[colug-432] Ubuntu as a router?

[richard hornsby]

On Wed, Sep 30, 2009 at 10:33 PM, Steve Roggenkamp <roggenkamps at acm.org> wrote:
> It's not a stupid question.  I've had the same problem running Debian Lenny
> on a netbook.  I'm not sure I've completely fixed, but here goes.
>
> I think the problem is that Linux is trying to chase Microsoft Windows -
> just plug the network cable in and you're good to go.  So you have some
> software developer's idea of how you're network should be configured,
> assuming you plug into a home router/switch that includes a DHCP server.
>  Unfortunately, there seem to be a few gotcha's if you're trying to
> configure a good statically addressed networking system.

Honestly, the main reason I like Ubuntu as a distro is because of apt
- an element distinctly lacking in Windows.  I got tired of fighting
with rhupdate (or whatever it was called) being a pita about
dependencies.  With a network-enabled package manager, I can just call
upon a tool to get most of the stuff I need without having to hunt it
down.

I'm not even running a GUI on this box, just using the console, if
that is what you mean by "chas[ing] Microsoft Windows".

> First disable avahi.  It just messes things up, big time in my experience.

Yep, it is doing some really weird things, like creating an interface
'eth1:avahi' and seemed to be somehow related to the dhcp nonsense.

> Next, do a 'man resolvconf' and RTFM.  It used to be that you could edit one
> file, /etc/resolv.conf, to set up you DNS resolver framework.  Now it's a
> whole friggen framework with multiple directories under the /etc/resolvconf
> directory.  The various files is this directory tree overwrite the changes
> you make to /etc/resolv.conf, as if the daemon knows better than you what
> you need!

Yeah, I saw that I wasn't supposed to change /etc/resolv.conf (I tried
anyways - and no surprise my changes kept getting blown away), but
you're right it has turned into a mess.  Annoying as hell.  As an
aside, even OS X has gone this (stupid) direction:

piper:~ rhornsby$ head /etc/resolv.conf
# Mac OS X Notice
#
# This file is not used by the host name and address resolution
# or the DNS query routing mechanisms used by most processes on
# this Mac OS X system.
#
# This file is automatically generated.

argh.

> Finally, blow away Ubuntu and install (Free|Net|Open)BSD that hasn't been
> chasing the Microsoft BS.  Unfortunately, it's a bit of a change from Linux
> in terms of system administration, but at least it doesn't try to think too
> much for you in this area.  Yet.

I'm way more familiar with Linux as a general OS than I am with the
BSD family.  Like I said, while it has been a while, I've done this
very successfully before - with other distros.  At its core, Linux is
just Linux when you strip away the avahi, network-manager, etc stuff.
I'll take your suggestion under advisement.  I might even pull a drive
out of mothballs and give *BSD a shot.

-rj