The Mac OS X 10.6.8 update included some major changes to CUPS. As a result, some of my clients experienced problems printing to their network printers. When sending a print job, the network printer queue (on the Mac, not the printer) would pause. Manually resuming the queue had no effect.

If you are experiencing this issue, you must replace a few files with the same files from an older version of the operating system (I used 10.6.7). The following files should be replaced:

/usr/libexec/cups/backend/dnssd

/usr/libexec/cups/backend/ipp

/usr/libexec/cups/backend/lpd

/usr/libexec/cups/backend/socket

I've tested this on 8-9 machines and it has worked perfectly on all of them. Perform this fix at your own risk. I have no idea how future OS updates will affect this.

I've created an installer package to simplify the process of replacing the cups files. If you have to install the fix on many machines, I'd recommend using Apple Remote Desktop install function.

If you are using NAT on your Airport Extreme (mine is 802.11n gigabit) or TimeCapsule, but serving DHCP from another source (ex. Mac OS X Server), firmware update 7.5.2 kills this functionality. Wired devices still seem to receive DHCP reservations, but wireless clients do not. Downgrading to firmware 7.4.2 solves the issue.

I've had an amazing weekend. I stayed at the Grand Wailea resort on Maui with my sister and her family. I had a couple great dinners at Spago and met Wolfgang Puck. Cory, Jordan, and Ally (niece and nephews) loved playing in the pool with all the water slides. After the family left this morning, I just relaxed and enjoyed some fantastic Mai Tais. I'm heading home in a couple hours.

I've found that on some servers, the 10.6.5 update kills LDAP. If you have run the update and are still able to login to the server via filesharing, mail, or other services that require authentication, your server probably does not have the problem.

If you cannot login using a username and password from LDAP, perform the following steps:

(do not attempt if you are not comfortable using the command line)

1. open /Applications/Terminal.app

2. type "sudo su" and hit return. enter your admin password when asked and hit return.

3. type "cp /etc/openldap/slapd.d/cn\=config.ldif /" and hit return (creates a backup of the file)

4. type "pico /etc/openldap/slapd.d/cn\=config.ldif" and hit return.

5. search for and delete the following 5 lines: (some lines might be split into multiple lines)

6. hold Control and hit X to save and close the document
7. reboot the server

If you haven't run the update yet, be sure to create an archive of Open Directory first (you should do this on a regular basis anyway). This would also be a good time to make sure your backups are working.

To create an Open Directory Archive:

1. Open Server Admin

2. Select your server and click on Open Directory

3. Click on the Archive icon near the top of the window

4. Click "Choose" to select where you want to save the archive

5. Click on "Archive." Enter a name for the archive and a password. Click on OK.

Note: I found this solution at Apple Support Discussions.

My Halloween costume for 2010 (check out my contacts)...

See all my picts here.

While running TimeMachine on Mac OS X Server 10.6.3, some of my clients and I were experiencing problems with Open Directory. Almost every time backupd (TimeMachine) ran, slapd (OpenDirectory) would restart. Most of the time, this didn't cause any problems. However, every few days, users would be unable to login to services, some share points would be missing, etc. I believe I've found a temporary fix for the problem (until Apple releases an official fix).

Before TimeMachine would start, the process would call ServerBackup to export some service settings and Open Directory data. This is always when Open Directory would crash/restart and other services would be affected. ServerBackup runs based on plist files in /etc/server_backup. By simply moving these files, I've been able to avoid problems. (note: open directory will not back up with TImeMachine if you do this. you can manually create backups in Server Admin)

To move the files, issue the following commands in Terminal:

Moving these files back to their original location on my test server caused the problems to reoccur, so I'm confident in this temporary fix.

Mosby and I went to Lanikai beach today. He had a great time playing in the sand, but he wasn't a big fan of the water.

Puppy pads aren't working quite as well as I had hoped.

Accidents in the last hour: 4

Times he's used the puppy pads today: 0

Oh well, he's still young. I'm sure he'll get it sooner or later.

Mosby playing with a ball:

I picked up my new puppy, Mosby, from Kona (Big Island) yesterday. He's an awesome little Shetland Sheepdog. Mosby was the runt of the litter and currently weighs 2.5 pounds.

The flight to Oahu and the drive home were uneventful and went much better than I expected. Mosby slept the entire way. He was the hit of the airport waiting area.

young Mosby (not sure of the exact age):

Mosby at 8 weeks:

Mosby yesterday (9 weeks):

I've finally finished migrating my server to a new machine running Snow Leopard Server (10.6).

I'm really disappointed with the "push" features that still don't seem to support the iPhone. Migrating data to a new version of mysql created some problems and recompiling php for gd support (with FreeType) wasn't fun, but everything seems to be working fine now.

I haven't been able to find a way to directly migrate SSL certificates from one server to another. I did find a workaround...

1. create a self-signed certificate in Server Admin using the same information that is on the original certificate

2. go back to the company that issued the original certificate

3. Re-key the certificate with a new CSR generated from the self-signed certificate

4. Download the new re-keyed certificate

5. Go to Certificates in Server Admin

6. Select the self-signed certificate and select "replace certificate with signed or renewed certificate" from the gear drop-down

I'm in the process of upgrading my server to Snow Leopard. Services may be down for a little while.

I got sick a couple weeks ago. My lungs were hit hard and I was having a hard time breathing. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't smoke. I figured that was as good a time as any to quit smoking.

The gum tastes like shit, and I didn't want to try going cold turkey again, so I decided to try nicotine patches. The patches helped with the cravings, but I still wanted to smoke. I also found out that I was allergic to the adhesive used on the patches (it's been about 10 days since I used a patch and I still have welts on my back). I was about to give up and start smoking again when I remembered reading about electronic cigarettes about a year ago.

eCigarettes are battery-powered devices that provide inhaled doses of nicotine by delivering a vaporized propylene glycol (or vegetable glycol) and nicotine solution. In addition to nicotine delivery, this vapor also provides a flavor and physical sensation (aka "throat hit") similar to that of analogs (regular cigarettes). No tobacco, smoke, or combustion is actually involved in the operation of an eCigarette. Since eCigarettes produce a harmless vapor instead of smoke, they can be used almost anywhere, even in places where cigarettes are banned.

After doing some research online, I decided to buy the DES-901B Mini eCigarette. I found a local distributor and bought one on Thursday. I haven't even considered smoking an "analog" (regular cigarette) since then. The starter kit included 5 standard cartridges (extra-high), 5 vanilla cartridges (extra-high), 2 batteries, charger, and the atomizer.

eCigarettes consist of 3 primary parts: battery, atomizer, and cartridge.

Batteries: most kits include 2 batteries. Depending on use, each battery should last 4-8 hours before it needs to be recharged.

Atomizer: this is the heating element that vaporizes the liquid so it can be inhaled. From what I understand, atomizers generally last 4-8 weeks.

Cartridges: cartridges contain the mouthpiece and the eLiguid.

eLiquid: the atomizer vaporizes the eLiquid to create the vapor that you inhale. eLiquid is a mix of nicotine solution (available in nicotine free, 4mg extra-low, 11mg low, 16mg medium, 24mg high, and 36mg extra-high), propylene or vegetable glycol, and a flavor.

Flavors: different sites offer many different flavors. some common examples: Marlboro, Carmel, vanilla, carmel, strawberry, orange, mint, coffee, energy drink, etc.

Intro to vaping video:

http://www.viddler.com/explore/Spikey47/videos/5/

Forums:

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/

Where to Buy:

http://www.puresmoker.com/

http://www.hawaiivapors.com/