SL now records where avatars were

In Zero Linden's Office Hours of Tuesday 21st August, he said that 'agent presence' information will now be kept when a region goes down, i.e. details of where the avatars are.

This facility is now in the HetGrid, after yesterday's restart.

From my chat log:-

21 Aug 2007

[13:53] Zero Linden: One of the big things that goes out tomorrow is making some of the central services save and restore their dynamic state so that we can upgrade them live in the future
[13:54] Zero Linden: for example, there is a server that manages the "agent presence" information - basically if you are on-line and if so where
[13:54] Zero Linden: this information isn't persistent -
[13:54] Zero Linden: at present, if that server goes down (intentionally or accidentally), all that information is lost
[13:54] Zero Linden: and it takes 5 to 10 min. for it all to come back.....
[13:55] Zero Linden: after tomorrow - when it gets shut down it saves state and restores it on start

Okay, I love Zero for having office hours, but can someone please explain what this really means. I'm going to have a glassy-eyed moment, trying to figure out what it's useful for.

From now on the server system that stores "who was where" will back up its data so that the information isn't lost when the power goes out.

I think the main aim is for crash investigation:

[2007/08/21 13:59] Zero Linden: - there has been a background design project to make sim-states be journaled...

[2007/08/21 13:59] Zero Linden: so each operation like that would write out a log entry

[2007/08/21 13:59] Zero Linden: and then we could, on crash, load the last sim-state and replay the journal

[2007/08/21 13:59] Zero Linden: but... hasn't been much coding on that...

/me is a little confused.

Is this to help identify people who are being bad - seeing who was at the scene of the crime type thing - or to help with presence issues? Or is it for pie?

Um.... having where you 'have been' being stored 'somewhere' has always been the case hasn't it? I mean... if not how would the servers know where to place me if I select to enter the world at 'my last location' versus 'my home'?

I think that the new system may record that information more often. Maybe the scenario you describe only records that information on logout.

I'm pretty sure that when I crash, I don't return to the place where I crashed when I log back in.

I see... Thankfully I haven't crashed out totally in several weeks. I'll pay attention next time it happens.

.. if a sim crashes when a particular person is on it, and they see that same person on crashed sim after crashed sim, they're going to be able to figure out a lot more readily who did it, and that'll lead them to be able to figure out how it was done as well, because they'll be able to look in that person's inventory to see what nasty little devices they may have tucked away in there.

Or not. Depending.

Not to mention people on your friends list who can map you.. And, of course, people on the same sim being able to see you move around and stuff.

SL has always known (or at least wanted to know) exactly where you are, all the time.

I'd say it would be of grave concern if suddenly SL does *not* record where you are...

...hello?

...is anyone here?

...ground, anyone?

...is *that* the back of the Sun?

The back of the sun might be a refreshing change. So often with frequent crashes and persistant long term bugs it feels like LL is showing us the moon.

I wonder what my drifts off the edge of the world will do to their database?

Your UUIDs have been captured. Do not attempt to remove your Super Double Plus Ungood posts. Big Brenda has been notified and will shortly remove your underwear without removal of your outer garments.

Big Brenda is watching YOU!

What timing! I read this post as the song I was listening to carried the words:

"When I close my eyes,
I am at the center of the sun,

And I cannot be hurt,
by anything this wicked world has done,

But I hear violins..." -- Center of the Sun -- Poe & ConjureOne


(I see no reason to be concerned over this particular change,
unless you're someone that goes around habitually crashing sims.)

My understanding is that this data is now stored in a more easily accessed format that can actually be used and viewed by a Linden, rather than simply being buried in billions of lines of code. In SL, all data about everything is stored somewhere - it's a matter of getting at it.

I wouldn't be so sure that everything has stored. I'll be that Linden Labs's lawyer, Hear-See-Speak-No-Evil Linden, has advised that the best way to avoid producing information pursuant to a subpoena is for the information to never have existed. Legal risk aversion may trump technical efficiency in many of Linden Labs's decisions.

I thought they used the Law firm of Dewey, Cheatham, and Howe....

Everything is there in the server logs; and I do mean everything. But it may be that some data is stored in a way that is meaningless to a human being. That would satisfy the lawyers. Afterall, a load of 0s and 1s is not going to stand up in court.

They have to, they're the only ones that can stand up to their main rivals; Sue Cripple & Sneer.

Problem with this simple method is if there is a mild meltdown of the main server that data might never be recoverable. Any time you make complex task simplier in this manner. You run the risk of losting any stored data in the center unit(s) if computer parts fail during operation. That LLABS doesnt tell you.

Well...... I can tell you that this is true.

A friend of mine in-world was shown by someone how to build a Sim Crasher.

Rather than be low-key, the idiot went around crashing sims willy nilly.

Then one night at one of our favorite hangouts, a Linden Appears. And I thought "Must be here for the event". NOPE!!

He asked where *insert name* was (prolly didnt rez for him yet). Then asked about the sims crashing, and how it shows he was there with this object. So my friend handed him the object so the Linden could see what it was.

This friend then had to call LL to basically keep from being banned- I think he was doing alot more than just crashing sims. LOL!

But yes- there IS a record of you in a sim if it crashes.

"Crashing sims willy nilly"???

Your friend is a pathetic little griefer child and should be banned.

I totally agree!

He was worse than a griefer! He was the equivelant of a "script kiddie"- a.k.a. "couldnt do squat on his own". He'd DJ when he got a job, but would get fired. Usually within the same hour. Telling the Sim owner "Go F**K yourself" is not a good job skill.

Finally he got bored with SL and moved on to other things- at which he also can't do.