Monthly Archives: August 2015

Technology — No Comments
18
Aug 15

Synology DS malware was detected

This morning, I received an email from my Synology DiskStation informing that a malware had been detected during a security scan. It caused a slight panic. Luckily, it was because I had accidentally modified a couple of files when I was investigating the Python pip3 issue yesterday. In a way, it is good to know that there is built in security feature to detect such tampering.

The only problem then is how do I go about restoring the tampered files; as I do not have backup copies of the files. I am not sure if it detected the change in timestamp, size or content of the files, further complicating the restoration process. Luckily, I found an official Synology site which has all the releases of DSM 5.2-5592. From there, I was able to locate the correct package for my DiskStation, and extract the files that I had accidentally modified. I restored the original files, and a quick security scan showed that all is well again.

Technology — No Comments
17
Aug 15

Where is pip3?

I have recently been trying to set up Python 3 on my Synology DiskStation. The Python installation is very straightforward, using the Package Center in Synology DSM. However, I ran into issues when trying to install Python pip, which is needed for installing the MySQL Connector module.

The first step to installing pip is to download the get-pip.py script. Once downloaded, I copied the script to the DiskStation and executed it in a command prompt, as root. The command to install pip is:

> python3 get-pip.py

The installation completed successfully, including all the required dependencies. At this point, I expected pip3 to be installed. However, the only version of pip I can find on the system is pip2.

> pip --version

After some searching online, I discovered that instead of calling pip or pip3 directly from the command prompt, it is possible to access the pip functionality as follow. This enabled me to install the MySQL Connector module for Python 3.

> python3 -m pip install --allow-external mysql-connector-python mysql-connector-python
Random — No Comments
13
Aug 15

TransferWise experience

With the recent favourable GBP/NZD rate, I have been looking at options of transferring GBP back to New Zealand. I have used TransferWise twice so far. It offers considerable savings compared to the banks. While there may be other sites that offer slightly better rates, I have found the TransferWise service to be user-friendly, and efficient. The transfer process is well explained, with regular updates on the progress of the transfer.

In both instances, I bank transferred the GBP fund to TransferWise’s UK account in the morning, and the NZD fund reached the New Zealand bank account by the next morning; in less than 24 hours in total. TransferWise acknowledged the receipt of the fund within a couple of hours after I transferred the fund online. They also accept card payments, although I have not used that personally. Once payment is received, they began converting the fund, and provided another update after it has been successfully converted. Their New Zealand counterpart then transferred the NZD fund into the nominated New Zealand account. The use of local bank accounts means there are usually minimal delay and no additional bank fees to worry about. I am impressed with the service and thoroughly recommend it to anyone who is looking to transfer funds internationally.

If you are planning to sign up to the TransferWise service, the following link entitles you to a fee free first transfer of up to £3000.

TransferWise – fee free first transfer of up to £3000