Several clients this week had SSL related website issues. SSL stands for “Secure Socket Layer” and is what secures websites (when you see https:// or the “lock” icon on websites you visit).

Originally running websites over SSL was reserved for ecommerce or sensitive transactions. Normally, web traffic was sent in plaintext, and SSL provides end-to-end encryption of data. Since many people use public WIFI networks these days, many websites have gone to SSL for all traffic. In fact, Google now gives search preference to sites that are running over SSL, and most browsers / plugins give scary warnings if you try browsing a site that is not running with encryption.

Anyway, when converting your website to SSL, there are usually just a few issues to be concerned about. You’ll need to track down any hardcoded references to “http:” in your pages, and change them to https:, or make them relative. Second, you’ll need to add a way to “force” users to load the site using https, usually done with a global redirect to the https version of the site. Overall, it’s not that big a change, however, there is an added yearly cost (around $150) to have the certificate that allows the encryption to work.

Mobile workspace – After working for 15+ years as a freelancer, I’ve put together a little bit of a “mobile workspace” for when I travel to client sites. This all fits in my backpack:

• Laptop (obviously)
• AOC external USB monitor (powered from laptop)
• power block (includes 3 outlets and 3 USB ports.
• Small risers (legos) for raising up the second monitor
• USB mouse
• laptop power supply
• AC Inverter (for power from car battery)

Nothing overly exciting, but this setup all fits in a backpack and has come in handy when setting up at various client sites, public coffee shops, etc. The second monitor is really the killer app of the setup, and makes me look like a real power user!

Here’s a quick summary of what I worked on this week:

HPE Operations Manager (OMi) – I spent a good deal of time working with Operations Manager – 10.62 this week, helping configure a new instance for a client. This software provides monitoring and alerting for any networked device (servers, storage, routers, virtual, cloud, etc.). A big part of my role is configuring external functionality through scripting, api calls, and OM utilities to automate common functions.

Php ecommerce – Made some changes and updates for a client using Sunshop, a commercially available ecommerce application. I like this program because much of the code and templates are editable (once you buy the license), so it can be customized heavily to the client’s desires. It’s php/mysql based so it runs on most hosting platforms as well.

Custom php – I wrote and updated some custom php / mysql / postgres applications. One is an existing LMS (Learning Management System) which needed a few new features, and the other is a simple database application for managing internal workflows.

LDAP – This week I had an interesting challenge – integrate LDAP (Active Directory, actually) authentication into an existing application (perl based). The main page was actually static html, which linked out to four perl cgi based utilities.

The goal was to add authentication to the company’s internal Active Directory, but only to members of specific groups.

Due to the ease of php’s ldap integration, I replaced the static html page with a php based script to handle the login and menu options. In the Perl code, I added some code to check the sessions against the authenticated users, and grant / deny access.

CodeIgniter – I also had the chance to do a small application in CodeIgniter, my favorite php framework. I also used a CRUD library called “GroceryCRUD”, which makes building the admin side of things pretty fast and foolproof.

Authorize.net, the leading payment provider for ecommerce and online payments, removed their setup fee ($49) on April 19.  This is great news, since the fee was much higher than competitors, and was a barrier for entry level ventures, or hobby websites.

Without the setup fee, merchants can start taking online payments with a minimum committment of $25 / month.  Each transaction is then subject to a 2.9% + $0.30 charge, which is in line with the industry standard.  For someone looking to enter the ecommerce world, authorize.net is now a more affordable option to consider.  Merchants looking to change payment providers will also benefit from this change.  They can now effectively trial another payment provider without a setup penalty, as it were.