ATutor

Two problems with File Storage

• amboycharlie
  

  2007-05-17 08:36:29

  Two problems with File Storage

  I have ATutor 1.5.4 installed on an up to date Unix/Apache server system MySQL4 s.t. and PHP5 s.t..
  
  The first problem I am having is perhaps not with your software but with the Windoze computers at my university. It seems that some of my students are able to save their work in File Storage so that it can be downloaded and some are not. About 80% of the files on my server come out blank from the download, the others come out fine. I don't know if it is related but most of the students also said they were unable to write to my folder on the university's own server because they only had read access in Windows. Can you clue me in on any of this?
  
  The other problem I'm having is with your software and it's related to the File Storage problem. Some of my students today were unable to download and print their files from File Storage. A third student, overhearing the problem accessed their folders and files in the File Storage system and printed them out with no problem. Now, why should the student who owns the folder and file not be able to access it, and the administrator (me) be unable to access it, while third student can access it? That seems like a real security problem.

• greg
  

  2007-05-17 09:23:03

  Re: Two problems with File Storage

  My guess it has something to do with the way mime types have been configured with the webserver, and possible interaction with users' browsers and settings. IE 7 has introdcued a whole new bunch of issues, so I would not be surprised if it was IE7 users who are experiencing the problem. Perhaps have you sys admin look into mime configuration. Or, perhaps an Apache upgrade would resolve the problem.
  
  We don't have a windoze installation handy at the moment (our test machine was just rebuilt and hasn't been setup for ATutor yet), so we can't test this. It may be a week or two before we can get to it. You might help with the investigation by sending those who are having trouble to our demo site to see if they can reproduce the problem there. Describe the result, and browser and version being used in the tests.
  
  http://www.atutor.ca/atutor/demo.php

• amboycharlie
  

  2007-05-21 07:58:05

  Re: Two problems with File Storage

  Thanks, Greg, the university's computer people are going to look at it Thursday morning. I'll suggest that they look into the mime types on I.E.. The computers don't run Vista, though. They are on the previous version of Windows so I don't know what version of I.E..