In good old tradition of supporting UNIX/Linux here is the community version of

 

Pharos Control 2.0.4 for Linux

Last update: 2018-09-04 14:28

 

This time I did create a .deb-Package, which makes installation as easy as with any other software package.

 

Requirements

You need to provide a Java Runtime Environment (JRE), though, since it is not embedded in the Pharos Control software package in order to avoid dependencies of the CPU architecture. Some Linux distributions provide a JRE as a package in their repositories or even pre-installed, while in other distributions you need to get the JRE from elsewhere, e.g. from Oracle's web site. Check wether Java SDK or JRE is installed by executing the command java -version and if it is not found, search the web for instructions how to download JRE8 for your platform.

 

Anyway, Pharos Control can be installed even if you have no JRE (yet) available. In this case the installer will remind you to install a JRE later. So far, Pharos Control is known to run on Debian, Devuan, Raspbian and almost certainly runs on your Linux distro, too, as long as there is a JRE available for it.

 

Download and Installation

Since the package exceeds maximum size for an attachment to forum posts, it is available from my FTP server. Note that in the private part of the FTP server no files will be visible, but the Pharos Control package can be downloaded as described below.

 

Step 1: Get the package

Download https://rent-a-guru.de/ftp/PharosControl-2.0.4-1.deb

 

Check the SHA256 sum:

 

    $ sha256sum -b PharosControl-2.0.4-1.deb 
    fdfd1c2f13939ce6094fe18ec936ed493c098339bdb8ee6fe5f9a0c753eeb8ad *PharosControl-2.0.4-1.deb

    $

 

Step 2: Install the Package using dpkg

The community version of Pharos Control will be installed in the directory /opt/tplink/PharosControl. It does not overwrite nor remove an official TP-Link installation of Pharos Control 2.0.0 in directory /opt/pharoscontrol — both versions can co-exist as long as only one server is running at the same time.

 

To install Pharos Control 2.0.4, become root and run the following dpkg command:

 

    $ su root

    Password: yourpw

    # dpkg --install PharosControl-2.0.4-1.deb

    ...

 

 

That's all. dpkg will install a start/stop script for starting the service at boot time and it will automatically start the Pharos Control server after the installation if a JRE could be found on your system. Now launch a web browser and go to http://yourhost:9321/ to access the web UI.

 

Should you want to remove the package for any reason, you can do so using the dpkg command:

 

    # dpkg --remove PharosControl-2.0.4-1.deb

 

This removes everything except configuration files, which may avoid having to reconfigure the package if it is reinstalled again later. If you also would like to remove configuration files and the role account for Privilege Separation, run dpkg with option --purge instead of --remove.

 

Using the pharosctl utility to manage Pharos Control

Pharos Control also installs the utility pharosctl for managing the server. It supports the same commands as the start/stop script /etc/init.d/pharosctl does, but has even more commands and options.

 

Usage:

 

    pharosctl [-hvwV] [-{W|S} sec] [-n nice] [-l {theme}] [-i file] command

 

  where command is one of:

 

    start          start Pharos Control. See also options -w and -W.
    stop           stop Pharos Control.
    restart        restart Pharos Control. Sets option -w automatically.
    status         print curent status of Pharos Control.
    shutdown       gracefully stop Pharos Control.
    list           list active web sessions of Pharos Control.
    kick [session] terminate an active web session of Pharos Control.
    dump [file]    create a dump of Pharos Control's database in file.
    restore [file] restore a dump from file into Pharos Control's database.
    theme [name]   select theme name of Pharos Control.
    reset          reset Pharos Control to its factory settings.
 

  Options are:
    -h             print this help message.
    -v             be verbose (prints startup messages).
    -V             print version of pharosctl, then exit.
    -w             wait for Pharos Control to become ready.
    -W sec         wait up to sec seconds for Pharos Control to become ready.
    -S sec         save sec as default wait time for option -w and exit.
    -n nice        set the nice value for Pharos Control (range -19 to 20).
    -l themes      list all installed themes for Pharos Control and exit.
    -i file        install given file as a new theme for Pharos Control and exit.
 

See the manpage pharosctl(8) for a detailed description of each command and option.

 

Alternative web UI theme for Pharos Control

The community version of Pharos Control includes the theme rag as an alternative to the standard TP-Link theme. To activate this theme, use the theme command:

 

    # pharosctl theme rag

 

This command saves the TP-Link web UI (only if called for the first time) and selects the RAG theme. You can switch between both themes without needing to stop or restart the Pharos Control server. Just reload the web page in your browser after you did select another theme.

 

This is the look & feel of the standard TP-Link theme:

 

 

 

The RAG theme uses a different font and tighter line spacing, thus avoiding wrapping text lines in table cells wherever possible:

 

 

 

 

 

It also adds units to the values in table cells rather than in the table headings, which allows for smaller sized cells:

 

 

 

Table cells have a minimum width and automatically adapt their size to the actual text, no more fixed width:

 

 

 

Text lines in table cells will be wrapped only for very long lines:

 

 

 

Hope you like it. Have fun with Pharos Control 2.0.4 community version for Linux!