Welcome to PhenixOps!
Introduction
Right now i am in the process of creating this wiki to document solutions i have engineered at work or projects i did just for fun.
I am an experienced Linux engineer with a solid background on operating applications and websites on the Internet. I work with everything between Arduino and a Supercomputer. I have a strong operational focus combined with a curiosity for open source and the Internet in general. I like to get things working or make it do something it could not at first.
Linux has always been a good friend and it is my workhorse since long time. The open character of Linux has attracted my attention early on in my career and Linux has grown itself along with my experience. My knowledge has built up working with Linux and Unix in a large number of companies. From projects to daily operations, usually in a 24/7 perspective.
Seeing i am a kind of a generalist, my knowledge spans from the physical cable to the frontend. This wiki itself is a showcase of my work, not just the content but also the platform it is running on itself. The green lock in the address bar and the backups late at night. Firewalling and networking to make maximum use of resources to use them online, big or small, even from my backyard.
I have worked in all kinds of environments, from hackerspace to corporate including national tv, fortune 500 companies and research facilities.
To keep skills sharp, I run my own infrastructure, my own code and my own security based on Open Source software. I give back to the community by documenting my solutions and experiences. This way another person can benefit from something i learned myself, after being shared by someone else.
For questions send me an e-mail on tech@phenixops.net
Fun Projects
Besides my infrastructure i am killing some time with Raspberry Pi and Arduino projects.
I have just finished building a flightradar on a Raspberry Pi. The signal is received by a antenna and a DVB-T stick. The software on the machine creates a website so you can see the actual airplanes moving on a map.
My flightradar page can be found following the link, it is operating from a Raspberry Pi in my backyard and uploads over wifi:
https://radar.phenixops.net:8080/
The results are also uploaded to the FlightAware website and shared on my profile:
https://flightaware.com/adsb/stats/user/PhenixOps
I was very satisfied finishing this project as i had never worked with a Raspberry Pi before. Setting up is easy as it just another flavor of Linux. Now i also have have one as a desktop to test and see if this is an economic solution for people on a small budget.
I have created documentation so you can make this yourself on a rainy day:
Why good System Administration is important
When Websites are created, either from scratch or build with software like Wordpress, on the background you need a database providing you with business logic. Backofice processes need to run in the proper setting and billing needs to happen when it is planned, many tasks needs to be orchestrated on top of a good infrastructure and be flexible to changes.
To ensure high availability and optimal performance you depend on a good infrastructure that has enough resources but does not eat your wallet when it shouldn't. Modern platforms allow scalability when things are orchestrated right. Everyone can install resources but making things work together smart is where you need a good sysadmin.
Documentation, do we need it ?
Besides the technical administration also documentation and the organization of information is important to create structure. This includes concerns release management and project management. Making sure customer needs are met in time and according to specifications. Sometimes these are not choices but a mandatory way of working. In ISO 27001 environments i have improved on documentation and procedures.
Having good documentation and procedures helps improving time to resolve issues. Good procedures make sure the right people are getting involved when things go wrong and keeps teams happily working on planned tasks when the fire is just a spark. Providing good customer information and instructions limit the number of calls and e-mails in your inbox.
In order to provide good numbers on SLA levels you need to ensure services are documented well. You need to be able to identify a bug or known problem and register it in the right category. This also helps to determine the level of severity and if things need to be escalated or lot
Writing good speficications helps your team making their goals and improve their workload. It helps you delivering things that were promised withing the time agreed on.
To do this right, there a some methods to work with. I have worked with ITIL, ITSM and lately Scrum.
Online Security
I like things to run save and secure while remaining available and being monitored. I use Open Source tools to create my platforms and share my experiences here. I keep track and implement latest standards where possible.
In this time and age privacy and security is becoming more important, we all want our data to be safe. I am able to provide advise on how to create that with the use of tools and the right mindset.
Getting good scores and green lights in browser windows also provides good security and ensuring customers are reached from your communication, something where a free website and domain often is limited.
Check my website's status, i am able to show you some results of my work: https://www.sslshopper.com/ssl-checker.html#hostname=phenixops.net
Free Tips and Tricks
I like to structure information and provide tips and tricks on system administration, basically i share a part of my documentation here:
Most of the topics are based on Debian Linux and bash scripting.
Buy me a coffee
If you would like me to build more interesting projects support me here:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/PhenixOps