Health Spa
Charly's Column – XMLStarlet
Charly and XML have never been best friends. However, because it was vital for him to have an excellent climate indoors, he plucked up his courage and considered XMLStarlet.
A few smart home components from the HomeMatic system are permanent guests in my bathroom – they are for controlling the temperature in the room. A radiator thermostat and three sensors detect whether doors and windows are open. I use a central unit called CCU2 to set the climate I want and in which scenario. Their web interface seriously tests my patience. If, for example, I name a window contact Bathroom_Window_North instead of NEQ1651969 – because that's what it's called – I can't rely on the web interface to use the new name in all views (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Window with a poor view: CCU2 cannot remember the name of window sensors.
The issue of security is another low point: The user interface is not password protected by default. I may be able to set one, but because CCU2 does not speak HTTPS, the password would fall into the clutches of the next sniffer anyway. Access to the script engine on port 8181 is also completely insecure. Nevertheless, the benefit is great because it allows me to use HTTP requests to read out the status of HomeMatic components and even set values.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Digital Autonomy
• The Answer Was Already on the Shelf
• Changing the Chip Industry: How Public Investment Has Grown Open Silicon
• United Nations Open Source Portal Goes Live
• EU Open Source Strategy Plays Key Role in Tech Sovereignty Package
• France Says “Au Revoir” to Microsoft
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
The Linux Kernel Dev Staging Area Now Rejects AI-Generated Patches
Unless a kernel patch is a valid security fix, it will be rejected if it was created using AI.
-
Linux Surpasses Double-Digit Market Share
According to two sources, the Linux operating system has hit a major milestone in market share that naysayers thought would never happen.
-
AI Helped Develop a Linux Exploit
A use-after-free race exploit was discovered and exploited on CentOS Stream 9.
-
Yet Another Linux Kernel Vulnerability Discovered
Affecting millions of systems, a kernel flaw discovered by Qualys could allow users to gain root privileges.
-
Ubuntu 26.10 to Include Ubuntu Certified Hardware Check
If you've ever wondered if your laptop or PC is officially certified to run Ubuntu, that curiosity will soon be met.
-
Substantial Update to IPFire Now Available
The lastest version of IPFire features a fundamental change to how the system handles DNS.
-
Gnome Working on Test Center App to Make Testing Easier
It's now possible to test experimental features on the Gnome desktop without worrying that you'll break things.
-
New Vulnerability Discovered in Linux Kernel
Hiding out for nearly 15 years, the Ghostlock vulnerability allows a standard logged-in user to gain root privileges.
-
New Linux Flaw Lets Attackers Escape VMs
A 16-year-old vulnerability allows an attacker to escape a virtual machine, gain access to the host, and execute malicious code.
-
Hannah Montana Linux Is Back!
Developer Noah Cagle decided the world needed the once obscure but beloved Linux distribution and gave it a decidedly pink refresh.