Ever made a massive cock up... and blagged it off

[Gibbon]

Oh Yes !!!!

Couldn't blag my way out of it, but with a mate achieved the impossible!


Well in the mob young Gibbon was trying to script an disk writing utility. on this system (OS9) only supervisor modes could write out to a disk and we didn't want any old TDH being able to have super rights. So bright spark Gibbon comes up with a utility that a normal user uses but embedded in it it logs into super downloads to disk and logs out of super back to normal user. Hi ho tickety boo etc.

Well Gibbon being new to computing and an halfwit to boot did all this work in the supervisor login script!!!!!! So I then logged out...................................

When I logged back in as super all I could do was copy a disk or LOGOUT. Basically the super login script logged you straight back out via a disk copy!!!!

I went white purple red yellow and pulled up the courage to tell my Sgt. "You fecking idiot Gibbon" bellowed in my ears and I rang up OS9 support. I explained my problem and then there was silence.......... followed by some of the loudest laughing I've ever heard. " your flipped was the non-technical reply and you need a new system as it's impossible to sort that.


Gibbon was doomed and the firing squad beckoned....


Then like a knight in shining armour another senior rank reckoned we could sort it. Some how between the to of us on different terminals logged in as normal users we managed to suspend the super login, hack in and change the protection and then redit the login file. I can't remember how exactly but I do recall telling the support that their system wasn't very robust followed by a huge laugh. But to be honest it was one of relief mainly.

[xoggoth]

Not a technical error but back in permie days I did once go to pick up an important American client at the airport in a company car and then forgot where I'd left it. We spent half an hour wandering about looking for it. I think he was impressed.

[AtW]

Did I ever tell you the story of how I killed a man with a single glance?

You mean the one when some poor chap actually saw you in person?

[MarillionFan]

Tell 'e the other story about your harsh childhood when you had to use a pool ball in a sock...

Did I ever tell you the story of how I killed a man with a single glance?

[AtW]

I once held up a bookmakers with a mate.

We were young and he got caught on camera.

Knowing he would grass me up and knowing his brother was the same frame as me. I got my self an alibi and phoned the old bill straight away saying he had done it with his brother.

I had an alibi. He and his brother didnt.

They've still got 5 years to go.

Sweet.

Tell 'e the other story about your harsh childhood when you had to use a pool ball in a sock...

[MarillionFan]

I once held up a bookmakers with a mate.

We were young and he got caught on camera.

Knowing he would grass me up and knowing his brother was the same frame as me. I got my self an alibi and phoned the old bill straight away saying he had done it with his brother.

I had an alibi. He and his brother didnt.

They've still got 5 years to go.

Sweet.

[Paddy]

I have “delete key phobia”. Before I delete anything I make a copy, then another copy hidden away before I even consider using the delete key. Even if I have been instructed to delete something, I will make a copy, assess the situation, close off rights first and see what happens.

Thankfully most IT bodds are gun-ho about deleting and without much though just delete anything. This can then give me several days or even weeks work rebuilding.

Tape back-ups and snap-shots are not always the answer and are not that helpful for live systems that can’t be shut down.

[minestrone]

This thread title is soooooo open to abuse.

[threaded]

Ah my young padawan, that is why one backdoors place, and the password in plain text leaves.

[HairyArsedBloke]

Er, Um .........

[DieScum]

Made a bit of a wilmslow-esque cock up last week. In a fit of absent mindedness I deleted the wrong thing. Oops.

Not the end of the world as it could be recovered from a backup but not exactly good for my rep if I had to own up to it.

So spent three hours in the evening trying, and failing, to recreate from scratch.

Had a bit of a sleepless night and then in the morning concocted a vaguely plausible technical reason why we had to recreate something from the backup... to be met with a 'they have lost the password for that account.'

Argh. I then, against all hope, found a massive security hole in the system where the password was stored in clear text and was able to recreate the object.

Now it is sitting there looking all shiny and new and professional and working.

And nobody knows I f'd up. Elation is the word.

It's almost worth doing for the feeling afterwards. Could be addictive.

Ever come back from a self-inflicted sucker punch to win the fight yourself?