Redmine

No this is working, seems it was a browsers cache problem.

Terence Mill wrote:

Hi, we are running redmine 1.02 with apache passenger in debain lenny and ur Plugin. We installed it sucessfully and now see a new entry in plugins list where we configured, http urls for dns/ip, the salt value, no return url and popup checked. All value are 100% correct. We are using the bbb 0.71 vmware image version. The bbv server runs and we can create meetings by demo or api exmaples scuessfully on the configured urls.
We enabled the bbb rights for all roles and activated the module in a redmine top level project. Wen also restarted the apache(redmine system for sure, but there is no new link or any change on the projects overview site. We also searched for errors in all logs of apache and redmine, but there is nothing. All seems to run file, except that the link for bbb conference in not shwoing.

Glad to see that my plugin is working on your server. BBB is really a great product and I hope you will find it useful...

Well, i think it is really great, but except the original problem is gone i have others too..they won't stop poping up ever, will they ;)

I installed bbb from vmware image on esxi and can now start bbb session from the demo start side or the api's examples. Till now i did no more configuration on it, its just the "standard" instatllation.

If i click the virtual conference link in redmine project i get a new window (popup settings enabled) where i am logged in into the "default" demo conference, which is same as if would logon on the servers default demo login start site.

There is no more documentation on you plugin, how its meant to work, but i would have aspected (and the code looks like that) that a "new" conference will be started with the name of redmine's project, where i started from. Furthermore the username of the conference i dropped in is kind of randoom (e.g "de" , but not the username of my redmine user. I must say that we are using not the internal's redmines user base, but the well supported ldap feature, which is still embedded in redmine 1.02 (heard they will make a plugin in future). But from your redmine plugin programmers view, the user context shouldn't care where it was set from on login (ldap or internal user db).THe password on the other side is only validated on ldap server, and bbb should only let redmine server allow to open conference via "salt" authentification. I am aksink me if its a server2server connection or done via redmin>user's browsers redirect>bb server, I mean is the salt value secure by spying on users side? What did you do to secure the bbb server to let everyone open a conference there? There mus be a switch to only let open new conferences if sending togehter with salt.

Bug 1: After i sucessfully entered the conference (with radnoom name string), the status message in redmine projects overview doesn't change to "conference active or running" - even after some minutes and browser refreshs.

Bug 2: If try to join in the same project a second redmine user (also das redmine bbb acess rights for his role) the active conference (altough the redmine projets over, the connection can't be established - it stays on "connecting".

One thing i am asking me is , which role i shall get in the conference (i thing bbb has two roles "moderator" and "guest"), because the is no mapping in redmine's role to rights settings, cause there is ony one right choosable, but i would expect a bbb_moderator_access and a bbb_guest_access right to choose. The logic could be that a redmine user with bbb_moderator_access can start a new conference from redmine project if none is active, else he can join as guest. A redmine user with bbb_guest_access can only join a conference as guest if one is active, else even there is no link to click or an warning "no conference active".

Maybe its a installation issue or the plugin is still beta, or i just doesn't understand how its mean to be be. However the idea of integrating the bbb into redmine is awesome. We would like to use it to start online presentation for prototyps demo's and appllication training for our customers, as well as online meetings for team conferences.

Tx for your help in advance.

I confirm that using LDAP is supported (that's what we use in my company).

About salt security and how plugin works: First the plugin checks if conference exists (API call server2server). If not, there is an API call to create the conference (Server2server), then user is redirected to the conference (using an url generated by the server). Salt can't be discovered because it is never transmitted...
My plugin allows members to only open the conference associated to the project (and create it if it didn't exist...). Once in the conference, all participants have a MODERATOR role (ie: they can do everything). You can easily change this in my code if you want (for example to use moderatorPW if user is a project's manager, and the attendeePW if not)...

Bug 1: check /var/lib/tomcat6/webapps/bigbluebutton/WEB-INF/classes/bigbluebutton.properties to see if defaultWelcomeMessage contains %CONFNAME%. If not, change the message to have something like

defaultWelcomeMessage=<b>Welcome in the meeting room for project: %%CONFNAME%%</b>.<br>

Bug 2: Sorry but I don't have any answer... I never see that before. Once first participant joined the conference, a browser refresh (of the redmine overview's project) should display "State: running" with the list of the current participants... Could it be related to your browser cache settings ? (as you had problem with it...)

Last thing: the plugin is not really a beta version as I used it since 2 months on my production servers ;-). It may be not perfect but it should work in your configuration...

Its working as you said, duno what the cause for my problems was soem days ago.

Can you help with the code changes (maybe you will merge that into ur trunk):

• only give moderator (right "create conference") the right to be MODERATOR, but let him give anyone MODERATOR in the sessions if he wants to
• ..to have two rights in redmine bbb plugin setup
  - a right for joining conference of the project one is member with role that has right and
  - a right for creating conferences

If a moderator creates a conference and looses connection to it, what will happen if he was moderator? How can he rejoin the conference as moderator, will that work with ur plugin?

BTw. did yoo know openfire+refire (http://code.google.com/p/redfire/) - moving similar direction as bbb. I integrated openfire with redmine and messenger plugin sucessfully.

• Join conference as moderator
• Start a new conférence

but I don't think that BigBlueButton allows you to "delegate" the MODERATOR role when you are inside a conference (you can change the presenter but no the moderator).
You are MODERATOR just because you have used the moderator's password when joining the conference. If you looses the connection, just reconnect with the moderator's password and you will be MODERATOR again. This is the basic behavior of BBB and it is not changed with my plugin.

Kind regards,

Arnaud

Arnaud Martel wrote:

I can add 2 new permissions (in january, because I'm now in vacation...):

• Join conference as moderator
• Start a new conférence

Wow, Thanks a lot!

but I don't think that BigBlueButton allows you to "delegate" the MODERATOR role when you are inside a conference (you can change the presenter but no the moderator).

Ah, ok that what i meant, too.
I didn't know that there a third role presenter, thought moderator=presenter.

You are MODERATOR just because you have used the moderator's password when joining the conference. If you looses the connection, just reconnect with the moderator's password and you will be MODERATOR again. This is the basic behavior of BBB and it is not changed with my plugin.

So if the moderator looses connection and clicks the link in projects overview of ur plugin, he will rejoin as moderator? I am asking me whre the password is cached or how the moderator shall know if he don't has to set it himself. Best would be if the authentification is made against ldap, but that would be a huge hassle i think. Also you can't discover the password of the ldap user, that would be a ldap security leak.
You could ask the user for the password so he knows it or create one automatically and send it as private message after first auto login in bbb.

Enjoy your holidays!

Kind regards,

Arnaud

I have exactly the same problem in the same condition reported in the first post of this thread. Considering the apache logs on the bbb server, it seems the redmine plugin do a request to the bbb server to know if the conference already exists. As it does not exists, the plugins should create it (as the redmine user has the right to create conference), but does not conference creation. Any idea ?

Thanks for your help !

My "problem" was completly different. We didn't see the link to start the conference. But you can click the link but th conference doesn't start. That maybe is more a problem of bbb installation or wrong salt config.

Thanks for your reply, but I confirm this is the same problem : the bbb link does not appear and then I can not start the conference. I just have a look to the apache logs of the bbb server and it seems that the redmine plugin first check if a conference named as the redmine project name has been launch (which is not of course). As a result the BBB link does not appear on the redmine project interface.

Our BBB instance is ok, we can use it directly and we have integrated it with Moodle LMS using the bbb plugin (using the same salt config) and it's ok.
Thanks.
Laurent.

Laurent,

• current user has not the correct permissions (:join_meeting or :start_meeting)
• BBB server didn't answer correctly: Server may be down or plugin settings are wrong (bad salt or url).

If you have access to the BBB logs (nginx, usually), could you copy the url generated by the plugin and try to open it in a web browser? This may give you more informations about the reasons why the link isn't displayed.

Kind regards,
Arnaud

in my case it was the missing rights

I am testing the plugin in development environment (redmine 1.2.0) and I am having some problem (of course BBB works properly). Does the plugin work in this env ?

Is there any doc describing how the plugin works from the user point of view ?

Many thanks

Laurent Dairaine wrote:

Thanks for your reply, but I confirm this is the same problem : the bbb link does not appear and then I can not start the conference. I just have a look to the apache logs of the bbb server and it seems that the redmine plugin first check if a conference named as the redmine project name has been launch (which is not of course). As a result the BBB link does not appear on the redmine project interface.

Our BBB instance is ok, we can use it directly and we have integrated it with Moodle LMS using the bbb plugin (using the same salt config) and it's ok.
Thanks.
Laurent.

Dear Laurent,

Have you solved this error as I am facing the same error. I cannot open the BBB conference room via redmine follow-up link. It always end throwing up the 404 error.
If you solved this, will you please let me know it`s solution. My BBB is running smoothly, I can use its demo page via URL. Also I have re-confirmed its salt key.
The follow-up link is: http://localhost:82/redmine/projects/meetingtest/meetings/join_conference