How to set up sitesummary

Keeping track of a lot of machines isn't easy. It is hard to know when a machine disappears, and when new machines arrives. It can become a bit easier if the machines themselves assist. To make that possible, the sitesummary system is created. It consist of a server part collecting information, and a client part submitting it. The server can then based on the submitted information make reports helping the sysadmin keeping track of the site.

On the server

To use sitesummary, the server part need to be configured first. It need to run on a machine accessable over HTTP from all the clients.

Install the 'sitesummary' package, and configure apache to find the CGI file in /usr/lib/cgi-bin/.

aptitude install sitesummary

when i installed sitesummary, the configuration for apache2 automatical were added. but if not, you do that in /etc/apache2/conf.d/sitesummary

A trivial report example is now available from the debian-edu servers, and a report with more hosts is available from the Narvik Debian Edu installation.

Don't forget the server that's recive sitesummary should also have sitesummary-client installed

Munin integration

The server will by default generate a munin server configuration in /var/lib/sitesummary/munin.conf. The location of this file can be modified by adding for example MUNINDIR=/etc/munin in /etc/sitesummary/collector.cfg.

This way all hosts reporting to sitesummary will also be monitored using munin. This is done on the the debian-edu servers.

On the client

Install the sitesummary-client package, and use dpkg-reconfigure sitesummary-client to specify the URL to use when submitting reports. Also specify key information on the host to make the reports more useful.

aptitude install sitesummary-client
dpkg-reconfigure sitesummary-client

The packages are available in Debian Etch and Lenny, as well as from http://ftp.skolelinux.org/skolelinux/pool/local/s/sitesummary/

Installing on LTSP 4 clients

Make sure the sitesummary-client package is installed on the thin client server machine. The steps to install it in LTSP 4 consist of copying the required files into the chroot, hooking sitesummary into the LTSP 4 boot sequence, and finally configuring sitesummary for the clients.

This command can be used to copy the files:

(cd /; tar cf - /etc/sitesummary /etc/init.d/sitesummary-client \
  /usr/share/sitesummary /usr/lib/sitesummary /usr/sbin/sitesummary-client \
  /usr/sbin/sitesummary-upload) | (cd /opt/ltsp/i386; tar xf -)      

To configure, edit the files in /opt/ltsp/i386/etc/sitesummary/.

To hook sitesummary-client on boot you have to do the following

First in lts.conf add this line: RCFILE_01 = sitesummary-client start

Then you have to copy sitesummary-client to /opt/ltsp-4.2/etc/rc.d This must been done, or the RCFILE command will fail