Windows Development Software for you local human laptop
Thursday, May 7, 2026
Monday, October 30, 2023
HDMI and Display Port versions
HDMI and Display Port versions:
In general, lower refresh rates the same, higher + variable fresh rates:
dp 1.4 > hdmi 2.0
hdmi 2.1 > dp 1.4
dp 2.1 > hdmi 2.1
Capabilities depends on graphics card, monitor, cable
Good read, overview of current hdmi + display port versions
source https://www.tomshardware.com/features/displayport-vs-hdmi-better-for-gaming
nvidia RTX 3000/4000 and amd RX 6000/7000: hdmi 2.1
nvidia RTX 3000/4000 and amd RX 6000: dp 1.4
amd RX 7000: dp 2.1
usbc 4, thunderbolt: dp 1.2 to 2.1
source https://www.cablematters.com/Blog/HDMI/displayport-vs-hdmi
HDMI HDMI HDMI DP DP DP DP
1.4 2.0 2.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 2.0
1080p @ 120Hz ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
1440p @ 30Hz ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
1440p @ 60Hz ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
1440p @ 120Hz ❌ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
4k @ 30Hz ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
4k @ 60Hz ❌ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
4k @ 120Hz ❌ ❌ ✅ ❌ ✅ ✅ ✅
8k @ 30Hz ❌ ❌ ✅ ❌ ✅ ✅ ✅
8k @ 60Hz ❌ ❌ ✅ ❌ ❌ ✅ ✅
8k @ 120Hz ❌ ❌ ✅ ❌ ❌ ❌ ✅
HDR ❌ ✅ ✅ ❌ ❌ ✅ ✅
source https://www.cablematters.com/Blog/HDMI/displayport-vs-hdmi
-End of Document-
Thanks for reading
Monday, October 9, 2023
Useful Linux Commands
Some useful Linux commands
-
cat
cat [file]
- cat = dump file contents to terminal; ls -l to ensure small file
-
df
df -h
- df = show disks space per partition
- / = separate volume/disk for root os, logs
- /data = separate volume/disk for websites, apps
- -h = human readable size
- df = show disks space per partition
-
grep
grep [search] [files]
- grep = filter results, look for patterns in files
- Example: grep Error *.log
-
htop
htop
- htop = top list of processes, nicely colored; can sort, filter
-
kill
kill [pid]
- kill = force stop/kill a process; only use for 'hung' process
- [pid] = pid from
ps auxlist
-
ls
ls -lhtr [dir]
- ls = list contents of directory
- -l = details
- -h = human readable sizes
- -t = sort by time
- -r = reverse sort, so new shows at bottom
- -1 = just list names in a single column
- Example: ls -lhtr logs/*
-
ps
ps aux
- ps = process list
- a = all, including other users
- u = user format
- x = register format
- Example: ps aux | grep nginx
-
reboot
sudo reboot
- reboot = reboot server; should not be needed; restart individual services
-
systemctl
sudo systemctl [action] [process]
- systemctl = manage services such as nginx, php-fpm
- Example: sudo systemctl status nginx
- Example: sudo systemctl restart nginx
- Example: sudo systemctl status php-fpm
- Example: sudo systemctl restart php-fpm
-
tail
tail -f -n50 [file]
- tail = returns the last few lines of a file
- -n# = number of lines
- -f = follow, useful for tailing an active log file
- Example: tail -f logs/app.log
-
vim
vim [file]
- vim, vi = text editor; ls -l to ensure small file
- arrow keys = move cursor
- shift G = go to end of file
- ctrl u = page up
- ctrl d = page down
- /[patttern] = search for pattern
- esc = get out of most vi modes
- :q = quit
- :q! = quit without writing
- :wq = write, quite
- note, if quit a SSH session with a file vi-ed/open, be sure to SSH in again and cleanup the vi auto backup [file]~; vi-ing the original file again will prompt you about
- Example: sudo vim /var/log/messages
-End of Document-
Thanks for reading
Monday, September 18, 2023
DevOps SysAdmin Tips for researching a slow or unresponsive app or system
Some general tips for researching a slow or unresponsive app or system
Starting checklist
- SSH to EC2/server
- Check disk space
-
df -h
-
- Check processes
-
htop
-
ps aux
-
- Check app logs
-
cd app/
-
ls -lhtr logs/
-
vim [log]
-
- Check system logs
-
ls -lhtr /var/log/
-
tail -f -n50 /var/log/messages
-
- Check disk space
- SQL Processes
- DB Gui: Tools -> Server Monitor -> SQL
- Check AWS console
- EC2 list
- Monitoring
- RDS list
- Monitoring
- Performance Insights
- Cloud Watch
- Alarms
- Monitoring
- App specific
- grep (Find in Files, Search)
- grep cron for script name
- grep code for database table names, fields
- grep [everything]
- Check logs
- Often located relative to script, in logs/ or log/
- Can be also be in /var/log/[app dir]/
Logs
App logs
Locations will vary
Some apps may be relative to their PHP (or other language) files, often log/ or logs/
Some cron or processing logs may be in /var/log/[process dir]/
Note, log locations should be consistent to facilitate finding them.
Web Server logs
On some errors, such as fatal or configuration errors, PHP (or other language) info is outputted to the web server logs, such as Nginx
Nginx logs
nginx is the process name
PHP runs as a separate process, php_fpm
ls -lhtr /var/log/nginx
tail -n50 /var/log/nginx/[site]_error.log
tail -f /var/log/nginx/[site]_error.log
ls -lhtr /var/log/php-fpm/
System logs
ls -lhtr /var/log/
You may need to login as sudo user ec2-user to view system logs
/var/log/messages
Common log for OS messages
sudo vim /var/log/messages
/var/log/secure
Common log for login, security messages
sudo vim /var/log/secure
Web Server Config
Nginx is a common web server
You can grep for dns or web directories to know
- server_name = what dns is being used
- root = which directory a site is being hosted from
- error_log = where the log files are
grep [site] /etc/nginx/sites.d/*
vim /etc/nginx/sites.d/[site].conf
server_name [site].com;
set $env "dev";
set $app_dir "[repo name]";
root /data/sites/$env/$app_dir/public/;
access_log /var/log/nginx/[site].com_access_log;
error_log /var/log/nginx/[site].com_error_log error;
Cron
# .---------------- minute (0 - 59)
# | .------------- hour (0 - 23)
# | | .---------- day of month (1 - 31)
# | | | .------- month (1 - 12) OR jan,feb,mar,apr ...
# | | | | .---- day of week (0 - 6) (Sunday=0 or 7) OR sun,mon,tue,wed,thu,fri,sat
# | | | | |
# * * * * * user-name command to be executed
# EXAMPLE CRON
*/10 * * * * [app user] /usr/bin/php -q /[process dir]/[script] [args if any] &>> \
/var/log/[process dir]/[script].log
- ensure specify the app user
- &>> [log] is shorthand for >> [log] 2&>>1
- > = overwrite
- >> = append
- 2&>1 = redirect errors to standard out eg capture errors in log
- compare to other crons to keep a consistent pattern
System crons
ls -lhtr /etc/cron.d/
Preferred
Crons in /etc/cron.d/ allow for custom runtimes. A cron file per
concept/process/logical grouping should be created, and can contain
multiple scripts/commands.
Note, there are other potential system crons such as /etc/cron.daily which will run crons .. daily, but without the flexibility of specify when during the day they run; cron.daily often runs at 2am or 3am depending on the OS. Only use /etc/cron.d/
User crons
crontab -l
view cron of current user
crontab -e
edit cron of current user
Not recommended
Crons can also be attached to a user. User crons are
not easily accessible and are stored in one file per user, making a
large number of crons harder to manage, and overly easy to delete (crontab -r = poof gone).
To manually backup a users cron
cd ~
crontab -l > cron_[Ymd].txt
-End of Document-
Thanks for reading
Monday, August 21, 2023
DDEV for local development in containers
DDEV
"DDEV is an open source tool for launching local [PHP, Python,
NodeJS, etc] development environments in minutes. These environments can be
extended, version controlled, and shared, so you can take advantage of a Docker
workflow without Docker experience or bespoke configuration. Projects can be
changed, powered down, or removed just as easily as they’re started."
GitHub
| Docs
Terminology:
- host os
(windows/macosx/linux)
- docker os
(linux vm)
- containers
(linux)
General flow of ddev tech stack
[ddev, on host os] -> [docker compose -> docker, in linux vm] ->
[containers, linux, managed by docker]
Install DDEV and related tools
Follow the install steps for your OS
https://ddev.readthedocs.io/en/stable/
Before running any external shell or powershell scripts, read the install
script for your OS.
Prerequisites:
Windows
- Recommended:
use wsl2 and docker desktop, docker ce inside wsl (do your work mostly in
windows)
- Alternative:
use wsl2, docker ce inside wsl (do your work mostly in wsl/linux)
- Alternative:
use virtual box, docker ce inside virtual box (do your work mostly in
virtual box/linux)
Windows ides can access files in wsl2, but ide operations will be slower
due to the different filesystems. Within wsl, for performance, do not reference
files by /mnt/c/home/dev, instead use the linux file system, eg /home/dev or ~/
Install, update wsl
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/basic-commands
The ddev install uses chocolatey, a package manager for windows https://community.chocolatey.org/
Tip: Before installing ddev, you may want to change the default chocolatey tools
install directory.
By default chocolatey installs itself to C:\ProgramData\chocolatey and installs tools to C:\tools\ (not great)
In an admin powershell, run:
[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable('ChocolateyToolsLocation','C:\ProgramData\ChocolateyTools',
'User')
Installing docker desktop may require a logout/reboot.
Ensure docker desktop is using wsl2, launch docker desktop
configure gear icon -> general -> use wsl2 based engine; resources ->
wsl integration
You shouldn't need to directly access docker desktop when using ddev.
MacOSX
- Recommended:
use colima, docker ce inside colima linux os (do your work mostly in
macosx)
- Alternative:
use docker desktop, docker ce inside docker desktop linux os (do your work
mostly in macosx)
- Alternative:
use virtual box, docker ce inside virtual box (do your work mostly in
virtual box/linux)
You shouldn't need to directly use colima when using ddev.
Linux
- Recommended:
docker ce
- Alternative:
use docker desktop
DDEV Configuration
local config
a local config file can be used to merge with the main ddev config in
.ddev/config.yaml
examples:
.ddev/config.local.yaml
hooks:
post-start:
- exec-host: echo -e "checking bootstrapping via
\033[1;34mhttp://${DDEV_HOSTNAME}/ping\033[0m"
- exec-host: curl http://your-repo.ddev.site/ping
- exec-host: echo -e ""
ddev generated files
useful to see the docker config created by ddev.
do not edit as they will be re-generated on next start
.[dot folders]
.ddev-docker-compose-base.yaml
.ddev-docker-compose-full.yaml
Related DDEV Utilities
mkcert
mkcert is a simple tool for making locally-trusted development certificates. eg
allows local https without browser warnings
https://github.com/FiloSottile/mkcert
firefox
The non chrome browser
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
for ssl access to ddev sites, import the mkcert generated ca cert
- list CA
location, > mkcert -CAROOT
- in firefox url,
about:preferences#privacy
- filter,
certificates
- View
Certificates -> Authorities -> Import
- Select the
rootCA.pem file
- find the
imported cert in the list, find mkcert
- click Edit
Trust, click enable for websites
ngrok
ngrok is a reverse proxy that creates a secure tunnel from a public endpoint to
a locally running web service eg expose a local server behind a NAT or firewall
to the internet
https://ngrok.com/
chocolatey
a package manager for windows
- opensource https://community.chocolatey.org/
- install https://chocolatey.org/install
- gui https://docs.chocolatey.org/en-us/chocolatey-gui/setup/installation
docker
container management docker ce is opensource, docker desktop is a subscription
https://docs.docker.com/engine/install/ubuntu/
mutagen
mutagen provides real-time file synchronization and flexible network forwarding
for developers, extending the reach of local development tools to cloud-based
containers and infrastructure. initial file sync can take a bit https://mutagen.io/
maxosx and windows:
Accessing lots of files between the host os and linux os can be slow due to the
different filesystems. mutagen will perform a two-way sync between your os and
the ddev managed docker container.
https://ddev.readthedocs.io/en/stable/users/install/performance/#mutagen
traefik
dddev routing ddev-router has been based on a forked, poorly-documented nginx
reverse proxy. Versions after DDEV v1.21.3 add a new router based on the
popular Traefik Proxy.
https://ddev.readthedocs.io/en/latest/users/configuration/experimental/#traefik-router
https://traefik.io/traefik/
podman
container management, opensource, compatible with docker
https://podman.io/
phpstorm
php, code ide
https://www.jetbrains.com/phpstorm/
a ddev plugin exists for phpstorm and webstorm, which can facilitate setting up
xdebug, server, php config, stop/start ddev, etc
https://ddev.readthedocs.io/en/latest/users/install/phpstorm/#phpstorm-basic-setup-on-windows-wsl2
using ddev from the command line may be simpler and more consistent
vscode
code ide
https://code.visualstudio.com/
General ddev, docker, and container
tips
- manage ddev
within the host windows/macosx os, and if needed manage docker ce via the
cli within the linux vm (wsl for windows)
- one container
per repo
- changes inside
container will not persist, as it is a container
- any changes
need to be made outside of container (code), or to ddev config (container
services, config)
- ddev
configuration is stored in the relative directory .ddev/
- to facilitate
ddev updates, try to keep config changes to a minimal
- start project
> ddev start
initial file sync can take a bit - stop project
> ddev stop - project details
> ddev status
> ddev describe - list docker
images
inside linux host
> docker ps - show all
projects
> ddev list - stop all
containers
> ddev poweroff - restart a
project
often used after making .ddev config changes
> ddev restart - ddev images are
debian based
ssh into container to test or view config
reminder, changes inside container will not persist
> ddev ssh - control
processes, php-fpm, nginx, node
ddev uses supervisorctl to control processes, as opposed to systemctl; inside linux host
> supervisorctl restart php-fpm
> supervisorctl restart nginx
note, if a process dies or attempts to restart several times due to bad config, the container will stop. - start npm run
start command
> ddev npm run start - stop npm run
start command
> ddev npm run stop - run phpstan
> ddev composer phpstan - view logs from
host os
> ddev logs - view logs
inside container
> ddev ssh
> vi [log]
> tail -f [log] - docker
maintenance
Sometimes, either due to bad ddev, docker, wsl, comila, or normal config/docker changes, you may end up with unused, disconnected images, containers.
To clean up your system, and recover some storage; inside your linux host
> docker system prune - if ddev
container won't start after config changes
Fix or revert config changes, then
> ddev restart
"generally removes most things that need to be removed"
> ddev poweroff
> ddev rm -a - if start
multiple ddev containers at the same time, there may be port conflicts as
they may try to grab the same 'random' or initial default port; either
restart failed container, or add a pause between container starts
- check open
ports in linux host
> ss -l
Monday, June 26, 2023
Valid local self signed certs
While developing web sites/applications locally, to facilitate development, you often use a local host name, such as 127.0.0.1, localhost, site.local, example.test, or sub.company.local. While you can access the site/application using normal HTTP, sometimes the application is configured for secure HTTP i.e. HTTPS or you always want to force HTTPS no matter the environment (dev/qa/prod).
However, ‘made up’ local host names such as example.test, site.local, site.dev etc can not use an external ssl certificate, as they cannot be accessed remotely to verify authenticity by a certificate authority (CA). So typically one would create a self signed certificate. But over time, browsers have restricted the acceptance of self signed certificates, resulting in a less friendly or impossible developer workflow. So the next step would be to add your own CA to your local environment, but that can be tedious and error prone. Luckily, there is a utility which greatly simplifies the process, for linux, macos, and even windows - mkcert
“Using certificates from real certificate authorities (CAs) for development can be dangerous or impossible (for hosts like example.test, localhost or 127.0.0.1), but self-signed certificates cause trust errors. Managing your own CA is the best solution, but usually involves arcane commands, specialized knowledge and manual steps.
mkcert automatically creates and installs a local CA in the system root store, and generates locally-trusted certificates. mkcert does not automatically configure servers to use the certificates, though, that's up to you.”
https://github.com/FiloSottile/mkcert
To creating a usable self signed ssl certificate using Windows, Nginx, and Laragon (a portable LAMP stack):
Download the latest mkcert for your OS (Windows in this case)
https://github.com/FiloSottile/mkcert/releases
mkcert-v1.4.1-windows-amd64.exe
Copy the file to a new dir
C:/laragon/bin/mkcert/
And rename to a generic mkcert.exe
Note, assuming you installed/extracted Laragon to C:/laragon
In a command window with Administrator Privileges (Run as Admin)
> cd C:\laragon\etc\ssl
Specify the destination of the CA cert
> mkdir C:\laragon\etc\ssl\mkcert
Set an temporary environment variable for mkcert to read
> setx CAROOT "C:\laragon\etc\ssl\mkcert"
By default, it would have be in you user directory
> C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\mkcert
Close the command window and re-open it so the environment variable can be read
In linux you might source ~/.bash_profile .. but windows
Test that the environment variable is indeed set
> cd C:\laragon\etc\ssl\
> echo %CAROOT%
C:\laragon\etc\ssl\mkcert
Create and install your local CA
> ..\..\bin\mkcert\mkcert -install
You will be shown a prompt warning you that you are doing what you want to do, add a local CA
After reading, Click Yes
Note, by default the CA key will be named rootCA-key.pem and the CA cert will be named rootCA.pem. The names are hard coded in the project source main.go, if you want to compile the project.
You can view the CA via the Certificate Manager
Start Menu -> Run -> certmgr
Or
Laragon -> Menu -> Nginx -> Certificate Manager
Note, while Laragon does have its own CA which it can add, it does not seem to work with recent browser updates.
Click to Trusted Root Certification Authority -> Certificates
Scroll to find mkcert Computer\User@Computer
Note, you can delete it if you want by Right Clicking on and select Delete
Now generate the SSL certificate, which will be signed by the CA you just added
> cd C:\laragon\etc\ssl
> ..\..\bin\mkcert\mkcert site.local "*.site.local"
Would create the SSL key and cert in C:\laragon\etc\ssl as
site.local+1-key.pem and site.local+1.pem
Rename the files, or specify names when creating:
> ..\..\bin\mkcert\mkcert -key-file company.localhost.key -cert-file company.localhost.crt company.localhost *.company.localhost
Which would match
company.localhost
site1.company.localhost
site2.company.localhost
Or more generically
> ..\..\bin\mkcert\mkcert -key-file dev.localhost.key -cert-file dev.localhost.crt dev.localhost *.dev.localhost
Which would match
dev.localhost
site1.dev.localhost
site2.dev.localhost
Note, most browsers do not support wildcards 2 levels deep ie don't use just localhost or test
Note, Chrome redirects use of the .dev tld to HTTPS, as Google now owns the official .dev tld. While using any domain name which you override in your /etc/hosts file should be ok, it is best to use a domain you actually own. But if that is not practical, .test, .local, .localhost are the often provided alternatives.
Edit you Nginx or Apache config to add the SSL cert and key, and reload
Using the default website in Laragon as a working example
C:\laragon\etc\nginx\sites-enabled\00-default.conf
listen 8443;
Server_name site1.dev.localhost;
# Enable SSL
ssl_certificate "C:/laragon/etc/ssl/dev.localhost.crt";
ssl_certificate_key "C:/laragon/etc/ssl/dev.localhost.key";
ssl_session_timeout 5m;
ssl_protocols TLSv1 TLSv1.1 TLSv1.2;
ssl_ciphers ALL:!ADH:!EXPORT56:RC4+RSA:+HIGH:+MEDIUM:+LOW:+SSLv3:+EXP;
ssl_prefer_server_ciphers on;
Note, if you are using Skype, you may not be able to run a webserver on port 443, so choose another port, such as 8443.
Assuming you have added your local host name to /etc/hosts or
C:\Windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts
127.0.0.1 site1.dev.localhost
Viewing https://site1.dev.localhost
Should result in a valid SSL cert.
Enjoy your HTTPS, and develop away.
To install reinstall on a computer, or reinstall after deleting the mkcert CA
Copy the full Laragon dir, or the rootCA.pem at least
Set an temporary environment variable for mkcert to read
> setx CAROOT "C:\laragon\etc\ssl\mkcert"
Close the command window, re-open
Create and install your local CA
> ..\..\bin\mkcert\mkcert -install
FireFox
Mkcert auto installs into chromium based browsers.
For FireFox, there are a few extra steps.
View where mkcert installed the CA certificate
> mkcert -CAROOT
in FireFox url, type in about:preferences#privacy
Filter options to ‘certificates’
click View Certificates -> Authorities -> Import
Select the rootCA.pem file, in the directory listed by the prior mkcert -CAROOT
The above used to be sufficient, for newer FireFox versions >= 112
There is an extra step to take
Within the certificate list, find the imported cert in the list; it will be in the middle listed under ‘mkcert’
Now click the Edit Trust button, and check ‘enable for websites’
Re-enjoy your HTTPS, and develop away.
-End of Document-
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