Any thoughts on managing multiple computers in an education setting

Sun Jan 25 16:31:16 UTC 2015

Thank you for your suggestion Diane.

It is an idea that I toyed with a while ago but of late I've been running
into problems with incognito mode and some websites (most notably ones that
rely on Flash). Incognito prevents sites from using local storage which
also prevents some sites from operating properly :(.

There is a Google administrative tool that allows you to manage Chrome and
Chrome accounts that does what I'd like but that requires $$$. And, my
whole goal is to avoid spending $$$s, partly as proof-of-concept to show
that it's possible to create somewhat functional computers for nothing (the
problem is that they're not centrally managed which limits them to certain
networks), partly because if $$$s are to be spent then it becomes cost
effective to start buying Chromebooks.

On Sat Jan 24 2015 at 7:48:26 PM Mrs. Leikvold <
dleikvold at longmontchristian.org> wrote:

> For clearing Google Chrome information, you could set up the launch icon
> for Chrome to include a --incognito switch when launching.  This will
> launch an incognito session and any information they use during the session
> will be lost after they exit Google Chrome.  Just a thought...
>
> Diane Leikvold
> Longmont Christian School
> IT/Technology Coordinator
>
> On Sat, Jan 24, 2015 at 4:37 PM, Benjamin Bach <benjamin at fairdanmark.dk>
> wrote:
>
>>  Hi Eric,
>>
>> Turning back to your first email...
>>
>> The only purpose for these machines will be to act as computers with
>> internet access (Chrome) and the ability to run selected pieces of software.
>>
>>
>> I don't see that Edubuntu would be the right place to start. Choose the
>> point of departure that's closest to your destination in terms of features.
>> Stripping off features is often a lot more problematic than adding features
>> in my experience.
>>
>> You might find some inspiration here because the scripts are quite
>> "straight to the point" about configuring stuff in Edubuntu... if that's
>> really the distribution you want.
>>
>>
>> https://github.com/benjaoming/fair-ubuntu-centre/tree/master/installscripts/postinstall/filesystem
>>
>> For instance, this can get you a bit of the way in terms of locking down
>> a Gnome session..
>>
>>
>> https://github.com/benjaoming/fair-ubuntu-centre/blob/master/installscripts/postinstall/filesystem/student/.reset_gconf.sh
>>
>> Putting this somewhere in your /etc/rc.local will make a certain user
>> have no password....
>>
>> # Make student the default login
>> gpasswd -a student nopasswdlogin
>>
>> Good luck,
>> Ben
>>
>>
>> On 01/24/2015 02:12 PM, Eric Dunbar wrote:
>>
>> I found an intriguing guide on how to modify the guest session:
>>
>> https://help.ubuntu.com/community/CustomizeGuestSession
>>
>>  It's apparently possible to have a prepared "user" that gets loaded
>> each time the guest session is activated. This would allow me to customize
>> things like home page in Chrome, desktop background (which could include
>> some basic reminders to never save files to the computer), icons for
>> various apps, etc.
>>
>>  Though, the launcher bar for Edubuntu is pretty bad (more like
>> absolutely awful) so I'm not sure how I'd overcome that pretty terrible
>> limitation :( :(.
>>
>> On Sat Jan 24 2015 at 4:40:56 PM Eric Dunbar <eric.dunbar at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi, first of all I want to say, "thank you" to everyone who's chimed in.
>>> It's been too long since I've been on an Ubuntu-F/LOSS list with all the
>>> naturally helpful people that are drawn to the open source world.
>>>
>>>  *#1 Edubuntu:*
>>>
>>>  I've been trying Edubuntu and it doesn't quite seem to fit the
>>> bill--though, I'm not ready to give up on it yet [used Ubuntu from 4.10
>>> through 10.10... just before my eldest son was born :-) ].
>>>
>>>  The Edubuntu Guest account may solve some of the problems I'm
>>> envisioning. It says it'll delete all local files after a logout which
>>> likely means it'll delete all Chrome preferences as well (?).
>>>
>>>  This is a concern of mine since students will log into Chrome using
>>> their school account and if they forget to log out (inevitable) it'll then
>>> leave their Google Drive and mail vulnerable to vandalism by the next user
>>> until Google requires another authentication. And, since there won't be the
>>> same level of school-level tracking of users as on official school
>>> computers it will be next to impossible to determine who did what. I'd
>>> rather head such problems off proactively than act reactively after
>>> someone's been hurt.
>>>
>>>  I also just noticed (when I went to install Chrome) that a Chrome
>>> repository is added to the package manager so it'll stay up-to-date. Hmm.
>>> Things are looking up for Edubuntu :).
>>>
>>>  Next step will be to install it onto one of the laptops and then
>>> create a diskimage of the install and clone it onto the others.
>>>
>>>  I'm not too worried about conflicts because these laptops will not
>>> exist on a network where they can see each other. These Edubuntu laptops
>>> will be automagically sandboxed by the network because these devices have
>>> to go through a login process that ONLY gives them internet access and no
>>> LAN access.
>>>
>>>  *#2 Ubermix*
>>>
>>>  There's Ubermix (based on Ubuntu 14.04) that shows some promise that
>>> I'll be experimenting with as well if Edubuntu doesn't quite fit the bill.
>>>
>>>  #3 Brian on this list mentioned *LXC "privileged" containers*. I'll
>>> have to look that up too but I suspect it requires too much on-going
>>> maintenance. I really want the machines to be set up once, auto-update and
>>> then wipe the cookies/history/files every so often (every login, daily or
>>> weekly?).
>>>
>>>  Maybe this could be combined with Edubuntu guest to allow remote
>>> management every so often...?
>>>
>>>  *#4 Porteus *looks promising. Will have to see whether it fits the
>>> bill. Would it run Linux apps?
>>>
>>>  FYI It does say it has auto update:
>>>
>>>  From: http://porteus-kiosk.org/
>>>
>>>  1. DOWNLOAD IT
>>> Install the ISO to CD/DVD, USB device, hard drive or any other type of
>>> bootable media.
>>>
>>>  2. CUSTOMIZE IT
>>> The first time you boot, a friendly wizard will guide you through the
>>> setup process.
>>>
>>>  3. FORGET IT
>>> Our unique automatic update system can take care of important required
>>> updates.
>>>
>>>  Thanks!
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sat Jan 24 2015 at 8:33:38 AM João Silva <joao.silva2k9 at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi Eric,
>>>>
>>>> From the requirements you present seems more like a task for a kiosk
>>>> distribution.
>>>>
>>>> I tried recently the porteus kiosk and I was very impressed with the
>>>> level of costumization that it offered. Just not sure about the auto update
>>>> feature.
>>>>
>>>> BR,
>>>>
>>>> João Silva
>>>> Em 24/01/2015 11:47, "Eric Dunbar" <eric.dunbar at gmail.com> escreveu:
>>>>
>>>>  Thank you for your reply Jesse.
>>>>>
>>>>>  You've forced me to think more clearly about my criteria:
>>>>>
>>>>>  #1 Auto-update is a must
>>>>> #2 Flash is a must and the ability to play common closed codecs is
>>>>> desirable (thus the need for Chrome or a Chromium that can be linked to an
>>>>> auto-update of Flash :(
>>>>> #3 Automatic clearing of cookies upon exit so students don't remain
>>>>> logged in on websites
>>>>> #4 Automatic logging out of Google's accounts upon exit.
>>>>> #5 Easy reset of default user account to fresh in the (inevitable)
>>>>> event of vandalism/pranks
>>>>> #6 Perhaps even an auto-reset of the user account since that would
>>>>> pre-empt problems)
>>>>>
>>>>>  The appeal of Linux is that it would allow us to continue using
>>>>> binaries on a batch of laptops that are at the end of their service support
>>>>> period and have become excrutiatingly slow under Windows 7 (they're 7 years
>>>>> old and have only 2 GB of RAM :).
>>>>>
>>>>>  Chromium OS, in theory, is a good solution but the difficulty is
>>>>> that auto-update is a work-in-progress (pretty much non-existent). What I
>>>>> need is install once, autoupdate and leave alone.
>>>>>
>>>>>  Webconverger is intriguing but when I look at the description (and
>>>>> complaints) for Webconverger I see concerns over nagware (which would be
>>>>> inappropriate in a school setting) and the Webconverger website itself says
>>>>> its not possible to customize the "free" vesion. Spending the thousands of
>>>>> $$$s required to get Webconverger up-and-running would be pointless--If I
>>>>> were to spend actual money on this project I'd simply get ChromeBooks.
>>>>>
>>>>>  From experience I know that what I'm looking for is possible and
>>>>> that, with enough time, I could configure this but I lack that time! I was
>>>>> hoping that Linux had evolved to the point where the likes of Edubuntu had
>>>>> progressed to this stage of one-stop-shop but I'm not feeling the love yet
>>>>> :(.
>>>>>
>>>>>  The search continues--if only I had the time... this could be fun :).
>>>>>
>>>>>  PS It does feel good to be booting into a Linux environment again...
>>>>> brings back memories... and, I'm a little sad because the overall progress
>>>>> has slowed. I don't see a profound difference in usability between my first
>>>>> experiences with Ubuntu in 2005 (I cut my teeth on YellowDogLinux... which
>>>>> itself wasn't too troublesome) and my brief foray into Edubuntu 14.04. It
>>>>> still feels more like a tinkerer's OS, but, I guess that reflects on who
>>>>> drives the creation of this software :).
>>>>>
>>>>>  Take care, Eric.
>>>>>
>>>>> On 23 January 2015 at 21:35, Jesse Griffin <jag3773 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> You should consider Chrome OS, http://www.chromium.org/chromium-os.
>>>>>> You can get pre-built images from http://chromeos.hexxeh.net.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Webconverger is another option, a web kiosk based on Firefox.
>>>>>>  On Jan 23, 2015 2:02 PM, "Eric Dunbar" <eric.dunbar at gmail.com>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Wow. It's been a while since I've been on an Ubuntu mailing list!
>>>>>>> (my children are now a few years old :).
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  What I'm trying to do is the following...
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Set up 20-40 HP E6400 laptops with Edubuntu/Ubuntu *without* having
>>>>>>> users login. It will not be possible to access our network's authentication
>>>>>>> servers so there's no point to going through the hassle of setting up users.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Users will have to authenticate anyway to be able to access the
>>>>>>> internet so there's the same accountability as if they were logging in with
>>>>>>> a personal electronic device..
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  The only purpose for these machines will be to act as computers
>>>>>>> with internet access (Chrome) and the ability to run selected pieces of
>>>>>>> software. I do not want (or need) authentication.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  I'd like these machines to be able to auto-update, and, ideally,
>>>>>>> I'd also be able to have apps installed and configuration files copied to
>>>>>>> these machines automagically, perhaps from a central server but that's not
>>>>>>> necessarily crucial.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  I'd also like to be able to reset the default user account to a
>>>>>>> fresh account after each login. Alternately, if it's possible to use a
>>>>>>> Google account to login to Edubuntu that would be a great solution (our
>>>>>>> school now provides students with Google accounts).
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Any thoughts? Anyone aware of a good place to begin (I've searched
>>>>>>> the internet but come up empty handed so far ;)?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Wow. it's been so long since I played with Linux. Children really
>>>>>>> chew up my own play time :(.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Thanks, Eric.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  --
>>>>>>> ubuntu-education mailing list
>>>>>>> ubuntu-education at lists.ubuntu.com
>>>>>>> Modify settings or unsubscribe at:
>>>>>>> https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-education
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Benjamin Bach
>> Software development, board member, 100% volunteer
>>
>> FAIR Denmark // www.fairdanmark.dk
>> Ensuring digital longevity and development through free, open knowledge and software
>> info at fairdenmark.dk
>> tel. +45 29900413
>> http://google.com/+fairinternationalorghttps://twitter.com/FairDanmarkhttps://www.facebook.com/pages/FAIR-Danmark/449119498497622
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>
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