Road to Ubuntu

After many years on both VMS and Unix, I encountered Linux in 1998. My first encounter with Ubuntu was in 2006 with Edgy Eft. This was the end of the corporate desktop image for me. The Ubuntu mind share being internally high with my then employer, I became active in our internal support channels. Then one day the opportunity came to make Ubuntu my day job and help other people use Ubuntu on servers.

Ubuntu Activities

While still concentrating around Ubuntu Server, my area of operation rapidly broadened to the Openstack projects, Foundation specific issues and a few kernel oriented activities, mostly around my previous kernel crash dump area of expertise.

Realizing that acquiring a kernel crash dump was not one of Ubuntu’s strong point, I also realized what community involvement meant : UDS and blueprints. UDS-R allowed me to present a blueprint on kdump-tools, to gain acceptance for it and to make it a reality in our current stable release.

Helping others

While making the kernel crash dump mechanism more stable on Ubuntu, I got acquainted with the Debian maintainer of makedumpfile who asked me to help him maintain makedumpfile’s Debian package. I am now at my fifth version of makedumpfile packaging. I intend to pursue official Debian Maintainer status in the future.

This task also required modification of the makedumpfile tool itself in order to adapt to a new kernel structure for the kernel buffer. I authored the modifications that are now in the upstream versions.

I strongly believe that fixing issues as high as possible in the development chain is beneficial both to our community and to the quality of the open source ecosystem. Being part of both the Ubuntu and Debian communities is also a primary goal for me.

Some of my contributions

• kdump-tools blueprint & follow-up work items

• makedumpfile Debian packaging
• Multiple SRU

• sosreport enablement on Ubuntu & Debian

Where I want to improve

While my packaging experience basics are now strong and solid, I do want to improve on complex packaging strategies. I also want to get exposed to package merges and syncs. Participation to the PlusOne activity is also high on my list.

I also intend to continue my participation in the SRU process, hoping to gain experience in the process and to become more active in bug triaging and SRU.

One other goal is to find areas of Ubuntu where I can participate in the development and increase my experience toward the status of Core Developer.

What I like least in Ubuntu

Investigating failures and issues on an operating system requires systematic data gathering, tools to investigate and reliable forensics. Work is still needed on Ubuntu to make sure that these are easily available and configurable, do not require sysadmin knowledge to be provided and can be reliably analyzed. I hope to be able to dedicate more time in improving these areas, like I was able to during the R cycle with the kdump work.

Comments

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Endorsements

AdamStokes - Louis' contributions to kdump, sosreport, and customer satisfaction go way beyond the status quo. Louis is persistently providing valuable contributions back to the community which further Ubuntu's stance on the Cloud. He is quick to take a recommendation and turn it into a successful result with no assistance at all. I would have absolutely no problem in tasking Louis with high profile items knowing it would get done to the highest standard.

DaveWalker - Louis has been a valued member of UDS discussions for some time. He has offered valued input and helped research tasks that came out of these sessions, and drive them to completion. I've reviewed some of his packaging work, which has always been a good standard. He also works well with other Ubuntu developers. I think generally, Contributing Developer is a good mark of recognition that Louis deserves.

SebastienBacher - Louis has been doing some solid SRU work: debugging non trivial issues, providing detailed explanation of the problem and the solution (including testcases). The few SRUs I sponsored for him were just right and ready to be uploaded. I recommended him for Ubuntu Contributing Developers.

SteveLangasek - Louis's work on kexec-tools demonstrated significant committment to following through on bugs for the benefit of our users. His work on this showed a very keen understanding of how this deeply technical package works, and I'm pleased to hear he is also applying to become a DM in connection with this work.

StefanBader - I have worked together with Louis on improving the story of crash dump analysis in Ubuntu. This included work on (or coordination between) kexec-tools, kdump-tools, crash, makedumpfile, and kernel meta-packages. He has a very good understanding of the technical details and packaging. He also has good relations to the various upstreams. I recommend him for Ubuntu Contributing Developers.

ChristopherArges - Louis is always looking for ways to make Ubuntu and open-source better for everyone. His contributions to kdump/makedumpfile/sosreport have been well thought out and really important for users of these packages. He has fixed many Ubuntu bugs in areas from the kernel to userspace which require much effort and patience. Overall, I recommend him for an Ubuntu Contributing Developer.

ScottMoser - Louis is careful and thoughtful in his actions. His bug reports are well researched. I've worked with Louis on several bugs, and he helped fix a significant issue in cloud images under 1035279. I very much appreciate those who take it upon themselves to shepard bugs through the SRU process, as this (by design) can be slow and painful. I think plus One maintenance would be a good thing to help him towards Ubuntu Developer, and I beg that he continues his work on SRUs. I recommend Louis for Contributing Developer.

MartinPitt - I worked with Louis on his Apport branch to adjust the kernel crash dump generation to the different kdump behaviour in raring. This involved some discussion about robustness and backwards compatibility which Louis handled very well. This was merged upstream in due course, and integrated into the Apport raring package afterwards. Thank you!