can I make a reset-at-will box?

[Thomas Taylor]

On Monday 10 October 2005 09:41, Tim wrote:
> Tim (replied back about using a journalling file system):
> >> I do, but during testing (where I've hit the reset button and pulled out
> >> the power leads), I've seen warnings about not being shutdown properly
> >> and fsck should be done on the drive.  I don't know how much I can
> >> ignore such warnings, and just carry on hoping for the best.
>
> Les Mikesell:
> > Some drives buffer data internally so even the best attempts by
> > the OS to sync at journal points might fail to record what it
> > expects.  That's the point of the warning.  Normally replaying
> > the journal will recover the filesystem to a consistent state
> > although of course you still lose any unflushed data from
> > working applications.
>
> There's two warnings.  One that you ought to fsck, which often isn't
> noticed quick enough before you can say "yes".  And I'm yet to see it
> make a difference if I do it or don't.  Then there's the checking the
> journals, which it does without any say so (thankfully that doesn't seem
> to take forever).
>
> The only trouble I've noticed so far happened to be with a drive which I
> discovered had hardware faults (later).  So I don't know if the trouble
> was due to my crashing the system, or just that the drive was knackered.
>
> >> It'd be better if there was no need to "recover", that the drive was
> >> only being written to if you were actually saving data to it.
> >
> > Files need to be closed to be sure the applications have
> > flushed all outstanding data.  The system writes data to
> > various logs all the time, so there will always be open
> > files in a running system.
>
> Only on systems that do logging...  Can it all be turned off?  Presuming
> a system where the owner couldn't understand a log to save their life,
> what's the point of them?
>
> I'm thinking of two particular uses, here:
>
> 1.  I have a friend who's completely computer illiterate, but can manage
> to boot up and run a couple of programs.  I grew really tired of Windows
> repairs, and anti-malware updating, so I figured something more robust
> is in order (has to be legal, too).
>
> 2.  A display PC that people can look at information on (e.g. over an
> intranet), that's not always supervised, and could handle hamfisted
> abuse in its stride.  Of course nothing will survive deliberate
> sabotage, but that's another matter.

This sounds like a good application for a linux kiosk.  Google for "kiosk 
howto". without the quotes of course.  Lots of good information and examples 
there.

HTH,
Tom

>>>>> snip <<<<<

-- 
Tom Taylor
Linux user #263467
Federal Way, WA
Iraq war: 1,955 US soldiers dead and counting