July 23rd Server Update Information

On Sunday, July 21st, I ran a backup of the main server (1U server in the garage). After that, I started the OpenProject update. It updated successfully from version 12.5.6 to 14.3.0.

I then tried to access it from it's local LAN IP "192.168.142.117:8083" from my computer, like I usually do, and I got a blank white webpage with "Invalid host_name configuration" in text on it. Chas then was able to access it remotely by "openhouseparty.us:8083". I then tried the public hostname "openhouseparty.us:8083" from inside the LAN on my computer and it worked for me. A couple hours later, Chas reported that OpenProject was displaying "Invalid host_name configuration". I encountered the same issue locally, from both the LAN IP and public hostname.

Analysis of the Problem:

So I am not sure what the real cause of the problem is, because I looked at the main server and the apache config was correct and the server name / hostname was correct. So it might have been an internal issue with openproject, maybe during the upgrade. It looks like they changed the way the hostname is used during the update, so hopefully with a fresh installation it won't decide to stop working again.

Solution of the Problem:

So now we're using a virtual machine and the port is now 8999.

So the address is openhouseparty.us:8999

The virtual machine is a fresh install of OpenProject, with the restoration of the main server's database and attachments.

So some configurations may need to be updated. But, the data looks to all be there. I was able to log in and I saw the changes I made the other day in the IT Enterprise wiki. The backup was taken earlier today. So it should be everything and no data should have been lost (since the server wasn't working all day).

The Virtual Machine Name is "VM_Chas_OpenProject_Main"

The virtual machine's hard drive is 1TB in size, and about 360GB are currently being used (170GB of that is the backup actually).

The virtual machine is currently set to 8GB of RAM and has 1 processor with 6 cores.

Ubuntu Version 22.04 is installed.

VMWare Workstation is version 17.5.2 build-23775571

OpenProject is currently version 14.3.0 and PostgreSQL is version 13.15.

Main VM:

V:\VMs\VM_Chas_OpenProject_Main

Backup copy of the VM:

V:\VMs\BackupVMChasOpenProjectMain

V Drive is a 4TB M.2 SSD

Second Backup Copy of the VM:

S:\[BAK]VMs\VMs\BackupVMChasOpenProjectMain

S Drive is a 10TB 3.5" HDD

Last Backup Made: 10PM EST 23 Jul 2024

Last Backup Copy from 1U main server: 

In the VM under /home/chas/Downloads

Also a copy is:

On my PC in C:\Users\Joseph\Documents\July23_2024_OpenProjectBackupSuccess

I have tested transferring files from the VM and to the VM, so we can make backups in two ways:

1| running the backup utility, which generates zip files for OpenProject's attachments, configuration, and database.

2| copying or cloning the VM

In the future, if we need to, we can create a new VM from scratch, and install OpenProject from scratch, and restore the files from way #1. For faster recovery, we can restore using way #2.

There is an issue with the main 1U server copying files to the 5TB external drive. Linux is unable to unzip the files. Postgresql, the database server, also has trouble reading the database file. I have successfully transferred files over the network from the main 1U server, uncorrupted. So the issue must lie within the 5TB external drive, or the copying process between the two.

To troubleshoot this, it will take some time. Until the 5TB externals can be verified as working, we can store backups on my computer. 

We can do a monthly backup and I can keep 3 months at a time on my S drive. I will keep the latest backup also on V drive. I think this will be a suitable backup policy.

Now that I upgraded my computer back in December 2023, we have additional virtualization capabilities. My computer went from 24GB of RAM to 128GB of RAM. And I have a 4TB M.2 SSD and a 2TB M.2 SSD, which are much faster than SATA drives. I have a few TB free space. I also can add additional storage drives if needed. I keep my computer on all the time, so it is suitable for hosting servers. There is enough hardware capability to host OpenProject on a virtual machine. This provides many benefits over a physical server.

The 1U server in the garage can be repurposed, or I can sell it on eBay. For now it will be turned off. I think it is for the best. The 1U server has given me trouble quite often with rebooting not working. It probably has something to do with Linux. The hard drive UUID is different so it drops to a console. Every time so far since we got the server, I've solved the problem by rebooting once or twice. But it is not comfortable to live with such an uncertainty.

So, I would recommend, if the server is to be repurposed, it should run Windows. However, it is noisy, and it is very limited to what a desktop PC can offer in our situation, so maybe it should be retired. If it were to be sold, the proceeds could buy a desktop PC that would be more suitable, or go back into Open House Party.

I recommend Windows also because now, you can install it and use it without activating it. So it is free. Also, I learned the other day that VMWare Workstation 17 Pro is free now. I paid about $240 for it a couple months ago. So there are some high quality options that are free now. Chas could get a desktop PC, put Windows 11 on it, then put VMWare Workstation on it, then he can download the OpenProject virtual machine from me and run it himself. There is no need to ship a PC!

We also have a copy of OpenProject from a backup VM when I last restored OpenProject back in December 2023. So, if all else fails, we can revert to that VM and simply not update OpenProject until new updates come out and we hope that whatever problem(s) we have are fixed. The downside is that we won't have any changes made since then. I have already tried troubleshooting restoring our current data to that copy of OpenProject, and it does not seem possible.

So, moving forward, if everything keeps working fine, great.

If we encounter the "Invalid host_name configuration" issue again, I think our best option is to move to the December 2023 VM. I can then make a copy of it before we try an update again, and it would be possible to indefinitely stay on that version/configuration of OpenProject if need be.