Installing Ubuntu Server on an Intel® Compute Stick STK1AW32SC and making wireless work

TL/DR: To enable the WiFi adapter for STK1AW32SC on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS:

1. sudo apt install wireless-tools
2. sudo apt install wpasupplicant
3. sudo ip link set wlp1s0 up
4. sudo -
5. wpa_passphrase Fios-F2MZ0 >> /etc/wpa_supplicant.config
   typeinyourpassphrasehere
6. exit
7. sudo wpa_supplicant -B -D wext -i wlan0 -c /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf
8. sudo dhclient wlp1s0

I decided this weekend would be a good chance to break out my Intel® Compute Stick STK1AW32SC and get a modern Ubuntu on it. I had previously installed Ubuntu 18.04 on it for fun and figured that 20.04.1 LTS would be similar.  I downloaded ubuntu-20.04.1-live-server-amd64.iso from https://releases.ubuntu.com/focal/ and used Rufus to build a bootable USB stick.  I then just plugged the USB stick into one port and a keyboard into the other and got to work.  On the initial boot screen I pressed F10 to control the boot options, I choose to use the USB and started the installation.  I ran into my first problem part way through the installation.  The installer wasn't picking up the WiFi.  I then unplugged my keyboard and plugged in a USB Ethernet adapter I had lying around and then...wait.  Unplugged the keyboard.  Dang!  Ok, I found a USB Hub, plugged the USB Ethernet adapter and the keyboard into it and plugged it into the computer and finished the installation.  

Now, I want to use the WiFi but to do that I need to install the wireless-tools with:

    sudo apt install wireless-tools

Now I just need to connect to my network.  The initial round of tutorials I Binged all were based on ifconfig which wasn't installed.  I found out that it was deprecated way back in 2012, so I guess it is time to learn how to use ip.  Connect to WiFi network from command line in Linux is a good article that covers all the steps with the why and how and such.  For me, I ran an >ip a to get my interface name: 

lsmithmier@stick:~$ ip a

1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN group default qlen 1000

    link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00

    inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo

       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

    inet6 ::1/128 scope host

       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

3: wlp1s0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST> mtu 1500 qdisc noqueue state DOWN group default qlen 1000

    link/ether 60:f6:77:e4:63:76 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff

4: enx9cebe8aee3cd: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc fq_codel state UP group default qlen 1000

    link/ether 9c:eb:e8:ae:e3:cd brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff

    inet 192.168.1.208/24 brd 192.168.1.255 scope global dynamic enx9cebe8aee3cd

       valid_lft 82430sec preferred_lft 82430sec

    inet6 fe80::9eeb:e8ff:feae:e3cd/64 scope link

       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

and then brought the interface up with >sudo ip link set wlp1s0 up and confirmed that it was up with >sudo ip link show wlp1s0 :

lsmithmier@stick:~$ sudo ip link set wlp1s0 up

lsmithmier@stick:~$ sudo ip link show wlp1s0

3: wlp1s0: <NO-CARRIER,BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP> mtu 1500 qdisc noqueue state DOWN mode DEFAULT group default qlen 1000

    link/ether 60:f6:77:e4:63:76 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff

Now that we have our interface up, we need to connect to it.  That means using our passphrase which we need to set up by using wpa_passphrase which we need to install with >sudo apt install wpasupplicant and then we capture and encode our pass phrase:

root@stick:~# wpa_passphrase Fios-F2MZ0 >> /etc/wpa_supplicant.config

donotthinkiamgoingtoshowit

Now that we have that done, we can check to see that our link has been made by running >iw wlp1s0 link and confirming that we have a connection.  Alternatively we can use the command from earlier >sudo ip link show wlp1s0 

lsmithmier@stick:~$ ip link show wlp1s0

3: wlp1s0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc noqueue state UP mode DORMANT group default qlen 1000

    link/ether 60:f6:77:e4:63:76 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff

Now that the link is made, we need to get an IP address using >sudo dhclient wlp1s0 and we are done!

WEBINAR - Containers vs. PaaS: How to Choose the Right Cloud Technology

I did a webinar with Rocky Lhotka about PaaS -vs- Containers and the recording is now available:

There can be no absolute right answer to the question of Containers vs. PaaS in isolation because they both have strengths and weaknesses that match different problem sets. If you are starting a new project or planning on re-homing an existing application, there are several things that you should measure about your problem and a few things that you should know about the offerings before you make your choice. During this webinar, Magenic Chief Technology Officer Rockford Lhotka and Principal Consultant Larry Smithmier will cover the important factors to consider when choosing whether to base an implementation on containers, PaaS, or some combination of the two. The goal is to provide attendees with the tools and understanding necessary to make an informed choice between the two. Attendees will learn:
• The important differences between Containers and PaaS for most problems
• The cost of making the wrong choice
• Implementation styles to reduce the cost of migrating from one to the other
• The benefits of planning for a hybrid solution

https://magenic.com/thinking/webinar-containers-vs-paas-how-to-choose-the-right-cloud-technology

Code Quality has a Sound?

Here is an article I had published on the Magenic site:

One technique I use when studying a subject is to compare it to another, looking for parallels and divergences. Often, I discover successful techniques in one which can be transfigured to work in the other. I also use this method to provide an efficient path to initial understanding when describing complex topics. Writing computer software is described as both a science and an art. It is useful for our understanding of evaluating the craft of software to compare it to common practices in music performance.

Read more at: https://magenic.com/thinking/the-sound-of-quality-code

Best Practices for Mentoring Junior Coders

Here is an article I had published on  the Magenic site:

This article is about mentoring junior coders, but I am going to come at it from an oblique angle so bear with me a moment. When you take laundry from the dryer, how do you fold it? If you know that you are washing two loads (weekend warrior) do you wait to fold the first load until the second load is finished and fold it all at once?...

Read more at: https://magenic.com/thinking/best-practices-for-mentoring-junior-coders