DEV Community: Duke Astro

ServeSense — Windows SFTP/FTPS/FTP Server with Least-Privilege Setup (No Admin Needed)

Duke Astro — Mon, 20 Oct 2025 05:05:49 +0000

Tired of the complex dance required to share files securely on Windows? Forget the certificate hunts, the cryptic command lines, and the endless wiki diving. Meet ServeSense: the one-click, zero-fuss solution for hosting robust FTP, FTPS, and SFTP servers directly from a sleek, modern Windows application.

What you actually get?

What does ServeSense bring to your desktop? Simply put: instant, secure connectivity without the headache.

3 protocols: FTP, FTPS (TLS), or SFTP —no juggling separate servers, no compatibility drama.
Rapid, 3-Step Setup: Get running in moments. A simple wizard guides you through setting your IP, port, root folder, and users. You click; it just works.
Granular Security & Control: Create user accounts with precise read, write, and list permissions. Ensure users only ever access or modify the exact files they're authorized for, boosting security and peace of mind.
Real-Time Monitoring: Stop guessing! Our Live Status & Logs feature lets you see connections and activity as they happen, replacing "mysterious silence" with clarity and instant feedback.
Zero Dependency Hassle: No "dependency spaghetti" here. Drop the application onto your machine and start serving files. No runtime scavenger hunts required.

Is ServeSense reputable and trustworthy?

Trusted by developers and IT professionals on leading software marketplaces by SaaSHub, SourceForge, Slashdot, TopBusinessSoftware

Who Needs ServeSense?

This is the perfect tool for instantly spinning up a secure, local file transfer point:

Developers: Spin up a local SFTP target to test upload/download flows with realistic user roles.
QA testers: Validate transfer paths, watch logs in real time during load tests, catch issues early.
IT pros: Create a temporary, secure drop-point for partners; retire it with one click when you’re done.

Quick Security & Compatibility FAQs

Does ServeSense require Administrator rights?
Often, no! By choosing ports above 1024 and a user-writable directory, you can often run the service without elevated permissions. (Standard firewall rules still apply, of course.)

What secure protocols are supported?
We support FTP, FTPS (using TLS for encryption), and SFTP. Run the protocol that best matches your client tools, security policies, and compliance needs.

Ready to simplify secure file sharing? GET ServeSense and host your first secure server in minutes.

🤖 The Super Contributor Ascent: Code, Commitment, and the Chronicle of 13 Days

Duke Astro — Mon, 13 Oct 2025 11:04:42 +0000

This is a submission for the 2025 Hacktoberfest Writing Challenge: Contribution Chronicles

Last year, I completed Hacktoberfest by DigitalOcean at Level 4/4, proudly earning the Contributor badge

This year, DigitalOcean raised the bar - introducing Level SUPER, and after just 13 days, I reached Level Max – Super Contributor, ranking among the top 1500 participants worldwide! 👕🔥

This achievement is more than a metric of speed; it is the culmination of a persistent philosophy: Open Source is not just code sharing, it is knowledge sharing.

⚙️ The Challenge

My contribution was not about adding easily implemented features; it was about deep code sanitation and architectural refinement. The hours were spent not typing new lines, but in brain-aching code review a critical task I chose to tackle. This involved:

1. The Bug Hunt: Systematically identifying and rectifying nasty, subtle bugs and critical edge-case flaws hidden within complex algorithms. For instance, my work focused on refining the robustness of existing logic, ensuring that fundamental C# algorithm implementations were impervious to common boundary condition failures.
2. Performance Overhaul: Optimizing the integrity and efficiency of high-usage algorithms. My goal was to elevate the standard of the repository, guaranteeing that every C# implementation was not only functional but also performance-tuned and aligned with modern best practices.
3. Documentation & Clarity: Enhancing code clarity and documentation so that the repository serves as a superior educational resource for future developers learning C#.

These contributions, often overlooked when counting simple lines of code, are the most valuable to a project's long-term health. They represent the grueling, behind-the-scenes effort that fortifies the codebase against failure and improves the quality of knowledge being shared.

The Takeaway: Beyond the Merge

Participating in the 2024 Hacktoberfest and achieving Super status, reaffirmed my belief in the power of collective effort.

This challenge was a decisive lesson in persistence over perfection. Tackling a bug that has evaded others for months requires a specific kind of developer resilience. By diving deep into the internals of algorithmic implementations, I exponentially expanded my mastery of C# language features and software architecture patterns.

For me, being a Super Contributor means sharing not just my source code, but my insight, rigor, and passion for building a global, robust, and reliable technological foundation. The thrill of the 'Super' tier is the validation that focused, high-quality commitment is recognized and valued by the global open source community.

I look forward to continuing this chronicle, striving to make open source better, one critically-reviewed PR at a time. The ascent to Super is complete, but the contribution never ends.

PasteSense – Take Control of Your Clipboard on Windows

Duke Astro — Sat, 06 Sep 2025 02:48:56 +0000

Windows has a clipboard history, but is it really working for you? The built-in feature is just a starting point. With PasteSense, you're not just saving your copied items—you’re transforming your clipboard into a powerful, secure, and incredibly efficient tool.

Total Control & Reliable Recovery

Ever lost a crucial piece of code, an important quote, or a critical link? Unlike the limited default Windows feature, PasteSense saves every single item you copy, ensuring you can find and restore it at any time, no matter how long ago you copied it. Gain complete peace of mind knowing your data is always safe.

Blazing-Fast Hotkeys for Unmatched Productivity

Forget searching and clicking. PasteSense lets you assign custom hotkeys to anything in your history. Imagine hitting Ctrl+Alt+1 to instantly paste your email signature, or Ctrl+Alt+S to drop in a frequently used SQL query. This revolutionary feature saves you countless minutes every single day

Maximum Security, Right on Your Device

Your privacy is our priority. With PasteSense privacy policy here, all of your clipboard data is encrypted and stored exclusively on your local device. Nothing is ever sent to a server or shared with a third party. You can work with confidence, knowing your sensitive information is always protected.

OCR Power: Extract Text from Any Image

Have you ever needed to get text from a screenshot or a photo? PasteSense includes powerful, integrated OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technology. Simply copy an image, and the app will instantly extract the text within it, allowing you to paste it directly into your documents. It’s an indispensable tool for researchers, students, and designers.

Ready to work smarter? Download PasteSense today here and take control of your clipboard.

[Boost]

Duke Astro — Sun, 18 May 2025 19:00:05 +0000

Duke Astro

May 4 '25

Real-time Facial Emotion Analysis with .NET 10 and gRPC

#webdev #ai #dotnet #programming

Comments 3

2 min read

[Boost]

Duke Astro — Tue, 13 May 2025 01:40:09 +0000

Duke Astro

May 12 '25

Build a Food-Ordering Chatbot in 30 Minutes by .NET 10 and Azure

#webdev #ai #azure #dotnet

Comments 3

2 min read

Build a Food-Ordering Chatbot in 30 Minutes by .NET 10 and Azure

Duke Astro — Mon, 12 May 2025 17:02:37 +0000

Hey there, buddy!
Ever dreamed of having your own chatbot that can take food orders faster than you can say "cheeseburger with extra pickles"?
Well, buckle up because I’m about to show you how to get a fully functional food-ordering bot up and running in just 30 minutes!

Let’s go! 🍟

What You’ll Get Out of This

By the end of this guide, you’ll have a chatbot that can handle these three tasty scenarios:

Ordering something straight from the menu (like a cheeseburger combo—yum!).
Asking for the menu but ordering something that’s not there (sorry, no sushi here, but the bot will help you out!).
Canceling an order and starting fresh (because sometimes you change your mind mid-order). Ready? Let’s roll! 🚀

Step 1: Clone the DineBot Repo (5 Minutes)

First things first, let’s grab my project from GitHub.
I’ve already done the heavy lifting for you, so all you need to do is clone my repo

git clone https://github.com/ngtduc693/DineBot.git
cd DineBot

Make sure you’ve got .NET 10.0 SDK installed. This bot is built with .NET 10, so it’s a must-have

Step 2: Test Your Bot with Bot Framework Emulator (10 Minutes)

Let’s get this bot chatting using the Bot Framework Emulator—a super handy tool to test bots locally. It’s like having a mini restaurant right on your laptop!

Install the Emulator: Download the Bot Framework Emulator here. Pick the latest version for your OS (Windows, Mac, or Linux).
Install it and fire it up. It’s as easy as installing a game—click, click, done!

Back in your terminal, inside the DineBot folder, run:

dotnet run

You’ll see some magic happen in the terminal, and the bot will start listening at http://localhost:3978/api/messages. Keep this URL handy—it’s where your bot lives!

Connect the Emulator to Your Bot: Open Bot Framework Emulator and click Open Bot then paste the URL: http://localhost:3978/api/messages

Step 3: Let’s Chat and deploy to Azure AI Services (15 Minutes)

Upload the training model from TrainingModel here then deploy it to Azure Language Understanding

Update appsettings.json with your Azure Language Understanding credentials:

"LanguageUnderstanding": {
    "Endpoint": "",
    "Key": "",
    "ProjectName": "Food",
    "DeploymentName": ""
  }

OK! Let's chat

Scenario 1: Ordering Something on the Menu
Scenario 2: Asking for the Menu but Ordering Something Not Available
Scenario 3: Canceling an Order and Starting Fresh

[Boost]

Duke Astro — Sun, 04 May 2025 18:02:25 +0000

Duke Astro

May 4 '25

Real-time Facial Emotion Analysis with .NET 10 and gRPC

#webdev #ai #dotnet #programming

Comments 3

2 min read

Real-time Facial Emotion Analysis with .NET 10 and gRPC

Duke Astro — Sun, 04 May 2025 15:07:14 +0000

Ever wondered if your mate’s poker face is hiding a secret grin or if they’re just quietly raging inside? Well, grab your coffee because we’re diving into the AI.Facial.Emotion .NET library — a cheeky little tool that analyzes facial emotions in real-time. Let’s set it up and have a laugh!

What’s This AI.Facial.Emotion Thing?

This .NET gem uses AI to peek at faces and spill the tea on their emotions — happy, sad, angry, or “what even is happening?” It’s real-time, so it’s perfect for live video shenanigans. Think of it as a mood detector you can slap onto your webcam.

gRPC: The Speedy Middleman

The library uses gRPC, which is like the Flash of data delivery — zipping video frames from your app to a server that does the emotion-crunching. Fast, slick, and ready for action.

Step 1: Fire Up the gRPC Server

The server’s the brains here, so let’s get it rolling:

Clone the repo: gRPC Server.
Crack it open in Visual Studio.
Smash that F5 key — bam, server’s live!

No Visual Studio? You’re clever, sort it out. Just make sure it’s humming in the background.

Step 2: Get the gRPC Client Going

The client’s your sneaky camera buddy, snapping frames and tossing them to the server:

Clone this bad boy: gRPC Client.
Open it in Visual Studio.
Check the server’s on first — or it’ll be like shouting into the void.
Hit run and watch it roll.

Step 3: Real-Time Emotion Shenanigans
Point your camera at a face (yours, your dog’s, whatever). The client sends the frames, the server spits back emotions, and you can splash them on-screen. It’s like live emoji tagging — happy face, angry face, confused face. Too fun!

Quick Tips (Don’t Be Daft)

Boss alert: Don’t aim this at your manager mid-meeting unless you’re ready for drama.
Chill on privacy: Ask before you analyze — nobody likes a creepy vibe.
.NET crew only: This is C# territory. Not your jam? Hunt for something else, but C#’s the cool kid here.

🚀🚀When Your Gadgets Get Smarter Than You (Spoiler: They Are)

Duke Astro — Thu, 06 Mar 2025 02:58:45 +0000

This is a submission for the Future Writing Challenge: How Technology Is Changing Things.

Dear Friends and Family

Hey everyone! Hope you’re all doing awesome and staying out of trouble—or at least not getting caught. I was sitting here, sipping my coffee (or maybe it was my third energy drink, who’s counting?), and I started thinking about how technology is flipping our lives upside down lately. It’s wild, right? So, I figured I’d write you all a little letter about what to expect as this tech train keeps chugging along. Buckle up—it’s gonna be a bumpy, hilarious, and maybe even slightly mushy ride

First off, let’s talk about how we chat these days. Remember when we used to write actual letters? You know, pen scratching paper, licking envelopes, praying the mailman didn’t lose it? Yeah, that’s ancient history now. These days, it’s all instant—texts, emails, DMs, and whatever app the kids are obsessed with. I swear, I’m clueless half the time. My niece sent me a text the other day: eggplant emoji, peach emoji, water splash. I’m over here thinking she’s planning a fruit salad, but nope—apparently, it’s some secret code I’m too old to crack. Kids these days, huh? But real talk, it’s kinda cool how we can video call anyone, anywhere. Seeing Grandma’s face light up when she spots the grandkids on-screen—even if she accidentally turns herself into a cartoon dog mid-call—that’s pure gold.

Now, let’s get into these “smart” devices. They’re supposed to make life easier, but sometimes I just wanna yeet them out the window. Take my smart speaker—I ask it to set an alarm for 7 AM, and next thing I know, it’s blaring Bohemian Rhapsody at full volume. Not the wake-up vibe I was going for, but I guess it’s one way to start the day. And smart fridges? They’re out here ordering groceries for you, which sounds dope until it starts judging your life choices. “Are you sure you want that whole tub of ice cream?” Yes, fridge, I am. Back off. It’s like living with a nosy roommate who never sleeps.

Then there’s entertainment—oh man, what a glow-up. Remember waiting a whole week for the next episode of your favorite show? Now we can binge entire seasons in one sitting. It’s heaven, but also, my couch has a permanent me-shaped dent. And music? I can stream any song ever made, anytime. Still, I kinda miss the old days of mixtapes—recording songs off the radio, static and all. There was something sweet about that mess.

Okay, but let’s not pretend it’s all sunshine and rainbows. Privacy’s a big “yikes” these days. With all these gadgets listening, I’m half-convinced my toaster’s snitching on my bread habits to the CIA. And jobs? Tech’s shaking that up too. My cousin used to be a cashier, but now it’s all self-checkout machines. Kinda freaky, right? Though, to be fair, it’s also opening doors—like, maybe she’ll pivot to coding and become a tech billionaire. Stranger things have happened

But here’s the good stuff: technology’s doing some mind-blowing things too. Education’s everywhere now—you can learn anything online, from rocket science to knitting sweaters for your pet lizard. And for folks with disabilities, tech’s a game-changer—assistive tools, apps that help you communicate. It’s honestly incredible.

Love you all tons, Duke

Introducing SecureCSharpEval: Revolutionize Your Dynamic C# Code Execution

Duke Astro — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 11:36:56 +0000

Are you looking for a robust and secure way to execute dynamic C# code without compromising your system? Meet SecureCSharpEval—a cutting-edge library that offers safe, controlled, and efficient code evaluation for your .NET projects.

What is SecureCSharpEval?

SecureCSharpEval is an innovative library designed to dynamically execute C# code in a secure environment. Built with modern development needs in mind, it safeguards your applications by sandboxing code execution to prevent unauthorized file access, process spawning, and system manipulation. Whether you’re developing a plugin system, a dynamic evaluator, or simply need to execute user-provided scripts, SecureCSharpEval has got you covered.

Why Choose SecureCSharpEval?

Bulletproof Security

Sandboxed Execution: Prevents risky operations by isolating executed code from sensitive system resources.
Shell Execution Control: Although shell execution is supported, it’s disabled by default to ensure maximum security.
Input Validation: Encourages rigorous input validation, ensuring that only trusted scripts run.

Developer-Friendly Features

Timeout & Memory Limits: Easily configure execution timeouts and memory usage to keep your application running smoothly even under heavy loads.
Seamless .NET Compatibility: Works flawlessly with .NET 6, 7, 8, and 9, making it a versatile choice for modern applications.
Simple Installation: Integrate the library quickly via NuGet with just one command.

Quick Start: Installation and Example

Getting started with SecureCSharpEval is a breeze. Simply install the package from NuGet:

Install-Package SecureCSharpEval

Once installed, you can start evaluating C# scripts securely. Here’s a fun example to determine if a number is prime:

class Program
{
    private static string checkPrime = @"
    static bool IsPrime(int n)
    {
        if (n < 2) return false;
        for (int i = 2; i * i <= n; i++)
        {
            if (n % i == 0) return false;
        }
        return true;
    };
    return IsPrime(number);
    ";

    static async Task Main(string[] args)
    {
        var n = 4;
        var evaluator = new ScriptEvaluator();

        Console.WriteLine("Before: {0}", n);

        var parameters = new Dictionary<string, object>
        {
            { "number", n },
        };

        var result = await evaluator.EvaluateAsync(checkPrime, parameters);

        if (result.HasError)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Error: {result.ErrorMessage}");
        }
        else
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Is Prime: {result.Result}");
            Console.WriteLine($"Execution Time: {result.ExecutionTimeMs}ms");
        }

        Console.ReadKey();
    }
}

Configuring Security Options

ScriptEvaluator(new SecurityConfiguration()
{
    TimeoutMs = 3000,  // Increase timeout to 3 seconds
    BlockedKeywords  = new HashSet<string>{},
    BlockedNamespaces =  new HashSet<string>{};
}

Security Configuration Default

AllowedNamespaces: [
    System,
    System.Collections.Generic,
    System.Linq,
    System.Text,
    System.Threading.Tasks
]
BlockedNamespaces: [
    System.IO,
    System.Net,
    System.Reflection,
    System.Diagnostics,
    System.Runtime,
    Microsoft.Win32
]
BlockedKeywords: [
    unsafe,
    fixed,
    stackalloc,
    Process,
    File,
    Directory,
    Registry,
    Socket,
    WebClient,
    HttpClient
]
TimeoutMs: 5000ms (5 seconds)

Security Features

The execution time limit feature is automatically enabled

Feature to limit malicious behavior (access to Files or Folders)

Feature to limit malicious behavior (remote command execution)

Prevent execution of commands related to directories or files

This sample highlights how easily you can incorporate dynamic code evaluation into your project while maintaining full control over execution parameters.

Final Thoughts

SecureCSharpEval is more than just a code execution tool—it’s your gateway to dynamic, secure, and efficient C# scripting. Its blend of security features, developer-friendly API, and seamless integration with modern .NET environments makes it an essential addition to any developer’s toolkit.

Ready to revolutionize your approach to dynamic code execution? Give SecureCSharpEval a try and elevate your development process today!

😃 AI.Facial.Emotion – A .NET Library for Facial Emotion Analysis with No Cost

Duke Astro — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 16:12:31 +0000

Ever wondered how AI can detect emotions from faces? 🤖💡

Meet AI.Facial.Emotion – a lightweight and powerful .NET library that can analyze facial emotions in real-time. Whether you're building chatbots, customer analytics, security systems, or healthcare apps, this tool makes it easy to integrate AI-powered facial analysis into your projects.

🎯 What Can It Do?

✅ Detect Emotions – Identify happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, and more.
✅ Optimized for .NET – Works with .NET 6, 7, 8, 9 and .NET 10.
✅ Multiple Input Formats – Accepts image URLs, Base64 strings, and file streams.
✅ Easy Integration – Works seamlessly with ASP.NET Web APIs, Windows Application, allowing quick integration into existing projects

🚀 Why Use It?

✅ Fast & Efficient – AI models optimized for real-time processing.
✅ Easy Integration – Works seamlessly with ASP.NET Web API, Windows App.
✅ Privacy First – No external API calls, all processing happens locally.

📦 Installation (Super Easy!)

Just install it via NuGet:

dotnet add package AI.Facial.Emotion

📦 Mandatory ingredients

If your server runs windows operating system

dotnet add package Emgu.CV.runtime.windows

If your server runs ubuntu operating system

dotnet add package Emgu.CV.runtime.ubuntu-x64

⚡ Quick Start

1️⃣ Detect Emotion from an Image URL

using AI.Facial.Emotion;

var analyzer = new EmotionAnalyzer();
var result = await analyzer.AnalyzeEmotionFromUrlAsync("https://example.com/image.jpg");

Console.WriteLine($"Emotion: {result}");

2️⃣ Detect Emotion from a Base64 Image

var base64Image = "iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAA...";
var result = await analyzer.AnalyzeEmotionFromBase64Async(base64Image);

Console.WriteLine($"Emotion: {result.Emotion}");

3️⃣ Detect Emotion from a File Stream

using var fileStream = File.OpenRead("image.jpg");
var result = await analyzer.AnalyzeEmotionFromStreamAsync(fileStream);

Console.WriteLine($"Emotion: {result}");

⚡That is some results

Hugging Face: The AI Revolution You Can't Ignore!

Duke Astro — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 06:26:12 +0000

One of the top platforms for machine learning (ML) and natural language processing (NLP) is Hugging Face. Building AI-powered apps is made easier by its extensive ecosystem of open-source models, datasets, and tools. Text categorization, translation, summarization, and other cutting-edge NLP tasks are frequently accomplished with its main library, Transformers.

Key Features of Hugging Face

- Pre-trained Models: Thousands of pre-trained models for audio, computer vision, and natural language processing tasks are available.

- Datasets: A library for importing, preparing, and maintaining datasets.

- Tokenizers are effective tokenization tools designed to work with common machine learning architectures.
- Fine-tuning: The ability to modify previously trained models using your own datasets.

How to Use Hugging Face in Python

1. Create an Access Token here

2. Read the instructions in the Model card (model) or Dataset card (dataset)

Leave your comment if you have any questions