Mustafa Abusalah Blog

Reset wordpress Premissions on Linux

2022-11-10T23:09:00.007-08:00

When you try to update wordpress or install /update a plugin and fail to do so, it means you need to reset the folders and files permissions on your server.

You can bulk fix the problem by updating the permissions of the directories and files in your web host location:

cd /home/www/yourdomainfolder/

In your web directory root run the below command:

find . -type d -exec chmod 755 {} \;

This would change the access permission to all folders to rwx r_x r_x

Now time to change the files permissions to -rw-r--r--

find . -type f -exec chmod 644 {} \;

The Directories and files are now reset to the default.

If you still face a problem it means you need to change the owner of the folders and files.

Use .htaccess to Redirect to HTTPS

2019-12-02T22:18:00.001-08:00

If you are using apache webserver and would like to redirect all your traffic to the Secured Socket Layer protocol SSL, you may do that by editing the .htaccess file which resides on the html root of your hosting directory. To do so please add the below lines to your .htaccess file:

#HTTPS Redirect
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTPS} !=on
RewriteRule ^/?(.*) https://%{SERVER_NAME}/$1 [R,L]
</IfModule>
#End HTTPS Redirect

This code demonstrates how to update Postgress Database Table in Bulk

2019-01-08T05:04:00.000-08:00

More about Postgres and Python can be found here. If you have any question please let me know.

Connect Jupyter Notebook Pandas to Postgres

2019-01-03T05:34:00.000-08:00

First install Python library Psycopg2 to connect to PostgreSQL:

!pip install psycopg2

Now import the necessary libraries:

import pandas as pd
import psycopg2 as pg
import pandas.io.sql as psql

Connect to the DB Server:

conn = pg.connect("postgres://username:password@server:port/dbname")

Execute a Query:
df = pd.read_sql('select* from table_name', conn)
df.head()

Google Analytics on Refined Wiki Mobile Theme

2018-11-25T23:09:00.000-08:00

Tracking mobile users on Confluence while using Refinedwiki mobile theme is not possible or straightforward using theme configuration. I found a work around that will track users on Google Analytics smoothly. Please follow the below steps:

Create a js file, call is analytics.js with the analytics script code, it should look something similar to the below:
(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){i['GoogleAnalyticsObject']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){
(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),
m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)
})(window,document,'script','//www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js','ga');
ga('create', 'UA-XXXXXX', 'auto');
ga('set', 'userId',AJS.Data.get("remote-user")); // Set the user ID using signed-in user_id.
ga('send', 'pageview');
Save your script on confluence server confluenceInstallationDirectory/confluence/ OR install it on any other location that can be access via http or https
Go to confluence administration and click on User Macros on the left menu.
Click on Create a User Macro
Now set up per the below photos:
Save and go to refind wiki mobile theme and click on Macro Render Rules, then click Add Macro Render Rule. On choose macro select Mobile Tracking. Click Save.
Now go to refind wiki mobile theme configuration, in the footer add the wiki code: {mobiletracking} then save.

Now you will be able to track mobile users on your confluence using google analytics. This was tested on confluence 6.12

linux Server out of Space

2018-11-25T05:56:00.001-08:00

You could find your VPS out of space all the sudden especially if you are enabling logging for your website or web apps. First you need to know which directory is taking most of the size, then you can eliminate the problem or ask to increase disk place:

Go to the root of your vps by typing on ur shell:# cd /
Run: #sudo du -h --max-depth=1
Note which directories are using a lot of disk space.
cd into one of the big directories.
Run #ls -l to see which files are using a lot of space. Delete any you don't need.

IDLE subprocess didn't make connection Python 3.7

2018-10-01T04:50:00.001-07:00

After installing Python on Windows 10. When trying to open IDLE, Python's IDE, you might get a message saying that "IDLE's subprocess didn't make connection. Either IDLE can't start a subprocess or personal firewall software is blocking the connection".

To solve this issue just run IDLE as an Administrator, by right click on the IDLE icon and click Run as administrator. See Photo below:

ERROR: cross-database references are not implemented

2018-03-15T03:53:00.001-07:00

You face this error while trying to query two tables from difference databases in Postgres, as Postgress is unlike SQL Server, you can't join two tables from different databases.
Instead you may have One Database with Two different Schemas.
Schemas group your data tables separately and give you the flexibility to query and join tables from across schemas in the same Database.

So if you have DB1 and DB2, you need to move the tables in DB2 to DB1 but in a new schema.

If you are using the public schema in DB2 you need to change the name:

alter schema public rename to new_schema_name;
create schema public;

Now Backup your Schema:

$ pg_dump --format custom --file "my_backup" --schema "new_schema_name" "db2"
$ pg_restore --dbname "db1" "my_backup"

Your Done. If you have any question please let me know.

Windows font cache service status Stopping

2018-01-31T23:56:00.001-08:00

I was trying to install a language package to my MSOffice 2013 and was stuck with an error:

Error 1920. Service 'Windows Font Cache Service' (FontCache) Failed to start...

In windows search look for services, then check the below service

Windows FontCache Service

Most likely the service is stopped or stopping or disabled. If you can't start the service what you need to do is install the service again, if you are running windows 10, 7 or 8 this website will help you:

http://batcmd.com/windows/10/services/fontcache/

Restore Default Startup Type for Windows Font Cache Service, by downloading the proper restore file to your computer. Run the restore file, restart your machine. All is done. You may install the Language package smoothly now.

Good Luck!

Change Confluence Logout Page

2018-01-29T04:56:00.002-08:00

To change confluence logout page you need to edit the xwork.xml file located in confuence-x.x.x jar file. The jar file is normally located in installationdirectory [/atlassian-confluence-x.x.x/confluence/WEB-INF/lib/confluence-x.x.x.jar

unjar the file as shown the below on the command prompt:

jar xf confluence-x.x.x.jar xwork.xml

edit the file and replace the line:

<result name="success" type="redirect">${logoutUrl}</result>

With your new logout file location.

save your work and then rejar xwork.xml to the jar file:

jar uf confluence-x.x.x.jar xwork.xml

Your Done!

Datatables Server Side Processing using Coldfusion

2017-10-05T22:06:00.003-07:00

Datatables Server Side Processing using Coldfusion

Code: Coldfusion Server Side For Datatables

Environment: Datatables 1.10.16, Lucee 5.x, Postgres 9.6

Issue Date: 04/10/2017

Notes:
There is no warranty that the code will work on a different environment or different version.
You may create the DB table using the postgres.sql script included.
This project was tested and fully functioning.

Features:
Datatables query paging
Case Insensitive search filter to all query results.
Sort by all fields including date.
This repository does not include all Datatables features. In the code I'm only using datatables.js, but you may extend the features.

Repository is available on github.

Enabling Collaborative Editing in Confluence 6.x is a must to be able to use the Rest APIs to Add or Update a Page

2017-09-15T22:42:00.000-07:00

If you come a cross the below error when trying to add a page to Atlassian Confluence 6.x:

Unable to save changes made outside the editor to ContentId while collaborative editing is disabled confluence api

That means your Collaborative Editor is disabled, you need to enable the Collaborative Editing in case you need to run the APIs. If you are running Confluence behind a reverse proxy, what you need to do is to use Confluence internal proxy, this could be done by adding the below to line to Confluence Service:

-Dsynchrony.proxy.enabled=true

Then restart the service. To learn how to configure system properties click here

Install SSL Certificate on Tomcat OR Confluence Server

2017-08-25T03:01:00.000-07:00

The below steps demonstrates how to install Existing Verified Certificates on Confluence server or Tomcat Application Server:

1- You should have your domain certificate and key, for example:

company_net.crt

company_net.crt

2- You should install openssl, I did it on windows platform:

https://wiki.openssl.org/index.php/Binaries

3- run the below command in openssl to generate the .p12 Personal Information Exchange

openssl pkcs12 -export -in company_net.crt -inkey company_net.key -out company_net.p12

4- Now move the .p12 to the server and run the keytool to generate the .jks key (Java Key Store), the keytool is normally located in the JDK or JRE directory whether in TOMCAT or JAVA Directory.

5- Run the keytool comman as below:

C:\tomacat\jre\bin>keytool -importkeystore -destkeystore c:\mykeystore.jks -srckeystore c:\company_net.p12 -srcstoretype pkcs12

6- Once the .jks is generate go to the server.xml file located in tomcat or confluence config directory and un-comment the Connector tag, the server.xml should look close to the below:

Dynamically Filter Select with JQuery

2017-08-22T01:49:00.000-07:00

With jquery you may search within form select field easily, below is a simple example:

Bootstrap Multiselect form autosubmit onDropdownHide

2017-06-02T02:42:00.001-07:00

The below code will show you how to auto submit a form when using multiselect functionality in bootstrap, this is based on a bootstrap function call onDropdownHide:

If you have any question please let me know.

How to Show Content on Mobile Devices, Smart Phones and Tablets only

2017-01-20T22:33:00.004-08:00

There are two ways to do that, whether to use javascript or to use css style sheet.

Javascript: The code below will redirect the visit to a different page which should be a mobile theme page:

<script>

</script>

CSS: In CSS you can decide which part of your page to show or to hid on a mobile device ora tablet:

Show content on mobile devices and tablets:

The below div tag shows the content on mobile devices and or tablets:

<div class="showToMobile">

TEXT OR IMAGE FOR MOBILE HERE

</div>

The below css code contains the style class definition, this should be stored in your .css file on in your style sheet in the head section of your html page:

<style type="text/css">

  .showToMobile
   { display: none;}

   /* Portrait and Landscape Screens */

   @media only screen

   and (min-device-width : 320px)

   and (max-device-width : 699px)

   { .showToMobile { display: inline;}}

</style>

Hide content on mobile devices and tablets:

The below div tag hides the content on mobile devices and or tablets:

<div class="mobileHide">

TEXT OR IMAGE NOT FOR MOBILE HERE

</div>

The below css code contains the style class definition, this should be stored in your .css file on in your style sheet in the head section of your html page:

<style type="text/css">

   .mobileHide { display: inline;}

   /* Portrait and Landscape Screens */

   @media only screen

   and (min-device-width : 320px)

   and (max-device-width : 699px)

   {  .mobileHide { display: none;}}

</style>

If you want this styling to apply to your entire website, add the following to your CSS stylesheet:

.mobileHide { display: none;}

Add Attachment to Confluence Page using Rest API

2015-02-26T04:56:00.000-08:00

To add an attachment to a page on confluence using rest api in coldfusion (tested on railo 4.x) Please use the below method:

Linux Bash Vulnerability - Test and Solution

2014-09-27T00:34:00.000-07:00

Bash Shell Security Vulnerability

There is an important vulnerability in the Linux operating system Bash Shell that has the potential of making your server easily accessible to hackers. By running the test command below, you can see if your bash is vulnerable to exploits. Please run both commands below as root on your server to see if your system is vulnerable.

===============================
1. Log into your server as root
2. Execute the following command:

env x='() ; echo vulnerable' bash -c "echo this is a test"

3. If the output is "this is a test", that means that your bash needs to be updated. Please refer to your specific OS below and update your system and bash to latest version.
================================

and

================================
1. Log into your server as root
2. Execute the following command:

export dummy='() ; echo "exploited"'

3. Enter the following command afterwards:
bash

4. If the output is "exploited", that means that your bash needs to be updated. Please refer to your specific OS below and update your system and bash to latest version.
================================

==================================
Debian and Ubuntu

1. Log into your server as root
2. Execute the following command:

apt-get update && apt-get -y upgrade

3. Then run the test bash you ran earlier to see if your bash is still vulnerable. If the results are the same run "apt-get install -y bash". If you are still exploited, please reply to this email and our staff will look into it right away.
4. You should see the following command if your server is patched -

bash: warning: x: ignoring function definition attempt
bash: error importing function definition for `x'

==================================

==================================
Centos

1. Log into your into server as root
2. Execute the following command:

yum clean all && yum update bash

3. Then run the test bash you ran earlier to see if your bash is still vulnerable. If you are still exploited, please reply to this email and our staff will look into it right away
4. You should see the following command if your server is patched -

bash: warning: x: ignoring function definition attempt
bash: error importing function definition for `x'

==================================

check memory usage on Linux Centos

2014-09-07T01:52:00.001-07:00

free command

The free command is the most simple and easy to use command to check memory usage on linux. Here is a quick example

$ free -m
             total       used       free     shared    buffers     cached
Mem:          7976       6459       1517          0        865       2248
-/+ buffers/cache:       3344       4631
Swap:         1951          0       1951

The m option displays all data in MBs. The total os 7976 MB is the total amount of RAM installed on the system, that is 8GB. The used column shows the amount of RAM that has been used by linux, in this case around 6.4 GB. The output is pretty self explanatory. The catch over here is the cached and buffers column. The second line tells that 4.6 GB is free. This is the free memory in first line added with the buffers and cached amount of memory.
Linux has the habit of caching lots of things for faster performance, so that memory can be freed and used if needed.
The last line is the swap memory, which in this case is lying entirely free.

How to Rest Mysql Server Root Password in Case it was Forgotten

2014-09-03T23:42:00.003-07:00

First you need to stop mysql service:

/etc/init.d/mysqld stop

Now Start mysql in safemode:

mysqld_safe --skip-grant-tables

mysql --user=root mysql

Now run the below:

update user set Password=PASSWORD('new-password') where user='root';
flush privileges;
exit;

Finally kill mysql process and start it again:

/etc/init.d/mysqld stop

/etc/init.d/mysqld start

How to enable mod_rewrite on Apache?

2014-09-02T06:01:00.001-07:00

The question is – how do I check if mod_rewrite is enabled? If it is disabled, how to I enable it on Apache on CentOS?
To enable mod_rewrite, you need to make sure that you have it as a module, and to make sure that Apache has loaded the module. And then you need to ensure that Apache is configured to make use of the .htaccess file for each directory.
Follow this article and you should be able to enable mod_rewrite.

Insert Date in dd/mm/yyyy Format in Postgres

2014-07-08T04:08:00.001-07:00

The default postgres date format is yyyy-mm-dd in case you want to insert date in the format dd/mm/yyyy you need to set the datestyle at the beginning of your insert or update query as the below:

set DateStyle='ISO, DMY';

Beesan Creative Arts and Social Responsibility

2014-06-17T00:52:00.000-07:00

Below are some of Beesan's Creative arts, Social Responsibilities, cooking and PE.

Beesan gift to dad on fathers day 2009 (Beesan was 5 y/o)

Flowers pod paint, Beesan gift to her Grand dad june 2011 (Beesan was 7 y/o)

Beesan taking part in demonstration in front of the Israeli Embassy to end siege on Gaza (15/5/2011)

Beesan Does her homework with her own decorated pencils. (2014)

Beesan Draw of her favorite Cartoon Character. (2014)

Beesan taking part in planting Pentele mountain with Byron College School. (2014)

Beesan playing with knox (Rottweiler). (2014)

Beesan makes the cake alone with no help from anyone. She has her own recipes book. (2013)

Beesan made her own custom for the Halloween Day. (2014)

Beesan winning the race on Byron College Sport day at Deree. (2014)

Change the Apache Webserver Default Page

2014-04-29T04:04:00.004-07:00

The Default Page of any webserver could be index.html or home.htm or index.cfm etc. to change the homepage or the order of homepage files in Apache you need to do the following:

If you are on Linux:

You need to edit the httpd.conf, so search for the file

# find / -type f -name httpd.conf

most likely your file will be under /usr/local/apache/conf/

so edit your file:

# edit /usr/local/apache/conf/httpd.conf

Search for the like DirectoryIndex in your file

DirectoryIndex index.html index.htm default.htm index.php index.pl

You may edit this line change the order ar a new homepage name like the below:

DirectoryIndex home.php index.html index.htm default.htm index.php index.pl

Save your work. You need to restart the apache now:

# /etc/init.d/httpd restart

Done!

Error: Write to Disk Access Denied - Troubleshooting - BitTorrent

2013-11-29T08:17:00.000-08:00

I have downloaded Bit Torrent software and when trying to download I got an error after few seconds saying:

Error: Write to Disk Access Denied

Solving this problem is so simple:

Shut down BitTorrent program.

Go to Start and in the small search box on top of windows start button start typing Bittorrent and the program will show, right click with the mouse on the icon and Run as Administrator.

All ur problems are sorted out now and you can enjoy downloading...

Good Luck.