AirPlay to Linux / Ubuntu with Shairport v1.0

Linux can receive AirPlay audio using a program called Shairport that I covered over a year ago. Shairplay has since been re-written by the original developer James Laird to no longer rely on perl. The latest version is v1.0-dev here's how to get AirPlay working on Ubuntu using Shairport and iTunes to test it.

Setup the Apple AirPort Express v2 802.11n as an AirPlay bridge using the Windows AirPort Utility

The AirPort Express is a simplified and compact version of Apple's AirPort Extreme gateway,. it functions as a wireless access point when connected to an ethernet network. The current model includes AirPlay (successor of AirTunes), that allows users to stream audio from a computer running iTunes to a stereo

I purchased an Apple AirPort Express to expand my AirPlay / AirTunes network. The AirPort Express base station offers a couple of novel features which I was keen to explore, notably:

- Ability to extend an existing network
- Creating a guest wi-fi network, alongside an existing wi-fi network
- 3.5mm audio output to push music via AirPlay (formerly 'AirTunes') to external speakers/amp

Configure iPhone iOS to use an IPSec VPN tunnel and resolve reconnect issues

Following on from my post that walks through the set up of an Ubuntu based IPSec VPN server using Openswan and Android, I've now had the chance to also configure an iOS device to work with the same configuration. Read on to see how I configured the iOS 5.0 iPhone 3GS to work with my Openswan IPSec VPN...

Android IPSec PSK VPN - Nexus One with OpenSWAN

Looking to secure my internet traffic when on a public network and away from home I decided to set up a VPN between my phone and my Ubuntu server. This would allow all of my phone's traffic to be encrypted and tunneled through my Ubuntu server and home internet connection. Effectively this will make it difficult for people to listen to my traffic and in essence would offer additional security to my browsing and email when on a public network. My phone is an Android Google Nexus One; and unfortunately Android versions up to and including Gingerbread (2.3.4) do not support OpenVPN out of the box, unless you root your device. Read on to see how I set up my Android to Home IPSec VPN...