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Netplan is a utility for configuring network interfaces on Linux. Netplan uses YAML files for configuring network interfaces. YAML configuration file format is really simple. It has clear and easy to understand syntax. Netplan works with traditional Linux networking system Systemd-networkd and Network Manager. With Netplan you can configure the network of your Ubuntu machines easier than ever before. Starting from Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, Ubuntu uses Netplan to configure network interfaces by default.

In this article, I will show you how to install Netplan on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS and later, and how to use Netplan on Ubuntu. I will be using Ubuntu 18.04 LTS for the demonstration. But it should work the same way on every Ubuntu version where Netplan is installed. Let’s get started.

Netplan is available in the official package repository of Ubuntu. So, it is really easy to install. Netplan is not installed by default on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. So, I am focusing on the installation method of Netplan on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS in this section. First, update the APT package repository cache with the following command:

The APT package repository cache should be updated.

Now, install Netplan with the following command:

$ sudo apt install netplan

Netplan should be installed.

By default, Netplan is disabled on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. You have to enable it manually. To enable Netplan, you have to create a file netplan in the /etc/default/ directory and add ENABLED=1 to it.

To do that, run the following command:

$ echo “ENABLED=1” | sudo tee /etc/default/netplan

/etc/default/netplan file should be created.

Now, reboot your computer with the following command:

Netplan should be enabled.

Netplan Configuration Files:

On Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, the Netplan YAML configuration files are placed in the /etc/netplan/ directory. To configure a network interface, you have to create or modify required YAML files in this directory. YAML configuration files has the .yaml extension. The default Netplan YAML configuration file /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml is used to configure network interfaces using Netplan.

On Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, the configuration files are placed in the /etc/plan directory and the default configuration file is /etc/plan/netplan-acl.

Make sure you modify the correct configuration file depending on the version of Ubuntu you’re using.

Configuring Network Interface via DHCP with Netplan:

In this section, I will show you how to configure a network interface via DHCP on Ubuntu with Netplan. First, find the network interface name that you want to configure with the following command:

As you can see, I have one network interface card (NIC) installed on my Ubuntu 18.04 LTS machine and the network interface name is ens33. It does not have any IP address configured right now. Let’s use Netplan to configure it via DHCP.

To configure the network interface ens33 via DHCP using Netplan, open the default Netplan configuration file on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml with the following command:

$ sudo nano /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml

You should see the following window.

Now add the following lines in the network section.

ethernets:
ens33:
dhcp4: yes

Here, dhcp4: yes means, use DHCP for IPv4 protocol to configure the network interface ens33.

NOTE: The indentations are really useful. Make sure you indent each line correctly. It will make the syntax clearer and comfortable to the eye.

Finally, the configuration file should look something like this.

Now, press <Ctrl> + x and then press y followed by <Enter> to save the file.

The good thing about Netplan is that before you apply the changes, you can make sure the configuration file has no typos or any other mistakes with the following command:

Now press <Enter>.

If everything is alright, you should see Configuration accepted message as marked in the screenshot below.

If there’s any problem with the configuration file, you will see appropriate error messages here.

This feature will surely help you to avoid complex hard to track future problems with Netplan configuration files. Finally, apply the changes permanently using Netplan with the following command:

As you can see, the network interface ens33 is configured via DHCP.

Setting Up Static IP Address with Netplan:

If you want to set up a static IP on your network interface using Netplan, then this section is for you. You can manually set the IP address, name server, gateway etc. of your network interface using Netplan. Let’s say, you want to configure your network interface ens33 as follows:

Static IP address: 192.168.10.33
Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0
Gateway: 192.168.10.1
DNS server: 192.168.10.1

First, check the network configuration of ens33 network interface with the following command:

This is to help you verify that the network interface settings really changed.

Now, edit the Netplan YAML configuration file /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml with the following command:

$ sudo nano /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml

If you’ve followed me throughout the article, then the configuration file should be like this. Now, remove the line as marked in the screenshot below.

And type in the lines as marked in the screenshot below.

NOTE: Remember, indentation is essential for YAML files. If you forget to indent correctly, Netplan will not let you apply the configuration file. So, you must indent every step of the YAML configuration file as shown in the screenshot below.

Now, press <Ctrl> + x and then press y followed by <Enter> to save the file.

Now, check whether there’s any error in the configuration file with the following command:

press <Enter>.

As you can see, the configuration file is accepted.

Finally, apply the configuration file with the following command:

As you can see, the IP address is changed as expected.

The gateway is also set correctly.

The DNS server is set correctly as well.

So, that’s how you install and use Netplan on Ubuntu to configure network interfaces using YAML files. If you want to learn more about Netplan, please visit the official website of Netplan at https://netplan.io. Thanks for reading this article.

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Nov 06, 2018, 05:00

Feren OS is a nice alternative to Linux Mint and an easy stepping stone to transition to Linux from Microsoft Windows or macOS.

I am a long-time user of Linux Mint, but I am falling out of love with it. Mint is getting stale. It is annoyingly sluggish at times. I run it on a number of computers and experience the same symptoms on a variety of hardware configurations. Linux Mint is starting to suffer from a developmental malaise.

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One from the ‘inbox of no return’ that I sadly missed, Out of The Box from developer Nuclear Tales is a time-management thriller where you decide the fate of the quirky customers of a luxurious club and it has Linux support. Note: Key provided by the publisher.

As head of security, you will need to deal with the rules of the club which gradually get more complex. Find out who is lying, who is telling the truth and possibly throw a few punches. The story actually changes, depending on what you do during your time. Work with the police, gangsters or whoever.

About the game:

Every night, among the club’s visitors, you’ll find undercover cops, annoying celebrities, runaway criminals or ghosts from your past. As the new gatekeeper of The Box, you decide who enters and who doesn’t… by any means necessary. Be careful though, because each choice you make can influence the fate of the club and its clients. You’ll also need to keep your salary to avoid being evicted, to see your daughter again, and most importantly, to regain control of your life.

Will you let teenagers into the club in exchange for money? Will you confront a wealthy client to save his girlfriend when she asks you for help? Or will you work with the police to bring down the most powerful gangster in town?

There’s been a lot of comparisons with Papers, Please with a new setting, so if you liked that there’s a high chance you will enjoy this too. As for the Linux version, for me it worked without an issue. Performance was good and no noticable bugs I could see. It has some really nice art, the character design is done really well for sure and it’s not always easy to tell if someone is old enough to get in the club.

It does take a little while to get going, personally I thought the start was a bit too slow. Even so, it’s not bad at all.

Available now with Linux support on Steam.

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Following a promise to address his unempathetic approach towards kernel developers, Torvalds already seems to be more considerate in code reviews.

Linux creator Linus Torvalds recently acknowledged his problems in an email to kernel developers in September.

In his email, Torvalds wrote:

“I am not an emotionally empathetic kind of person and that probably doesn’t come as a big surprise to anybody. Least of all me. The fact that I then misread people and don’t realize (for years) how badly I’ve judged a situation and contributed to an unprofessional environment is not good.

This week people in our community confronted me about my lifetime of not understanding emotions. My flippant attacks in emails have been both unprofessional and uncalled for. Especially at times when I made it personal.”

He ended the email saying he would be taking some time off to get assistance on understanding people’s emotions and how to respond appropriately.

Torvalds promised the email wasn’t him wanting to walk away from Linux development and that he ‘very much’ wants to continue working on it as he has for almost three decades.

Last week, Torvalds showed off his more empathetic approach in an issue with the HID pull request and its introduction of the BigBen game controller driver that was introduced. In particular, that it was enabled by default.

This was his response:

“We do *not* enable new random drivers by default. And we most *definitely* don’t do it when they are odd-ball ones that most people have never heard of.

Yet the new ‘BigBen Interactive’ driver that was added this merge window did exactly that.

Just don’t do it.

Yes, yes, every developer always thinks that _their_ driver is so special and so magically important that it should be enabled by default. But no. When we have thousands of drivers, we don’t randomly pick one new driver to be enabled by default just because some developer thinks it is special. It’s not.

So the default !EXPERT was completely wrong in commit 256a90ed9e46 (“HID: hid-bigbenff: driver for BigBen Interactive PS3OFMINIPAD gamepad”).

Please don’t do things like this.

Linus”

The response is firm but fair. It doesn’t come across demeaning or aggressive towards the developer, just sets them on the right course.

A response to a similar issue last November invoked the following response from Torvalds:

“You add new drivers and then default them to ‘on’.

THAT IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE.

I don’t know why I have to say this every single merge window, but let’s do it one more time:

As a developer, you think _your_ driver or feature is the most important thing ever, and you have the hardware.

AND ALMOST NOBODY ELSE CARES.

Read it and weep. Unless your hardware is completely ubiquitous, it damn well should not default to being defaulted everybody elses config.

But something like CONFIG_DELL_SMBIOS sure as hell does not merit being default on. Not even if you have enabled WMI.

EVERY SINGLE “default” line that got added by this branch was wrong.

Stop doing this. It’s a serious violation of peoples expectations. When I do ‘make oldconfig’, I don’t want some new random hardware support.”

So far, it seems Linus’ time off (which is well earned) has done his people skills a world of good. There’s less of his profanity-ridden messages and general lack of professionalism when it comes to communicating with developers.

For most of us, it’s good to see. For Linux kernel developers, it’s well overdue.

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SwagArch GNU/Linux is a free and open-source Linux-based operating system derived from Arch Linux and built around the lightweight Xfce desktop environment. It is targeted at desktop users and features the Calamares universal installer to offer you an easy installation process.

Boot menu a la Arch Linux, supports 64-bit PCs

Being based on Arch Linux, the SwagArch GNU/Linux operating system comes with a live ISO image that features a boot menu identical with the one found on the Arch Linux ISO images. It is however customized with SwagArch GNU/Linux artwork to be easily identified and not create any confusion.

From the boot menu, users can start the live session and use SwagArch GNU/Linux without installing it on their personal computers, boot an existing OS already installed on the host computer, run a memory test, run a hardware test, as well as to reboot or power off the machine.

Beautiful and clean Xfce desktop environment

SwagArch GNU/Linux comes with the lightweight Xfce desktop environment by default on the live image. The Xfce desktop is customized to look clean and offer users easy access to apps and settings. It features a panel on the top of screen and a dock at the bottom of the screen for easy access to frequently used apps.

Talking about apps, SwagArch GNU/Linux comes pre-installed with a basic set of open-source applications, including the Mozilla Firefox web browser, GIMP image editor, Gedit text editor, and others. The OS uses the official Arch Linux software repositories so that you can install more apps from there.

Calamares offers an easy installation process

The best part of the SwagArch GNU/Linux distro is that it comes pre-installed with the Calamares universal installer framework, which provides users with a friendly and easy-to-use graphical installer that makes installing SwagArch GNU/Linux a breeze, something we can’t say about the official Arch Linux images.

Optimized for workflow and efficiency

The SwagArch GNU/Linux distribution is optimized for workflow and efficiency, and we find it the perfect companion for your desktop or laptop computer. It comes with everything you need to get started with Arch Linux. SwagArch GNU/Linux has been remixed from Arch Linux with the archiso utility.

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Developing and deploying applications that communicate in distributed systems, especially in cloud computing, is complex. Messaging has evolved to address the general needs of distributed applications but hasn’t gone far enough. We need a messaging system that takes the next steps to address cloud, edge, and IoT needs. These include ever-increasing scalability requirements in terms of millions, if not billions of endpoints, a new emphasis toward resiliency of the system as a whole over individual components, end-to-end security, and the ability to have a zero-trust system. In this post we’ll discuss the steps NATS is taking to address these needs, leading toward a securely connected world.

Let’s break down the challenges into scalability, resiliency at scale, and security.

Scalability

To support millions, or even billions of endpoints spanning the globe, most architectures would involve a federated approach with many layers filtering up to a control layer, driven by a required central authority for configuration and security. Instead, NATS is taking a distributed and decentralized approach.

Read more at CNCF

Click Here!

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Pip is a package manager that facilitates the installation and management of Python software packages, for instance, those contained in the Python Package Index (PyPI).

In this article, I am going to show you how to install and use pip on Ubuntu 18.04.

Install pip for Python3 on Ubuntu

By default, Ubuntu 18.04 comes with Python3 in its installation. To install pip3 for Python3 follow the following steps

Update the system

# sudo apt-get update

Install pip for python3

# sudo apt-get install python3-pip

This command installs pip together with all the dependencies necessary for building python modules.

Sample Output

The following NEW packages will be installed:
libpython3-dev libpython3.4 libpython3.4-dev python3-chardet
python3-colorama python3-dev python3-distlib python3-html5lib python3-pip
python3-requests python3-setuptools python3-six python3-urllib3
python3-wheel python3.4-dev
0 upgraded, 15 newly installed, 0 to remove and 26 not upgraded.
Need to get 20.2 MB of archives.
After this operation, 38.7 MB of additional disk space will be used.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n] Y

Checking the version of pip3

To check the version of pip3 run the command below

# pip3 –version

OR

# pip3 -V

Output

pip 8.1.1 from /usr/lib/python3/dist-packages (python 3.5)

Install pip for Python2 on Ubuntu

Python2 is not installed by default on Ubuntu 18.04. If you wish to install Python2 and pip for Python 2 run the following commands

Update the system

# sudo apt-get update

Install pip for python2

# sudo apt-get install python-pip

Checking the version of pip

To verify the installation of pip, run

# pip –version

OR

# pip -V

Output

# pip 10.0.1 from /usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/pip (python 2.7)

Using pip in package management

Now that we have seen how to install various versions of pip in different python environments, it’s time to see how we can use it to install, upgrade and uninstall packages.

Installing a package with pip

When installing python modules, it’s recommended that you do so in virtual environments. a virtual environment creates an isolated environment for several python projects. This allows you to install a specific module per project without worrying about the module affecting other Python projects.

To install a package with pip

# pip3 install package_name

For instance

# pip install numpy

Output

Collecting numpy
Downloading https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/40/c5/f1ed15dd931d6667b40f 1ab1c2fe1f26805fc2b6c3e25e45664f838de9d0/numpy-1.15.2-cp27-cp27mu-manylinux1_x86 _64.whl (13.8MB)
100% |████████████████████████████████| 13.8MB 3.2MB/s
Installing collected packages: numpy
Successfully installed numpy-1.15.2
You are using pip version 10.0.1, however version 18.1 is available.
You should consider upgrading via the ‘pip install –upgrade pip’ command.

To install a specific version of a package

If you wish to specify installation of a specific package run,

# pip3 install package_name==version no.

For example

# pip3 install numpy=1.15

Output

Collecting numpy==1.15
Downloading https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/29/b9/479ccb55cc7dcff3d4fc7c8c26d4887846875e7d4f04483a36f335bed712/numpy-1.15.0-cp35-cp35m-manylinux1_x86_64.whl (13.8MB)
100% |████████████████████████████████| 13.8MB 101kB/s
Installing collected packages: numpy
Successfully installed numpy-1.15.0
You are using pip version 10.0.1, however version 18.1 is available.
You should consider upgrading via the ‘pip install –upgrade pip’ command.

To upgrade a package with pip

To upgrade a package to its latest version using pip run

# pip3 install –upgrade package_name

For example, we have seen from the output above that we are running pip version 10.0.1. To upgrade to the latest version which is 18.1, run

# pip3 install –upgrade pip

Output

Collecting pip
Downloading https://files.pythonhosted.org/packages/c2/d7/90f34cb0d83a6c5631cf71dfe64cc1054598c843a92b400e55675cc2ac37/pip-18.1-py2.py3-none-any.whl (1.3MB)
100% |████████████████████████████████| 1.3MB 7.5MB/s
Installing collected packages: pip
Found existing installation: pip 10.0.1
Uninstalling pip-10.0.1:
Successfully uninstalled pip-10.0.1
Successfully installed pip-18.1

To uninstall a package with pip

To uninstall a package with pip run

# pip3 uninstall package_name

For example

# pip3 uninstall numpy

Output

Uninstalling numpy-1.15.2:
Would remove:
/usr/local/bin/f2py
/usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/numpy-1.15.2.dist-info/*
/usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/numpy/*
Proceed (y/n)? y

Viewing more options with pip

To view more pip options on the usage of pip run

# pip3 –help

In this guide, we have seen how to install and use pip on Ubuntu to install, upgrade and uninstall packages. For more options on pip usage, visit this documentation.

Read Also:

• How to Install Latest Python on Ubuntu 18.04

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If you’re a Linux fan then you can consider this article as your complete guide to everything there is regarding Ubuntu 18.10. The official codename of Ubuntu 18.10 was revealed in May 2018 as “Cosmic Cuttlefish”.

If we dig deep into it, we can understand that “Cosmic” is an adjective which narrates to the universe. It also means, “Something inconceivably vast”. Whereas “Cuttlefish” is a marine animal having two long tentacles, eight arms, and ‘w’ shaped eyes. According to Wikipedia, the highest brain-to-body ratio in all invertebrates is found in Cuttlefish. What they might be trying to indicate is that this release could be something super smart and out of the world may be.

Ubuntu Release Date

Canonical releases a new version of their Linux-based OS, Ubuntu, twice a year. One version being released in April and the other in October. These releases aren’t like those regular Ubuntu updates, but major and new upgrades which includes new features, updated themes and designs, better performance and all. The new Ubuntu 18.10 is set to hit the market on October 18, 2018. From that day onward, it will be available for everyone as a 64-bit ISO image on their official website as well as selected mirrors and an official torrent too. Before the actual release, there’s an opportunity to test the beta version of Ubuntu 18.10, available since September 2018.

Ubuntu 18.10 What’s New?

Yaru, A New Default Theme

Ubuntu 18.10 comes with a new and fresh look. It was for first decided to be released in Ubuntu 18.4 but it is now all set to make an appearance this time named as “Yaru”. The new theme includes new Suru icon pack, a GTK3 theme, GNOME Shell theme as well as lays foundation on Adwita/Ambiance. The theme provides a modern and clearer look to OS, from boot up to shut down. Also, it can be activated system-wide, which means that the redesign will affect every part of the desktop, even the lock screen would have a new look.

GNOME v3.30

Cosmic Cuttlefish or Ubuntu 18.10 will comprise the latest version of GNOME i.e. v3.30, released in the month on October. The GNOME v3.30 will probably feature a bunch of improvements related to performance, GNOME Shell Desktop as well as core apps like Nautilus. The GNOME v3.30, also codenamed as Almeria, includes a lot of new features:

• Better performance and bug fixes to make it a better experience than before
• Automatic updating of Flatpaks
• Various GNOME apps updates.
• GNOME panel providing access to ThunderBolt settings directly.

Android Integration

The most out of the box feature in Ubuntu 18.10 is that it will allow you to manage your phone through your PC. It features GS-connect, based on KDE Connect, which supports the GNOME Desktop Environment. It allows the following:

• Checking your notifications
• Browsing files of your phone
• File sharing between phone and desktop wirelessly

The only requirement is that you must have KDE Connect app on your smartphone.

Possibly a Better Battery Life

We have all known this fact that how quickly laptops run out of battery when using Linux. Like Fedora 28, Canonical (Ubuntu’s parent company) is also working on how to save battery, our hunch is that the Ubuntu development team is also currently exploring options to improve laptop’s battery life without having any impact on the stability of the system.

Fingerprint Scanner

Ubuntu 18.10 will support the fingerprint scanner of your machine. So now you’ll be able to unlock your system with just one touch, no need to type those passwords again and again.

Low Bandwidth Mode

Although it is available already, this time it might be easier to find it. The features allow you to enable a “low bandwidth” mode to save your data. This feature comes in handy when you have limited internet or if you’re using a cellular data.

DLNA Support

Ubuntu 18.10 will be supporting DLNA to enable easy file transfer from your PC to your Smart TV. It will be more beneficial for those who have a huge bundle of media files, like audio, family pictures and all that they want to transfer them to their TV without any hassle.

Improved Boot time and Performance

Ubuntu 18.10 comes with an improved boot time and the difference is so huge that it can be felt while using it. A lot of work has been put to improve the battery life of systems. A low power mode, by Linux Kernel, for USB-HDD controllers and other devices. Snap apps will also encompass improvements which will result in the boosted launch, few bug fixes and everything that hinders Snap apps from being smooth and stable.

Other Changes

Tiny changes here and there in Ubuntu- 18.10 which are worth mentioning include:

• Improved sound settings
• PulseAudio 12.2
• Multi-monitor support in GNOME Display Manager
• Enhanced quality and performance of video player
• New app installs will add icons to the screen

Conclusion

In the end, it is safe to say that Ubuntu 18.10 daily builds are pretty stable, contain a lot of features, including an improved performance as well as bug fixes. Canonical is surely working on the improvement of what they have achieved so far and are trying their best to introduce new features.
You can always check out the new Ubuntu 18.10 beta release. However, the beta releases are not for general usage. In order to avoid any kind of bug or instability, don’t install it.

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HashiCorp, maker of open source cloud tools for DevOps, has a valuation of $1.9 billion in Series D round.

Christine Hall | Nov 05, 2018

While the big story last week was the $33 billion IBM shelled out to take Red Hat under its wing, another open source company was busy attracting investor interest as well. On Thursday, the six-year-old open source startup, HashiCorp, whose cloud tools are popular with DevOps, announced it has raised $100 million in Series D funding.

The funding round was led by new investor IVP, with participation from another first timer, Bessemer Venture Partners. Existing HashiCorp investors GGV Capital, Mayfield, Redpoint Ventures, and True Ventures also participated in the round. This brings the privately held San Francisco-based company’s total funding to $174 million and gives it a valuation of $1.9 billion.

Like Red Hat, HashiCorp is focused on helping customers move from on-premises, monolithic, legacy cloud infrastructures to take advantage of hybrid and multi-cloud solutions. In HashiCorp’s case, this comes from a line of automation and cloud tools for provisioning, security, networking, and application runtime.

A blog post from IVP’s Tom Loverro, Sandy Miller, Steve Harrick and Michael Miao indicated that HashiCorp’s expertise in multi-cloud environments was a main driver behind the decision to invest. They also mentioned that HashiCorp has a penchant for “having the right product for the market at the right time.”

ITPro Today talked about that latter aspect with HashiCorp’s co-founder and co-CTO, Mitchell Hashimoto, back in August.

“When you found a startup, your idea at that point in time has some sort of future value to it,” he said. “But eventually, that future comes and goes and you have to keep innovating from there. The question then becomes, what’s next? Where do you go from there? The truth is, you don’t control that future directly. There are external events that happen, and you have to adapt to those.”

Hashimoto told us that staying relevant in the ever changing world of tech requires more than setting back and waiting for the next big thing to arrive, but requires effort to get ahead of the curve.

“One thing I always say to our engineers, and even our executive management, is if you wait until something is mainstream or something is safe, then you’re too late,” he said. “You’re not going to be a market leader in something where you wait.”

Not surprising for a company focused on cloud deployments, these days Hashicorp seems to be focused on containers. In September it brought tighter Kubernetes integration to Consul, its service discovery and configuration tool, allowing users to better synchronize and manage data across multiple infrastructure deployments. In late October it added heightened Kubernetes integration throughout it’s product line.

The company offers free and open source versions of all of its products, along with enterprise versions that include added features. It counts over 50 Fortune 500 companies and more than 100 of the Global 2000 among its paying customers. Its customer base includes Adobe, Barclays, Citadel, Equinix, Hulu, Pandora, and Petco.

HashiCorp said it will use the money raised for open source and commercial product development, increased hiring in global go-to-market functions, and its customer success, support, and training efforts for its worldwide customer base.

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Nov 02, 2018, 19:00

As MongoDB has changed their license from AGPL to SSPL many are concerned by this change, and by how sudden it has been. Will SSPL be protective enough for MongoDB, or will the next change be to go to an altogether proprietary license? According to our poll, many are going to explore MongoDB alternatives. This blog post provides a brief outline of technologies to consider.

Complete Story

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