I just tried to tell my dad what I'd achieved today, and had one of those "first create the universe" moments. I pretty much ended up describing (simplified) the whole technical history of my hosting network, what BGP, OSPF and VRRP do and how they fit together, how my router setup has evolved over time, and quite a few sidetracks too, to explain that what I'd done today was to complete a script that sets up Linux "virtual MAC interfaces" for the VRRP implementation I'm hoping to soon migrate to, because the vrrp keyword built into the ifupdown2 package I've been using doesn't do a few things quite exactly the way I need and it's easier to reimplement than to fix.
Explaining all that took probably an hour and left my throat really dry and with the realisation of just how *much* technical stuff I have to look after to run a whole hosting ISP single-handedly. I really *really* ought to actually try to get some more customers in - pretty much all the customers I have, I got by accident.
FYI I do server colocation in London, UK, plus most of the other stuff a hoster does: domains and DNS, email (well, not really at the moment, email's one of the more horrible things to host and the current setup is very old and crusty and needs modernising before I'll be happy taking on email customers), web hosting, virtual servers, etc. My main selling points are service and reliability - if cost is your main factor in choosing a host, you might want to try elsewhere. ;) If I haven't scared you off and you're interested, feel free to ask.
So, VRRP on the new router works fine on one VLAN, but fails on another VLAN. The configs seem identical, but on one, I turn on VRRP and its announcement Rx counter correctly starts ticking up and it remains in backup mode. On the other VLAN the Rx counter stays at zero, it transitions to active mode, and I can see announcements from both old and new routers in tcpdump. Checked FRR config, "ip -d address ls" and "ip -d link ls", /proc/sys/net/ipv?/ interface-specific stuff... can't see anything wrong. My last resorts, I think, are (a) capture VRRP traffic, analyse, verify checksums, see if I can find any reason at all that the new VRRP is ignoring announcements from the old VRRP, and (b) forget it for now, install a newer FRR/VRRP on the second new router (which is not yet in service so I can do that without worry), and try getting VRRP on that one to work when I get to that stage. Frustrated.
Looks like FRR's VRRP implementation has a lot of weirdnesses. It works by having you configure a macvlan interface attached to the actual interface VRRP is running on. The macvlan interface has the VRRP virtual router MAC address on it, plus the virtual IP addresses. VRRPd doesn't touch the addresses or interfaces, other than to set or remove "protodown on" on the macvlan interface.
Weirdnesses discovered so far:
1. Packets that should transit the router running VRRP which are addressed to a virtual IP address on a VRRP macvlan interface in backup mode get received by that router rather than being routed on and ending up at the active VRRP router. Not a huge problem, but can be annoyingly misleading when, e.g., tracerouting.
2. Packets addressed to the VRRP subnet get routed out the macvlan interface even in backup mode unless you turn on "ignore_routes_with_linkdown" for the interface in sysctl. Again, not a huge problem (it's nice to have ingress and egress from a given subnet on the same router for statistics purposes but it's not a deal-breaker if not). Solved, but just the first indication that there may be any number of other related weirdnesses.
3. The one that's currently bugging me. Since the macvlan interface is still "up" (albeit also "protodown on") while VRRP is in the backup state, so that VRRPd can listen for VRRP announcements from other routers, the kernel still receives packets addressed to the VRRP virtual MAC address. Unfortunately, it also still *forwards* those packets. That's not actually a problem as long as your switches correctly learn where the VRRP MAC address lives and send packets only to that interface, but if (as mine have) they decide they are confused as they've seen that MAC address in two different places, throw up their little hands and say "I have no idea, let's just flood frames for this MAC address" you'll get all VRRP routers in a subnet (active and backup) all receiving all packets going out the default router, and therefore all routing those packets out. So your outbound bandwidth suddenly doubles if you have two VRRP routers, or triples or more if you have three or more. Ouch.
4. Can't remember if there was anything else. But… it feels like there are more that won't come to mind as I write this up.
I've been pondering how to fix number 3, and so far I have a tiny shell script which has to run continuously all the time on every VRRP macvlan interface (and if it breaks, the world ends), which uses "ip monitor" to see when "protodown on" is turned on or off. It would then do something to fix things while in backup state — potentially remove/re-add IP addresses, or possibly turn off/on forwarding for the interface using the kernel sysctl interface, or maybe move the interface between groups so that firewall rules can block forwarding when it's in backup state, or… something else. It feels like I shouldn't need to do this kind of thing just to get the protocol to work properly, though. I wonder if there's a better VRRP implementation I should be using instead, or if I should be reporting bugs to FRR (but their VRRPd has had very few changes in years, which suggests they either consider it works properly or it's disused. And I lack the energy to work out how to report bugs, and to write them up properly.)
Hmm, wow. A small language model that fits in an 8-bit Atari! But browsing through the training data (a single 13KB text file) I'm getting serious ELIZA vibes - seeing such a stripped-down language description is a good reminder just how non-intelligent these language models really are.
🕹️ Is this the smallest language model in the world? I just managed to squeeze real artificial intelligence into 30 kilobytes, running on a 1979 Atari 800. A fully generative, deterministic langu...
Is this kind of stuff of use or interest to anyone? Any of it likely to be worth archiving in some way, or are all these sort of things typically on a publically accessible archive already? (This is a random selection of some of the disks my aunt has been dumping on me as she's spring cleaning stuff my late uncle used to carefully store away - there are more.)
I’d say any piece of software like this is absolutely with archiving. Not only for historical interest but also for historical information as a snapshot in time.
Definitely worth checking archive org and other such places to see if there’s already a copy up on there, and getting things up if not.
If they’re otherwise getting thrown out, I’d certainly be interested in some of those!
there may also be different versions of the "same disc" which can also be worth archiving, IA might have a copy that's newer/older/different region, but perhaps not the exact one
Anyone interested in old old monitors? They'd need collecting from East Hampshire (or I could bring 'em to ConFuzzled). I can't vouch for their electrical condition as they've been in a shed for many years and might not even work (I haven't tested), and also I (probably inexpertly) repaired the 15" Iiyama many years ago when a solder joint on the PCB on the back of the tube cracked and the red channel stopped working, but I'm guessing a retrocomputing enthusiast might be able to get them safe and working again.
Happy birthday @pamiiruq.bsky.social , hope you have a good day today! (ft. @fibrekitty too) 📸 - @bartonfox.bsky.social #Fursuit #furry #mascot #cosplay
aaa studios will pour billions into the biggest game with the fanciest graphics, then put lots of repetitive shallow missions for that content, and need day 1 patch to even be playable
then indie devs will go and casually make a game where the demo of the beta version by itself is a whole game worth of fun
Phaze the snep and Dev the arctic fox, they are just the right match, both happiest fluffs with their natural coats for where the air is cold. Kind of funny they requested me this in the middle of the Dallas heat at Texas Furry Fiesta.
First picture I did during TFF's Artists Alley Traditional. Markers and colored pencils.
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Swapped is a buddy comedy about a small woodland creature, voiced by Academy Award winner Michael B. Jordan, and a majestic bird (Juno Temple). When these tw...
People tell me there's no chance that the thylacine still exists. And I get it, we haven't seen any direct evidence in a long time. But then I see things like this, and I'm reminded that a species of rodent we thought went extinct 11 million years ago is still here. So really are we that sure the thylacine is gone? It's only been listed as extinct since 1936.
You can have your ADHD medication, but only after completing a series of increasingly complex and life-threatening challenges, your pharmacist has announced.
i never got favs for being silly. so i stopped. i'm not going to be silly for silliness' sake! i need signs of salience! otherwise i'm thinking i am making a big mistake! why am i yelling!
Surely goodness and silliness shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Silly forever, Wearing a fake mustache and horned rimmed glasses and carrying a whoppe cushion, Because why not?
While the excellent points in your post, Alice, may be suggestions elsewhere, I for one, am of the opinion that here on the Fediverse, they are the law.
@lanefu Yeah, that's why you gotta work at it! it's too easy to slowly lose your silliness as you age, so you gotta fight it. You gotta work on keeping your silly around, or you'll wake up one day and you're 70 and it's been gone for decades
Nah. Sometimes you gotta just put on your shoes and go. This is how to optimize life silliness-don't be a little silly all of the time-find places where you can let that out to its fullest extent
When I was a kindergarten teacher I never told the kids not to be silly. Why not? Well, it's a miserable old world if you can't be silly when you're only 4 years old. Sometimes I would join in being silly with them. Silliness is a kind of creativity. #silliness
I am simply over the moon to have received this reference sheet from @vincehooves earlier today
This marks a new chapter because despite being linked to the furry fandom since 2008 this is the first time I've truly seen how my fursona properly looks
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was great on many levels but one of the greatest things about it is that they boldly, unapologetically put Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham, right in there in big letters and dared you to have something to say about it... and THEN had the audacity to give this utterly ridiculous character one of the most gut-wrenching, emotional line deliveries in the whole movie.
"I’m a photographer for the Daily Beagle. When I’m not pooching around, I’m working like a dog trying to sniff out the latest story. I frolic and I dance and I do this with my pants--"
Hope y'all had a good weekend! Just got back from TFF so more to come from that.... If you have any pics from the con please let me know! 📸 - Odyssey (TG) #fursuit #furry #mascot #cosplay #tff2026
Duo routine with @jdpuppy! What a joy and honor to be able dance on stage again. This was my first time doing a stage performance in 9 years, and I had so mu...
I remember someone playing DnD as a barbarian that was indeed not the chosen one, but was strong enough to lift the sword and the stone and used that as the weapon of choice during the campaign.
The Onyx Beast is a one-of-a-kind, realistic black wolf fursuit created by Clockwork Creature Studio.This is the original costume used as Colonel Raden Drrae...
Freaks - Jordan Clarke ( unofficial music video ) ft. Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children All credits to the rightful owners No copyright intended F...
Being back at my parents’ house this week did something to me.
I saw old books, old toys, things that somehow are still here after all these years. It reminded me of who I was back then. It felt like opening a time capsule and meeting that version of myself again.
Would that younger version of us be happy with who we are now? Some dreams change. Some goals move in a different direction. But little by little, things start shaping into something else.
Maybe it was never about reaching exactly what we imagined back then. Maybe it was just about finding a way to be happy… and sharing a bit of that with others. And somehow, we get there.
Digital. Procreate.
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Official Art Channel 🇲🇽 Clean cute artist. Full-Time Panda. Here to paint some smiles. https://linktr.ee/panda_paco Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pandapaco Ko-Fi Shop: https://ko-fi.com/panda_paco/shop Stickers channel: @pacostickers
All my friends we're up in texas, so I did not hang my hat in Tennessee. 📸 + 🐅 - @blue255.bsky.social ft. @bartonfox.bsky.social too. #tff2026 #mascot #cosplay #fursuitfriday #furry #fursuit
