Author Archives: Mike Pelley

About Mike Pelley

Let’s see… A little about me… I’ve been around information technology since 1983 with computers such as DEC Rainbows (weird machine – the standard DOS couldn’t format its own floppy disks – remember them? – and I had to format them on a friend’s IBM PC) to Radio Shack TRS-80 to Apple ][e and Apple //c in the beginning. I have programmed in 8-bit assembly language on 6502, FORTRAN and COBOL on IBM System/370 (and I still hate JCL), VAX BASIC and COBOL (and a weird and massive WordPerfect 4.0 macro) on DEC VMS (Alpha), C/C++ on Digital Unix (ALPHA), and C/C++, Perl (it may be powerful but I still hate it), PHP on Linux (Red Hat, Centos, Ubuntu, etc.). I have work with databases such as Digital RDB (later to become Oracle RDB), Oracle DBMS, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL and PostgreSQL on VAX, Alpha, Sun and Intel. Check out my professional profile and connect with me on LinkedIn. See http://lnkd.in/nhTRZe I still think that Digital created some of the best ideas in the world: VAX clustering, DSSI disks (forerunner to SCSI) and the Alpha processor (first commercial 64-bit processor – Red Hat screamed on an Alpha!). DEC just could not seem to be able to give air conditioners away to someone lost in the Sahara Desert! VMware is one of the best ways to get the most out of an x64 server. And I have tried Oracle VM, Virtual Box and Microsoft Virtual Server. Outside of that I am a huge military history buff starting in the early 20th century. I love Ford Mustangs (my ’87 Mustang GT was awesome) and if I had the money I would have a Porsche 928S4. If I had a lot of money I would have a Porsche 911 Turbo. I also play too much AmrA 3 Exile mod. Over 5,000+ hours... I have a wonderful son, Cameron. I have a long suffering (Do you really need all that computer junk?) wife, Paula. I live in Paradise, Newfoundland and Labrador.

UniFi Adoption with Devices on Separate Subnet from UniFi Controller

This is, as always, is maybe more of an aide-mémoire for me, but may be helpful if someone else is searching for a solution… Here is the scenario: My UniFi devices are on a separate subnet from my UniFi Controller. … Continue reading

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Working from home? Have some spare hardware? How about using that spare hardware to find a cure to COVID-19?

So, I’m working from home in my office and realized that I had my son’s old PC sitting in the corner. Later that night, I was watching Linus Tech Tips and watched a video on using Folding@Home to help find … Continue reading

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Wiring Cleanup

If you look at the previous posts, you can see the old – in some cases, really old – network cables that I was using in the rack. Some of these were even older than my son! They were a … Continue reading

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Real Rack!

In my previous posts, I noted that my homebuilt rack worked well execpt for two issues: (1) I was silly and went with telco threaded rails and (2) I neglected to add the 1/8th inch (3.2mm) thickness of each rail … Continue reading

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Network Upgrade Complete (For now…)

My netwok upgrade is not complete. The last two pieces were to replace the 1GigE switch in the TV room and the 10/100 Mbit/s switch in my son’s gaming room. A few months ago, my son questioned why his gaming … Continue reading

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Had A Question on IGMP Proxy and pimd

I had a question in the comments on the firewall rules and IGMP Proxy and pimd based upon the post DLNA: pfSense and IGMP Proxy – nope, use pimd. Unfortunately, I deleted that comment when cleaning out the spam (imagine … Continue reading

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Network Upgrade 99% Complete (For Now)

I received my second UniFi AP Lite yesterday. The plan was to have two APs in the house – one on each floor – from the beginning. The first AP was mounted in the basement ceiling which provided good coverage … Continue reading

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Core Network Upgrade: Completed – Almost

Well, I’m just about finished my core network upgrade that I started, really, last winter. Here’s what has transpired since Christmas (links to posts, etc. in line): Santa bought me a TP-Link TL-SG1024DE. It gave me the VLANs I was looking … Continue reading

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Fixing error: environment block too small

A quick post on fixing error: environment block too small I updated my Linux Mint 19.2 which included an updated kernel and this error started occurring at boot before the grub menu. You have to “hit any key to continue” … Continue reading

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FreeNAS Update

I forgot to put in the obligatory logo 🙂 I’m well on my way through my FreeNAS build. For my boot drive I picked up two Kingston 120GB A400 SSDs on Amazon for CDN$25 each. That is only slightly more … Continue reading

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