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That is indeed only about the smbfs client implementation by Olaf Barthel. I guess it will be pretty much obsolete anyway as it doesn't integrate any of the new auth schemes that are required to connect to SMB2/3, unless olsen decided to implement those.

On an unrelated note, the next MorphOS update will most likely integrate a new client based on libsmb2 and filesysbox.library.

So in summary: there is an apache web server - it is an older one, but it is usable. However, there is no samba server - unless one is willing to go with a really old one.

So in total:
MorphOS as a web server - not ideal, but yes
MorphOS as a file server = is possible, though really far from ideal

Question - is there a possibility of a bounty for both of these things? A new port for both? I might have an option to get those done...

Did you try Ssh2FS?

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Ssh2FS is a client, not a server.

> So in summary: there is an apache web server - it is an older one,
> but it is usable. However, there is no samba server - unless one
> is willing to go with a really old one.

Samba v3.2.0 and Apache v1.3.41 are both from the same year (2008), so they are both either "older" or "really old", I'd say ;-)

So I am a product owner and I am working with a team in Nepal/India to develop software (for my company).

Now, I (in my private capacity) recently was in need of a piece of software I needed, but could not create myself (not enough time plus some missing skills). My team got me in touch with two friends of theirs who worked as freelance devs. They got it done for me in two sprints (which I PO'd). It cost me about 360 USD. We spent about 26 hours on it. Which was way better than the commercial solution for my problem (which would have added a zero to that figure).

So I asked them if they would like to do some stuff for MorphOS. Now, they do not know it, so we would need to give them some introduction, and they also don't own any machines, so we would need to provide them. Plus they would need some funding (they usually either work for a fixed price, or they do 10 - 15 USD per hour).

So I was THINKING: If we do a bounty for a port of e.g. apache, everyone pledges, we get together $money, then tell these boys that they will get $money if they create a NEW and WORKING port for this, and then provide them a training session or two... plus send over an old Mac mini or two....

@pikewerfer

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I appreciate your enthusiasm but this is extremely unlikely to work. You underestimate the amount of hand-holding that would be required for people who have zero experience with MorphOS.

Also, shipping hardware across continents can go wrong very easily and might take quite a while due to customs (I have shipped hardware to India before).

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Just for context, you can hire developers in Europe who will work on projects for these hourly rates.

I am going to Nepal a few times next year, so I could just bring them the hardware.

Concerning price - I should have been more precise: so this is what I paid them because that is what I believe Devs should earn. Their standard rates are a lot lower, and, as I said, they are used to working for a fixed price for a project.

But I do get your third and final argument, although my experience so far has been that these guys learn really fast. But having no knowledge is definitely a disadvantage.

It was just an idea. Because it seems we are pretty low on options otherwise. In order for MorphOS to survive, we need to make sure it stays up-to-date in essential matters - like apache, samba, email, browser, office package, etc. If we cannot make sure to keep up, this will continue to deteriorate.

I would be willing to take the risk, and pledge 100-200 bucks for the first project and also PO it. If we could train a bunch of these guys to then earn all the bounties we throw at them, we could make this system more attractive to people.

Ah well... other ideas?

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His proposals sound a bit like a scam, send money to people in faraway countries, develop programs that the MorphOS user won't use.

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I'm not against new or up-to-date software, but TBH MorphOS is more aimed/expected to be a desktop OS rather than a server OS, so I don't see it being essential to have a cutting edge web server, for instance. Most Windows/Mac/Android users won't be running a web server on their machines either.

MorphOS isn't optimal for being a server OS by other features either... no multiuser support or memory protection etc. There are cheap Linux based systems that are better suited for that and also external providers offering all kinds of solutions. A headless Raspberry Pi would be a good option for a web/file server and you can control it from MorphOS just fine. There wouldn't be interrupts when you reboot MorphOS etc.

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He proposed a bounty project, which would usually involve payout after the completion of work.

pikewerfer has also organized the free Linotype font bundle giveaway for MorphOS users so there is absolutely no reason to suggest he is on this website to scam people.

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Fair enough.

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The Europe-based developers who are already familiar with the platform and have worked on MorphOS (or AROS, etc) bounty projects in the past have most likely earned lower hourly rates than the minimum rates you personally think developers should earn...

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Two points:

One, comprehensive developer documentation is generally a prerequisite for quick learning. MorphOS and similar operating systems are just not comparable to, say, Linux or Windows in this regard.

Two, apart from the documentation issue, there are certain projects that are simply much more likely to require assistance from the OS/SDK developers.

If a bounty project depends on OS developers to add necessary functionality, it can be unfair to even assign developers as there is no guarantee that they will ever be able to finish their work.

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I agree about the browser, office, and samba.

Apache is a total niche application for everyday desktop computing though.

As jPV pointed out, MorphOS is not a server OS. Even if it had all the technical features you would expect, it would require an absolute and unwavering commitment (and most likely substantial funding) to consistently push out timely security updates that just does not exist. Given how many free options there are and that even Microsoft struggle to survive in this competitive landscape, this just seems unimaginable.

Of course, I can certainly see a need for basic web server functionality within private home networks but we do have that covered as it is. So, the question is: What are you missing exactly that is relevant for home network use cases?

Scripting languages such as PHP or Python have basic web servers built-in these days. I could see a need for those perhaps.

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I suspect that Apache is just the wrong project. If you can think of software that has as few dependencies as possible, is perhaps smaller (i.e. not 16 MB of source code), and has a wider appeal to attract other donors, those might be better candidates for porting.

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I remember the Amiga Inc's attempt and develop sofware in India...

"I suspect that Apache is just the wrong project. If you can think of software that has as few dependencies as possible, is perhaps smaller (i.e. not 16 MB of source code), and has a wider appeal to attract other donors, those might be better candidates for porting."

I am open to suggestions. What would be the things we as a community need most to improve our everyday life as MorphOS users? What could I try to get done (preferably via bounty, though I would be willing to simply pay smaller projects myself) that would go towards this?

[ Edited by pikewerfer 21.12.2022 - 13:18 ]

> the next MorphOS update will most likely integrate
> a new client based on libsmb2 and filesysbox.library.

That would be nice. There may be some groundwork worth building upon.

I'm not going to tell people what to run on their own machines, but really if you want to run a web server, Linux or BSD is really your thing. There's been an Aminet mirror running non-stop since the mid 90s on NetBSD on an Amiga 1200 with 060 accelerator.

But if you do go for MorphOS, remember that having multitasking slowed or stopped for any length of time will hang up all your connections, and crashing could quite easily leave a filesystem mess. The memory handling has definitely improved over AmigaOS so fragmentation is less of an issue, but without paged ram physical fragmentation will still eventually occur.