04-Mar-2024

AlmaLinux 9

On 30-Jun-2024, Scientific Linux 7 (SL7) will reach its end-of-life and will no longer receive updates after that date. CLASSE-IT recommends and is supporting AlmaLinux 9, a rebuild of RedHat Enterprise Linux 9 (EL9), as a successor to Scientific Linux 7. In the coming months, we will contact users of SL7 desktops and workstations to schedule an upgrade to AlmaLinux 9. If you wish to expedite your Linux upgrade, please submit a ServiceRequest. This upgrade is not yet avilable for specialized Linux systems, such as control system or station computers. Please also consider switching from lnx201.classe.cornell.edu (SL7) to lnx209.classe.cornell.edu (AlmaLinux 9) as a general-purpose landing pad.

Upcoming CLASSE VPN Upgrade

During this year's Spring Down period (02-Apr-2024 to 16-Apr-2024), we will be introducing a new always-on VPN service called ZeroTier, which will replace Pritunl on CLASSE-managed laptops. (Pritunl will remain installed as a fallback option.) The benefits of ZeroTier include:

• No manual VPN connections required to access CLASSE printers, samba, and license server.
• Seamless updates to operating systems and local software on Tuesday mornings.

For personal laptops, CLASSE VPN connections will still require Pritunl, which will continue to be available. If you have a CLASSE-managed laptop and would like to be an early adopter of ZeroTier, please submit a ServiceRequest to have your laptop converted before the April rollout.

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General network and server maintenance will occur every Tuesday from 12:00 noon to 2:00 PM. The CLASSE-IT group will always announce any expected disruptions in our NewsLetter and via CLASSE-IT-NEWS-L, but with the size and complexity of our network there is always the potential for something to go wrong. We will do our best to contain all network maintenance and planned outages to Tuesdays from 12:00 noon to 2:00 PM.

Unless other arrangements have been made, CLASSE-managed Windows systems may be updated and rebooted on Tuesday morning at 2:00 AM, so please avoid critical or lengthy operations at that time. For more details, please see SystemExpectations.

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Questions or problems? Submit a service request.

Other resources:

• CLASSE IT Home Page
• Previous newsletters

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