Re: remote management

["Jonathan D. Proulx" <jon@ai.mit.edu>]

On Thu, Dec 14, 2000 at 11:51:30PM -0600, Matt Fair wrote:
:> On Thu, Dec 14, 2000 at 05:31:57PM -0600, Matt Fair wrote:
:> :I am managing my server remotely using ssh.   If my network connection
:> :goes down for some reason, I have no control over it, is there a way
:> :where I could check to see if there is a network connection and then
:> :restart the connection?
:>
:> best option is to recompile the kernel on the server to put the
:> console out to serial port (is this default in debian kernels? if not
:> what problems does it create, I always roll mine that way), then you
:> can hang a modem off the serial port and even if the networking on the
:> server breaks you can get in to try and fix it.
:
:Would this be a dial-in connection to the computer to manage it?  What I need is
:to manage the computer remoteley all the way back to the lilo prompt.  Are there
:any how-to's to do this?

I recall seeing something about this in a LILO related HOTWO, or info
doc, or something (there's a ton of them so good lick finding the
right one)

I'm pretty sure you can get to the LILO prompt w/o special hardware,
but not before (so no BIOS acsess)

:What other equipment would I need for this?

for BIOS control yes, for lilo prompt I really don't think so but
can't put my finger on the exact reference, involves kernel options
and lilo.conf stuff...

then again you could dig up a sparc machine and run Debian on that :)

:Would there be any way to encrypt the session?

why? unless someone is tapping you're phone line there's no need, this
would be a point to point phone connection not traversing the internet
at all.

-Jon