[LON-CAPA-dev] sysadm goals

[Scott Harrison]

Dear All:

*** WHAT ***
With the goals of:
* having an automagic system administration vanilla layer
* having an interface to automate hosts.tab updating and 
* having an interface to view rpm status with
  Martin's new check-rpms script
* and organizing the other monitoring and configuration
  scripts/interfaces that are building up
* And keeping this secure (probably under something other than
  htpasswd????)

*** HOW ***
I WOULD SUGGEST that we either:
* add a sysadm (or adm) button to 
  domain coordinator
And/Or create a new user type called system administrator.

Of course, some system monitoring should be under the
htpasswd layer and accessible outside of the LON-CAPA
web interface.

*** WHY ***
Protecting rpm status viewing is important because
we want to have an option where rpms are downloaded
and perhaps perhaps perhaps installed through the
web interface.

It really is too much to expect someone at every institution
to read Edward Bailey's "Maximum RPM".  Or to even type
"man rpm" and read the ten pages of documentation there.
(Or to ever type "man anycommand"...)

Alternatively, we can name the button "HANDHOLD"...
ADM is an oblique name since everything is administration.

Also, I would like to own a new bugzilla component called
System Administration.

I'm not as cynical as I sound...... hmmmmm...... I'm open
to other ideas for the button naming, user role type, and
access-handling architecture for all this...

Regards,
Scott

-- 
Scott Harrison -- Graduate Student
Microbiology and Molecular Genetics
Mich. State. Univ., East Lansing, MI
harris41@msu.edu, 517-353-0998