pimp-my-rig reloaded: automatic

ERROR: s3cmd ([Errno 104] Connection reset by peer) Workaround

I use AWS S3 to backup files automatically on my Raspberry PI (let's call it RPI, from here). My RPI does some automation for me on my home network. It has been very sucessful at doing syncs and automated downloads as well backups. The usual target for backups is my NAS but I need to backup the scripts and configuration files as well. When the micro-SD card on the RPI failed, I was grateful that the efforts I initially put in paid off.

If you recall, one of the automated systems I have on my home network is a PVR named sickgear. I was covered on the configuration of its files but I missed its database. Too late for that now, but not entirely too late to solve it.

To remediate, I used a script that called s3cmd (from s3cmd package) on the RPI. The script is a bit simple to implement and the logic is to "touch" an empty file everyime I run the backup job. If the database file is newer than the empty file, then execute the backup.

When I tested the script, I was in for a surprise. The s3cmd implementation on RPI was not working and the error is a mix between:

WARNING: Upload failed: /sickbeard.db ([Errno 104] Connection reset by peer)
WARNING: Retrying on lower speed (throttle=0.0x)
WARNING: Waiting..
--- OR ---
WARNING: Upload failed: /sickbeard.db ([Errno 32] Broken pipe)
WARNING: Retrying on lower speed (throttle=0.0x)
WARNING: Waiting..

The error is quite long and eventually fails. It seems to work for small files, but fails as the uploaded files increase in size. The workaround suggested on several forums is to ditch s3cmd and replace it with AWSCLI. Several folks have confirmed that it worked. But I'm not quite inclined to develop several scripts for the workaround. So I continued my experimentation still using s3cmd.

The workaround I discovered was a very simple one. I just replaced the "put" with "sync". For more information on the differences between the two, it is is explained in the s3tools webpage. That is just what I needed.

As you can see from the above screenshot, the same file uploaded to AWS S3 bucket takes a few seconds to completely upload. No more errors.

RELATED: Install Adblock on Raspberry Pi via Pi-Hole

I hope this workaround helps you as well.

HOW-TO: Automatically Disable WIFI on LAN Connectivity

Wifi networks are just about everywhere. In this digital age, being offline is tantamount to living in the stone age. Little do people know, the abundance of Wifi signals in the environment causes a lot of headaches. The signals coming from both the devices and the Wifi infrastructure cause a lot of unseen interference. Leaving devices with inherent wireless connectivity online, while unused, contributes to that phenomenon. As the interference increases, performance worsens.

If you ask me, I prefer to be connected wired rather than wireless. Wired connectivity is stable, and if you really want performance -- it is way faster. Imagine comparing the fastest wireless (Wireless N), at 300MBps with the fastest wired (Gigabit Ethernet) at 1GBps. Enterprise wired networks could go as fast as 10GBps. Not to mention, the 300MBps wireless speed varies over distance and the density of connected devices on the wireless infrastructure.

One such device is your average notebook. It has both wifi and wired connectivity. I previously wrote about putting preference of Wired connectivity over Wifi, if both are available. Now, I'd like to write about automatically shutting down the wireless interface when the wired interface is connected. It is also possible to automate the enabling of the wireless interface once the LAN is disconnected.

As I am still on Windows 7, the screenshots are based on the Windows 7 interface but the procedure is applicable to modern variants of Windows. Let's dive into the nitty gritty details.

Open the native Windows "Event Viewer" and browse to Windows Logs --> System. Create events of the LAN interface connecting and disconnecting by physically connecting and disconnecting the LAN cable. Pressing "Refresh" on the right panel will show the recent events. On my notebook, the EventIDs are #33 and #27 for connections and disconnections, respectively.

Highlight an EventID #33 and select "Attach Task To This Event.." (as seen on the screenshot below).

Put an appropriate name to the Task. Description is optional, but put one in anyway. Next..

Nothing to do in the next Window as everything is greyed out.. Next..

Accept the default action of "Start a program". Next..

The program to start is "C:\Windows\system32\netsh.exe". For the arguments, add:

interface set interface "Wireless Network Connection" disable

Hit Next.. and Finish.

Run this task as "NTAUTHORITY\SYSTEM" and tick "Run with highest privileges".

Do the same exact procedure for EventID #27, but this time it will automate the enabling of the wifi adapter. Change the netsh.exe arguments to:

interface set interface "Wireless Network Connection" enable

I have done this tweak successfully on an older Lenovo T420, a Lenovo X240, a Dell D620 and an Elitebook 820. All I watched for were EventID #33 and EventID #27 on the System Event Logs. Yours may be different. The events for docking the notebooks differ by models. Those could be added as triggers.