[jonabbey@arlut.utexas.edu: Ganymede 0.99.4 released]

[Bob Tanner <tanner@real-time.com>]

Has anyone played with this?

----- Forwarded message from Jonathan Abbey <jonabbey@arlut.utexas.edu> -----
> Ganymede 0.99.4 is now available for download at
> 
>  http://www.arlut.utexas.edu/gash2/
> 
> or
> 
>  ftp://ftp.arlut.utexas.edu/pub/ganymede/
> 
> Mirrors: (may take a short while to update)
> 
>  ftp://ftp.netlag.com/ganymede/ (USA)
>  ftp://mirror.aarnet.edu.au/pub/ganymede/ (Australia/NZ only)
>  ftp://ftp.kddlabs.co.jp/pub/ganymede/ (KDD R&D Labs, Saitama, Japan)
> 
> Ganymede is a GPL'ed network directory management system written in
> Java, providing support for team management of NIS, DNS, etc.
> 
> --
> 
> The big news for this release includes a reworking of the install
> scripts to make it easier to install the server and the web client
> resources, a significant rewriting of the admin console to improve
> security and simplify installation, and an improved installation
> guide.
> 
> Generally more polished, closer to production quality.  The next
> things to do involve more operational documentation and better
> packaging of the schemas, including lots of support scripting for
> the gasharl schema.
> 
> Just over the horizon is a new DNS/XML system for flexibly and
> comprehensively managing DNS with Ganymede.
> 
> As always, feedback is eagerly solicited.. if I don't hear from
> anyone, I just have to guess as to whether it's working for people,
> which isn't the most efficient method.
> 
> -------------------- Changes from 0.99.3 to 0.99.4 -------------------
> 
> RELEASE DATE: July 8, 1999
> 
> 1. [SERVER] Optimizations to permissions system
> 
> The simplifications to GanymedeSession.getPerm(object,field) that
> I did for 0.99.3 was in fact doing too much work, and the logic
> didn't flow clearly.
> 
> GanymedeSession.getPerm(object, field) is now correct, efficient, and
> easy to read.
> 
> 2. [SERVER] Added new versions of anonymousLinkOK/UnlinkOK() to DBEditObject
> 
> It was previously impossible to grant anonymous linking privileges to
> a field only when the other side of the link was being created in a
> particular object type/field.  This posed a problem in the
> circumstance where you want to allow a specific field in a given
> object type to be linked to another object type's backlinks field
> without having general editing permissions for the other object.
> 
> I added a couple of new versions of these methods that take additional
> parameters identifying the originating object and field, so that
> customizers can take the other side of the proposed link into
> consideration before granting anonymous linking permissions.
> 
> See the DBEditObject.anonymousLinkOK()/anonymousUnlinkOK() javadocs
> for details.  Hopefully I'll get around to writing a full-scale
> technical manual for Ganymede that will go into when/where you would
> use these methods.
> 
> Modified InvidDBField.bind() and InvidDBField.unbind() to call the
> new versions.
> 
> 3. [CLIENT] Improved StringSelector used in String and Invid fields
> 
> The StringSelector GUI component used in the client to allow editing
> of String and/or Invid vector fields has been fixed so that it does
> not include the text box for entering custom entries unless the
> StringSelector is editable.
> 
> Fixed some minor GUI problems with the StringSelector resizing itself
> to a minimum size after adding a new entry to an empty
> no-choices-provided string selector, made the 'remove' button disable
> itself after removing something.
> 
> 4. [SCHEMA] Improved email list behavior in gasharl schema
> 
> An email list owner can now add any user, list, or redirect to his
> list without having general editing privileges for that user, list,
> or redirect.
> 
> This takes advantage of change #2, above.
> 
> 5. [INSTALL] Various improvements to the install process
> 
> Modified installServer so that the custom loading instructions it
> writes out at the end is sent to a README.custom file in the installed
> server's directory rather than to screen.  No sense spewing a couple
> of screen's worth of customized install instructions if the user has
> to do cut and paste to save it to a file for reading.
> 
> Added an installWeb script to install the web files into a designated
> directory, separate from the normal UNIX client install.  This has the
> advantage that you can install the web resourcs for Ganymede without
> having to have Swing installed locally (which installClient checked
> for.)
> 
> Added a handy index.html file for the Ganymede web resources, got rid
> of the old activator and hotjava directories, added a nice set of web
> frames to allow the installer to bring up their browser and directly
> visit the directory where they installed the web resources.
> 
> 6. [WEB FILES] Updated plugin client files for 1.2
> 
> The plugin client files were re-generated from the 1.2 htmlconvertor
> utility, and now include proper links to the latest version of
> Sun's java plug-in for Solaris and Windows.
> 
> 7. [SCHEMA] Fixed BSD schema master.passwd parser, Linux passwd parser
> 
> The old Linux and BSD passwd file parsers would break if they
> encountered a user record with a blank password field.
> 
> Modified GanymedeServer.login() and GanymedeServer.admin() to make
> sure the server won't throw a null pointer exception if the database
> contains a user or admin persona with no password during the login
> process.
> 
> If a Ganymede user record has no password set, that user will not be
> able to login to the Ganymede server.  Unlike UNIX, Ganymede never
> lets anyone log in without a password.
> 
> 8. [ADMIN CONSOLE, SERVER] Reworked admin console, server's admin API
> 
> Fixed the admin console so that it will properly log itself out when
> it is closed through the window system.
> 
> In prior versions, the admin console wanted to know the name of the
> supergash account on the server, so that it could preemptively refuse
> to perform certain operations.. this really makes no sense at all, and
> was never needed for security.  The admin console now goes ahead and
> attempts such operations, and depends on the server properly refusing
> the operations.
> 
> The install scripts no longer prompt for the supergash account name
> when installing the UNIX and web clients.
> 
> Also in previous versions, the server wasn't actually honoring the
> console permissions checkboxes in the admin persona objects.. any
> admin persona could log into the server via the admin console, but no
> one other than supergash could do any control operations.  The admin
> persona console permissions checkboxes now properly control the
> server's response to admin console operations.
> 
> Admins other than supergash and monitor will need to log into the
> server via the admin console using their full persona name.. i.e.,
> 'broccol:GASH Admin'.
> 
> 9. [DOCUMENTATION] Revised, improved the install guide, added FAQ
> 
> Significantly revised and enhanced the install guide, corrected some
> mistakes, included information on the use of installWeb.
> 
> The text INSTALL file is now a lynx-generated version of the HTML
> file.. it was too much work and too error-prone trying to maintain
> both independently.
> 
> Added a text FAQ file.  Will convert this into a nice web version at
> some point.
> 
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Jonathan Abbey 				              jonabbey@arlut.utexas.edu
> Applied Research Laboratories                 The University of Texas at Austin
> Ganymede, a free NIS/DNS management system    http://www.arlut.utexas.edu/gash2

----- End forwarded message -----

-- 
Bob Tanner <tanner@real-time.com>       | Phone : (612)943-8700
http://www.real-time.com                | Fax   : (612)943-8500
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