. The cracking tools contain additional code that downloads and launches a fake version of svchost.exe through a PowerShell command. In some cases, the downloaded file is named svchosts.exe. ...

What is WARP? The Cloudflare WARP client allows individuals and organizations to have a faster, more secure, and more private experience online. The WARP client sits between your device and the Internet, and has several connection modes to better suit different needs. Install Installing Warp Client (aka Cloudflare Zero Trust Client) is so easy, specially if your OS uses AUR. AUR Use your AUR helper to find and install cloudflare-warp-bin, for example I use yay here: ...