Saturday, March 15, 2008

Method to solve `Downloading bookmarks ...' problem

I am migrating to `Google bookmarks', but the button on Google Toolbar always says `Downloading bookmarks ...'. But in Windows, Google Toolbar in Firefox can import, download, add bookmarks normally. What's different in Linux?

After googling for some time, I realize that it is due to lack of the library `libstdc++.so.5'. This is one of the old versions of C++ libraries, most of current Linux distributions do not install this library by default. The method to solve 'Downloading bookmarks' problem is:

1. Install the package that contains libstdc++.so.5. For Fedora 8:
# yum install compat-libstdc++-33
For Ubuntu:
# sudo apt-get install libstdc++5
For other distributions, you should install the corresponding packages.

2. Exit Firefox, restart Firefox, re-install Google Toolbar. This is very important, or else the problem will not be solved!

3. Restart Firefox. Now you can see all your bookmarks in your Google toolbar!

Monday, March 3, 2008

Installation of CentOS on a server with a SmartRAID V controller

We are going to reinstall Linux on an old server with a SmartRAID V controller. Since CentOS can be updated easily using 'yum', we decide to use CentOS 5.1. There are some difficulties in installation, but we can bypass them and accomplish it successfully.

The basic parameters of the old server:

  • 2 x Intel(R) Xeon(TM) CPU 2.40GHz
  • 4G Memory
  • Adaptec (formerly DPT) SmartRAID V Controller
  • 6x 36704 MB SCSI disks
  • Intel Corporation 82545EM Gigabit Ethernet Controller
  • ATAPI 52X CD-ROM drive
The main points of installation are described below: