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Heh. I remember seeing a framework for this kind of thing, i.e. using exploits to display warnings, hotpatch or otherwise patch servers back on Hackcon #1 in F

Heh. I remember seeing a framework for this kind of thing, i.e. using exploits to display warnings, hotpatch or otherwise patch servers back on Hackcon #1 in February 2006 in Oslo. I think it was HP who presented it and I also can't remember hearing about it since and I think there are good reasons for that[1]. In this case however the advantages might actually outweigh the risks as long as it is done carefully. [1]: others mention services or servers that no one know how to restart anymore.

kergonath 5y ago
> others mention services or servers that no one know how to restart anymore. This sounds properly terrifying. How do you even realise that you are in such a situation before it is too late?
- eitland 5y ago
  Because last time it happened you had 1.) to call in an old consultant/employee 2.) that you know is now unavailable. The first part of that has been true at especially one place I worked though and while luckily he was still available it was still terrifying since he had left behind a proper Rube Goldberg machine. If he had been unavailable we would have had spent days and would probably just have had to recreate it from scratch (I watched him closely while he fixed it and it was a mix of at least from the top of my head: undocumented services, certificates that were expired, accounts with passwords that were unknown.) I've also experienced to be the one that was called to because the IT manager remembered that I used to be the guy who knew how to fix a certain problem with Sybase Adaptive Server Anywhere. I had documented everything I ever knew and could think of about it but it turned out someone there had "cleaned up" a bit.
- reaperducer 5y ago
  This sounds properly terrifying. How do you even realise that you are in such a situation before it is too late? This happens a lot in the real (non-computer) world, too. There are all kinds of mechanical things that were built without any thought that they might be turned off some day. Some are big things, like factories and refineries. I first read about this (probably in the Times) some decades ago when old apartment buildings in NYC were starting to switch their heating to better/cheaper fuel sources. Some couldn't do it simply because the boiler systems were never designed to be turned off. Ever. They had no safe way of shutting the things down.

kergonath 5y ago

> others mention services or servers that no one know how to restart anymore. This sounds properly terrifying. How do you even realise that you are in such a situation before it is too late?

eitland 5y ago
Because last time it happened you had 1.) to call in an old consultant/employee 2.) that you know is now unavailable. The first part of that has been true at especially one place I worked though and while luckily he was still available it was still terrifying since he had left behind a proper Rube Goldberg machine. If he had been unavailable we would have had spent days and would probably just have had to recreate it from scratch (I watched him closely while he fixed it and it was a mix of at least from the top of my head: undocumented services, certificates that were expired, accounts with passwords that were unknown.) I've also experienced to be the one that was called to because the IT manager remembered that I used to be the guy who knew how to fix a certain problem with Sybase Adaptive Server Anywhere. I had documented everything I ever knew and could think of about it but it turned out someone there had "cleaned up" a bit.
reaperducer 5y ago
This sounds properly terrifying. How do you even realise that you are in such a situation before it is too late? This happens a lot in the real (non-computer) world, too. There are all kinds of mechanical things that were built without any thought that they might be turned off some day. Some are big things, like factories and refineries. I first read about this (probably in the Times) some decades ago when old apartment buildings in NYC were starting to switch their heating to better/cheaper fuel sources. Some couldn't do it simply because the boiler systems were never designed to be turned off. Ever. They had no safe way of shutting the things down.