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Linux System Administration: A User's Guide

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Linux System Administration: A User's Guide

By Marcel Gagné
Published Sep 18, 2001 by Addison-Wesley Professional.

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Description

Copyright 2002
Edition: 1st

Book
ISBN-10: 0-201-71934-7
ISBN-13: 978-0-201-71934-5

Respected Linux Journal and Sys Admin columnist Marcel Gagné has written the definitive guide to Linux system administration: a book that will be invaluable for sys admins at all levels of experience, using any leading distribution. Linux System Administration offers hands-on, results-focused coverage of every key Linux configuration and management task. Gagné offers detailed coverage of installation, Linux file management tools and file naming conventions; disks and file systems; users and groups; hardware; X-based graphical desktops; networking; kernel building; printing; and much more. The book contains practical guidance on scripting and automating administration tasks; administration tools; Internet services; security; tuning; and more. Gagné goes far beyond the basics, offering expert guidance on becoming a smarter sys admin -- from avoiding problems to tracking trouble calls and identifying resources that can provide the solutions you need. The book concludes with a series of instant-reference "cheat sheets" designed to help sys admins get the most common jobs done fast. For everyone responsible for administering Linux systems, including both experienced and new sys admins, as well as those migrating from UNIX or Windows environments. Also for power users, and any user or administrator who must maximize the security of their Internet-connected workstations.



Extras

Do it Yourself Embedded Linux

Improving the Backup Experience By Making Intelligent Software Choices

Linux at Legal Aid Manitoba

Marcel's Linux Explorations: Introducing phpGroupWare

Marcel's Linux Walkabout: Administrative Heaven -- Livin' in a Webmin World

Marcel's Linux Walkabout: But I Don't Like Spam!

Marcel's Linux Walkabout: Groupware Revisited

Marcel's Linux Walkabout: Information Unlimited

Marcel's Linux Walkabout: Just Follow the Bouncing Ball

Taming the Horrors of Printers and Printing

Thwarting the System Cracker

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gagnech13.pdf

Acknowledgments.

1. Introduction.

What Is Linux?

Why Linux?

The System Administrator's Job.

About This Book.

The Command Line Rules!

GUIs Rule!

Flexibility.

Is There Anything You Can't Do with Linux?

Regrets, I've Had a Few....

Resources.

2. Linux versus Linux versus UNIX.

The UNIX Question.

The Windows Question

A Question of Distribution.

So Which Linux Distribution Should You Choose?

Red Hat Linux.

SuSE.

Caldera.

Mandrake.

Slackware.

Debian.

Turbolinux.

Getting Linux.

Getting Others to Try Linux.

Sharing Space with Windows.

How about No Disk Space At All?

A Changing Landscape.

Resources.

3. Help (and the Truth) Is Out There.

Documentation and Man Pages

What If You Don't Know the Command Name?

Show Me the PATH, man!

Graphical Man Pages.

info (the Command, That Is).

HOWTOs and Distributed DOCs

The Linux Documentation Project

Linux User Groups.

Usenet News.

Resources.

4. Linux System Installation.

Getting Ready for Your Installation.

Hardware Considerations.

Passing Boot Options

Dual Booting.

The 12 (13, 14, 15...) Steps to Any Installation.

Step 1: Booting.

Step 2: Selecting the Installation Type.

Step 3: Selecting a Language (Parlez-vous Francais?).

Step 4: Choosing a Keyboard Type.

Step 5: Selecting Your Mouse.

Step 6: Selecting a Time Zone.

Step 7: Creating a Partition

Step 8: Formatting the Partitions.

Step 9: To LILO or Not to LILO.

Step 10: Choosing and Installing Software Packages.

Step 11: Configuring the Network.

Step 12: Identifying Yourself.

Step 13: The Dreaded X Window Configuration.

Step 14: The Boot Disk Question.

The (Emergency) Boot Disk.

Starting Linux.

Shutting Down Linux.

Resources.

5. Taking Command of Linux.

Linux Commands: Love at First Sight.

Working with Files.

File Naming Conventions.

Listing Files with Emotion!

File Permissions: A First Look

Making Your Life Easier with alias

Standard Input and Standard Output

Piping

tee: A Very Special Pipe.

STDERR

The Road to Nowhere

Linux Commands: Working with Directories.

There's No Place Like $HOME

Preface

What Is Linux?

My guess is that if you are reading this book, you already know the answer to that question. You already know that Linux is a fully multitasking operating system based on UNIX.

You may even be aware of this now famous (perhaps legendary) Usenet message from Linus Torvalds to the Usenet group comp.os.minix:

From: torvalds@klaava.Helsinki.FI (Linus Benedict Torvalds) Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: What would you like to see most in minix?
Summary: small poll for my new operating system
Message-ID: <1991Aug25.205708.9541@klaava.Helsinki.FI> Date: 25 Aug 91 20:57:08 GMT Organization: University of Helsinki
Hello everybody out there using minix -

I'm doing a (free) operating system (just a hobby, won't be big and professional like gnu) for 386(486) AT clones. This has been brewing since april, and is starting to get ready. I'd like any feedback on things people like/dislike in minix, as my OS resembles it somewhat (same physical layout of the file-system (due to practical reasons) among other things).

I've currently ported bash(1.08) and gcc(1.40), and things seem to work. This implies that I'll get something practical within a few months, and I'd like to know what features most people would want. Any suggestions are welcome, but I won't promise I'll implement them :-)

Linus (torvalds@kruuna.helsinki.fi)

PS. Yes - it's free of any minix code, and it has a multi-threaded fs. It is NOT protable (uses 386 task switching etc), and it probably never will support anything other than AT-hard disks, as that's all I have :-(.

We've come a long way from Linus's original vision of what his little project would and would not accomplish. What he managed to do was capture the imagination of scores of talented programmers around the world. Joined together through the magic of the Internet, they collaborated, coded, tweaked, and gave birth to the operating system that is now revolutionizing the world of computing.

Notice I mentioned "scores of talented programmers." Linux is not the work of one man alone. Linus Torvalds is the original architect of Linux, its father if you will, but he is not the only effort behind it. Perhaps Linus Torvalds' greatest genius lay in knowing when to share the load. For no other pay but satisfaction, he employed people around the world, delegated to them, worked with them, and asked for and accepted feedback in a next generation of the model that began with the GNU project.

GNU, by the way, is a recursive acronym that stands for "GNU's Not Unix," a project of the Free Software Foundation. This project was started in 1984 with the intention of creating a free, UNIX-like operating system. Over the years, many GNU tools were written and widely used by many commercial UNIX vendors and, of course, system administrators trying to get a job done. The appearance of Linus Torvalds' Linux kernel had made the GNU dream of a completely free, UNIX-like operating system a reality at last.

Why Linux?

Because this book is not so much about getting and installing Linux as it is working with Linux, I won't spend a long time answering the question "Why Linux?" Frankly, it would take much less time to answer the question "Why not Linux?" Suffice it to say that Linux is a powerful, reliable (some, including your humble author, might even say it's rock solid), expandable, flexible, configurable, multiuser, multitasking, and completely free operating system that runs on numerous hardware offerings. These hardware offerings include X86 chipsets (your basic, run-of-the-mill Intel PC), DEC Alpha, Macintosh, PowerPC, and a growing number of embedded processors. You can find Linux in PDA organizers, digital watches, golf carts, and cell phones. In fact, Linux has a greater support base (in terms of platforms) than just about any other operating system you can think of. IBM's entire line of hardware runs Linux!

Completely free?

Hmm . . . Maybe I should explain "free." Free, in this case, isn't a question of cost, although you can get a free/gratis copy of Linux and install it on your system without breaking any laws. Of course, because "there ain't no such thing as a free lunch" (to quote Robert A. Heinlein), even a free download costs you connection time on the Internet, disk space, time, and so on.

Linux is distributed under the GNU General Public License (GPL), which in essence says that anyone may copy, distribute, and even sell the program so long as changes to the source are reintroduced back to the community and the terms of the license remain unaltered. Free means that you are free to take Linux, modify it, and create your own version. Free means that you are not at the mercy of a single vendor who forces you into a kind of corporate servitude by making sure that it is extremely costly to convert to another environment. If you are unhappy with your Linux vendor or the support you are getting, you can move to the next vendor without forfeiting your investment in Linux.

The GNU GPL permits a distributor to "charge a fee for the physical act of transferring a copy, and you may at your option offer warranty protection in exchange for a fee." This is further qualified by the statement that the distributor must release "for a charge no more than your cost of physically performing source distribution, a complete machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code." In other words, the GPL ensures that programs like Linux will at best be free of charge. At worst, you may be asked to pay for the cost of a copy.

Everyone should take some time to read the GNU GPL. You'll find a link to its home in the Resources section at the end of this chapter.

The System Administrator's Job

So, this book is about Linux system administration. Just what the heck is system administration anyway? System (or systems) administration is a strange beast. After many years of administering literally hundreds of computer platforms running different operating systems and varying in complexity, I came to have what some might call a strange idea of this job description.

system administrator n. Part magician, part juggler, part technical support analyst, and part bartender/psychoanalyst, the system administrator performs the impossible job of keeping all members of his or her company satisfied by making sure that everything works. This usually includes things that are completely outside the system administrators control, such as telephones, photocopiers, fax machines, heating, air conditioning, and paper shortages in the supply cabinet.

I'm being a little silly, I realize, but system administrators get to their exulted position through the strangest of ways. You will find the career system administrator who actually wanted to do the job and worked his or her way to that goal. Along this path, you will also find secretaries who were unfortunate enough (or foolish enough) to say they knew something about computers and were instantly cast into the role. This latter category of sysadmin (a popular shortening of "system administrator") is more common than you can possibly imagine. Finally, you have the home user, a relative newcomer to this wonderful calling, thanks in large part to Linux.

About This Book

When I first started thinking about how I would lay out this book, I considered a number of approaches and settled on the following. I don't want to bore you, the reader, with chapters of references to HOWTOs on the Internet (although I will give you appropriate resource links when necessary). Nor do I want to give you verbatim listings of command options or man pages.

What I do want to do is

Index

. (period): file names, 47; shell script variables, 224
; (semicolon), comment delimiter, 393
& (ampersand), running commands in the background, 70
* (asterisk), wildcard, 46, 224
(back ticks), shell script variables, 224-225
$ (dollar sign): command prompt, 43-44; shell script variables, 223-224
" (double quote), shell script variables, 224-225
# (pound sign): root prompt, 44; shell script variables, 224
? (question mark), wildcard, 46, 224
' (single quote), shell script variables, 224-225
/ (slash) file system. See root file system.
| (vertical bar), piping symbol, 21
< (less than sign), redirecting STDIN, 51
> (greater than sign): redirecting STDERR, 54; redirecting STDOUT, 51
\ (backslash), escape character, 64, 224
2.4 kernel, 199-200

AbiWord, 190
adduser command, 97-100
Advanced Maryland Automatic Network Disk Archiver, 284
aging passwords, 108
alias command, 49-51
aliases: commands, 49-51; e-mail, 381-382
all_squash option, 319
AMANDA program, 284
American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN), 472
ampersand (&), running commands in the background, 70
Analog, 419-421
anongid option, 319
anonuid option, 319
Apache Web server: building, 356-358; configuring, 358-359; SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), 443-445
apachectl command, 357
append-only file permission, 62
applications. See also daemons; entries for specific applications; processes; scripts; tools and utilities.: current, querying, 142-143; finding. See online resources; software review sites.; installed, listing, 180-181; installing. See installing applications.; program location, 115-116; selecting during installation, 36-37; updating on a Debian system, 180-185; versions, determining, 181, 188; X window system, running remotely, 146-147
apropos command, 21-23
apt-get program, 182-183
archives, unpacking, 176-177
ARIN (American Registry for Internet Numbers), 472
Arkeia program, 283-284
asterisk (*), wildcard, 46, 224
at command, 238-239
atrm command, 238-239
attributes, file, 61-63
autoexpect program, 246-247
autofs program, 322-323
automation. See also scripts.: discarding junk programs, 236-237; downloads, 240-241; log files, 415-416; ncftp program, 240-241; online resources, 247; permissions, 239; scheduling tasks with at command, 238-239; scheduling tasks with cron program, 234-236; Web fetches, 241; wget program, 241
automount program, 323

back ticks (), shell script variables, 224-225
backing up data: AMANDA program, 284; Arkeia program, 283-284; BRU program, 281-283; to a CD-RW, 275-277; compressing backups, 267; configuration files, 272-275; cpio command, 266; dump command, 270-272; graphical interface, 278-281, 342; identity backups, 272-275; importance of, 265-266; KDat program, 280-281; restoring from backup, 272; selecting a backup medium, 268-270; Taper program, 278-280; tar command, 267; from Windows workstations, 268
backslash (\), escape character, 64, 224
Backup and Restore program, 281-283
bash (Bourne Again) shell, 220
benchmarks, performance, 489-490
BIND (Berkeley Internet Name Domain): description, 304-305; online resources, 304-305, 332; security warning, 306
bit bucket, 54-55
books. See documentation.
boot disks: creating, 38-39; provided, 33
boot options, passing, 31
booting. See also shutting down Linux.: dual booting, 32; history of the term, 40; for installation, 33
bootstrapping, 40
Bourne Again (bash) shell, 220
Bourne (sh) shell, 220
broadcast addresses, 295-296
BRU program, 281-283
BugTraq, 473
burning CDs: command line interface, 253-255; graphical interface, 255-256; online resources, 253, 255, 263
bzip2, 191

Caldera distribution, 13

cat command, 45

cd command, 55

CDR toaster, 263

cdrecord program, 253

CD-ROMs

burning, 252-256

drivers, 31

online resources, 31, 41

running Linux from, 16

CD-RWs

as backup media, 275-277

burning, 252-256

CERT Coordination Center, 472

chains, 466-468, 473

chattr command, 62

chgrp command, 57-58

chkconfig command, 85-86

chmod command, 57-59

chown command, 57-58

CIDR (Classless InterDomain Routing), 296-298

Classless InterDomain Routing (CIDR), 296-298

clock

displaying, 142-143

scheduling tasks, 234-236

CodeWeavers, 402

color, in file listings, 45-46

command line interface, 5. See also GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces).

command prompt, 43-44

commands. See also tools and utilities.

aliases, 49-51

forcing, 50-51

help for, 19-23

running in the background, 70

saving in files. See scripts.

verification request, bypassing, 50-51

commands, usage

at, 238-239

adduser, 97-100

alias, 49-51

apachectl, 357

apropos, 21-23

atrm, 238-239

cat, 45

cd, 55

chattr, 62

chgrp, 57-58

chkconfig, 85-86

chmod, 57-59

chown, 57-58

cp, 45

cpio, 266

date, 44

df, 122-123

dig, 312-313

dpkg, 180-181

du, 277

dump, 270-272

echo, 44

exportfs, 319-320

fdisk, 127-129

find, 63-65

finger, 44

free, 478-479

grep, 65-66

groupadd, 96

groupdel, 97

groupmod, 96-97

grpck, 103

hdparm, 487-489

htpasswd, 367

ifconfig, 299-301

info, 23-24

jobs, 71

kill, 72-73

kuser, 104-105

last, 44

lastlog, 102-103

less, 45

linux, 40

lpc, 209-210

lpq, 210

lprm, 210

ls, 45-46

lsattr, 61-63

man, 19-20

mkbootdisk, 39

mkdir, 55

mkfs, 129

mknod, 249-251

more, 45, 409

mount, 124-125, 320-321

mpage, 214

mt, 261

mv, 45, 55

ntpd, 331

ntpdate, 331

ps, 66-68

pstree, 68-70

pwck, 102-103

pwd, 55

quotacheck, 131

rdate, 330

repquota, 131

restore, 272

rm, 45, 48-49

rmdir, 55

route, 301-302

rpm, 173

scp, 432-433

shutdown, 41

smbtar, 400-401

sort, 45

tar, 267

time, 490-491

top, 476-477

tty, 44

umask, 59-60

uniq, 45

uptime, 476

userconf, 103-104

userdel, 100-101

usermod, 100

vigr, 92

vimtutor, 75

vipw, 92

vncpassword, 350

vncserver, 349

vncviewer, 350

w, 44

wc, 45

who, 44

whoami, 44

xclock, 142-143

xntpd, 331

xrefresh, 156

xwininfo, 142-143

ypcat, 329

Common UNIX Printing System (CUPS), 217

Comprehensive Perl Archive Network (CPAN), 178

compression

backups, 267

online resources, 191

program comparisons, 177

concatenating files, 45

configuration

DNS, determining, 304-305

file systems, displaying, 126

configuration files

backing up, 272-275

rereading, 197-198

configuring

Apache Web server, 358-359

desktops, 141-143

Linux, with Linuxconf, 334-338

Linux, with Webmin, 338-341

master server, 325-327

monitors, 38

multiple runlevels, 86

networks, 37

NIS client, 327-328

Samba server, 393-395

startup services, 85-86, 90

X window system, 37-38

connectionless protocols, 288

connection-oriented protocols, 288

copying files, 45

country codes, 292

cp command, 45

CPAN (Comprehensive Perl Archive Network), 178

cpio command, 266

CPU usage, monitoring, 479-481

cracking. See also security.

access, tracking and denying, 448-451

crackers, locating and reporting, 471-472

detecting

changed files, 452-458

log files, 452

PortSentry program, 464-466

TCP wrappers, 448-451

online resources, 473

OS fingerprinting, 459

passwords, 106-107, 109-110

port scanners, 459-461

responding to, 458, 464-466

script kiddies, 448

sniffers, 461-463

Sniffit program, 462-463

social engineering, 109-110

TCP wrappers, 448-451

tcpdump program, 463

creating

boot disks, 38-39

device definitions, 249-251

directories, 55

file systems, 127-129

log files, 410-411

shell scripts, 220-221

credit card information, protecting, 442-443

cron program, 234

crond program, 234

crontab file, 234-236

CUPS (Common UNIX Printing System), 217

daemons, 81-82. See also applications; processes.

DataBase Dependent (DBD) module, 362-363

DataBase Interface (DBI) module, 362-363

databases

DBD (DataBase Dependent) module, 362-363

DBI (DataBase Interface) module, 362-363

PostgreSQL, 360-361

programming with Perl, 362-363

Web-connected, 359

datagrams, 288

date. See also time.

converting Gregorian to Discordian, 344-345

setting, 44

time synchronization, 330-331

date command, 44

DBD (DataBase Dependent) module, 362-363

DBI (DataBase Interface) module, 362-363

dcron program, 234

dead processes, 71

Debian Linux

distribution description, 14

graphical interface, 183-185

installing/updating on, 180-185

Deja.com, 27

deleting

directories, 55-56

files, 45, 48-49

junk programs, automating, 236-237

mailboxes, 101

print jobs, 210

users, 100-101

DemoLinux distribution, 16

denial of service attacks, 484-486

desktops. See also GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces); window managers; X window system.

backing up, 145-146

configuring, 141-143

cursor color, changing, 141

multiple, 144-145

restoring, 145-146

starting, 138-139

switching between, 144-145

device definitions, creating, 249-251

devices. See also disks; printers.

CD-ROMs, 252-256

CD-RWs, 252-256

online resources, 263

SANE (Scanner Access Now Easy) libraries, 257-260

scanners, 257-260

SCSI vs. IDE, 251-252

tape drives, 260-262

Xsane program, 259-260

df command, 122-123

diald program, 370-372, 388

dial-up connections, setting up, 370-372

dig command, 312-313

directories

changing to, 55

creating, 55

deleting, 55-56

home, returning to, 56

moving, 55

renaming, 55

working directory, printing, 55

disks

disk drives, performance tuning, 487-489

floppy. See floppy-based Linux.

I/O, monitoring, 480

partitioning. See partitioning.

space, monitoring, 122-123

space, usage limits. See quotas.

displaying

file contents, 45

file names, 45-46

file permissions, 64

group files, 92

displaying (cont.)

log files, 407-408

processes, 66-70

distributions, Linux

Caldera, 13

choosing, 11-15

Debian, 14

definition, 10-11

DemoLinux, 16

DragonLinux, 16

finding. See online resources; software review sites.

on a floppy disk

LOAF (Linux On A Floppy), 343-344

tomsrtbt, 344-345

Trinux, 345-348

installing. See installing Linux.

Mandrake, 13

Phat Linux, 16

Red Hat, 12

Slackware, 14

SuSE, 12-13

Turbolinux, 15

DNS (domain name servers). See also IP addresses; NIS (network information service).

BIND (Berkeley Internet Name Domain), 304-305

configuration, determining, 304-305

domains, defining, 306

/etc/hosts file, 303-304

/etc/named.conf file, 306-308

example, 375-376

lame servers, 313

online resources, 332, 388

restricting access, 313-314

reverse DNS zones, 311-312

reverse IP mapping, 311-312

security warning, 303, 306

testing, 312-313

zone files, 310-311

zones, 308-310

documentation. See also man pages; online resources.

Exploring Expect, 247

HOWTOs, 24-25

info files, 23-24

kernel source, 200

LDP (Linux Documentation Project), 25-26

location, 116

sendmail, 388

texinfo system, 23-24

dollar sign ($)

command prompt, 43-44

shell script variables, 223-224

domain name servers (DNS). See DNS (domain name servers).

domains

defining, 306

definition, 291-292

multidrop, 387

DOS, UMSDOS file system, 32

double quote ("), shell script variables, 224-225

downloads, automating, 240-241

dpkg command, 180-181

DragonLinux, 16, 32

drivers

CD-ROM, 31

network administration, 298-299

printer, 204

dselect program, 183

du command, 277

dual booting, 32

dump command, 270-272

easydns files, 388
EasyFw program, 469
echo command, 44
editing: crontab file, 235-236; password files, 92-96
editors: Emacs, 79-80; online resources, 80; Pico, 78-79; vi, 73-78
Emacs editor, 79-80
e-mail: aliases, setting up, 381-382; encrypting, 441-442; LDA (local delivery agent), 378; mail server, setting up, 377-378; mailing lists, 368; MTA (mail transport agent), 378; MUA (mail user agent), 378, 383-385; multidrop domains, 387; multiple domains, similar addresses, 386-387; Pegasus Mail, 384-385; PGP signatures, 441-442; POP3 (Post Office Protocol), 161, 379; remote pickup, 372-374; sendmail, 379-381, 386-387; SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol), 161; spam filters, 387-388; users, setting up, 381-382
e-mail-only accounts, 99
emergency boot disks. See boot disks.
encrypting e-mail, 441-442
encryption, 425-426. See also PGP (Pretty Good Privacy).
environment variables, shell scripts, 223-224
error file, standard. See STDERR (standard error).
ESP Print Pro, 217
/etc/hosts file, 303-304
/etc/named.conf file, 306-308
/etc/nsswitch.conf file, 328-329
executable file permissions, 57, 60-61
Expect home page, 247
expect program, 242-247
Exploring Expect, 247
exportfs command, 319-320
eznet program, 165-166

fd0. See STDIN (standard input).
fd1. See STDOUT (standard output).
fdisk command, 127-129
fetchmail program, 372-374
.fetchmail.rc file, 373
FHS (Filesystem Hierarchy Standard), 134
file contents: displaying, 45; searching, grep command, 65-66; searching, vi editor, 77; sorting, 45; unique lines, returning, 45; word count, 45
file descriptor 0. See STDIN (standard input).
file descriptor 1. See STDOUT (standard output).
file handles, performance tuning, 486
file permissions: append-only, 62; changing, 57-58; defaults, 59-60; examining, 64; executable, 57, 60-61; group ownership, 57-58; hidden files, 47; listing, 46-47; "Permission denied" messages, 63; r permission, 57; read, 57; s bit, 60-61; s (setuid) bit, 60-61; undeletable files, 47-49; user ownership, 57-58; w permission, 57; write, 57; x permission, 57; z permission, 57
file system trees: definition, 113-114; header files, 115; programs, 115; root file system, 113-114; shared libraries, 115; swap partitions, 113-114; system loadable modules, 114
file systems: checking and repairing, 120-122; configuration, displaying, 126; creating, 127-129; defaults, 125; definition, 113; description, 112; games, 116; indirect blocks, 124; inodes, 123-124; /lost+found, 120-122; mounting/unmounting, 124-126; online resources, 134; performance tuning, 482-487; /proc, 117-120; programs, 116; slices, 112; specifying, 129; system documentation, 116; /tmp, 117; /usr, 115-116; /var, 116; variable data, 116; X window system, 116
file types, testing in scripts, 227
files. See also entries for specific files.: associated packages, identifying, 181, 188-189; attributes, 61-63; concatenating, 45; copying, 45; data, 112; definition, 111-112; deleting, 45, 48-49; directory, 112; finding, 63-65; hidden, 47; listing, 45-46 . See also finding.; locking/recovering, 317; log. See log files.; maximum open, setting, 486; monitoring changes, 189; moving, 45; naming conventions, 45; ordinary, 112; piping, 53; renaming, 45; secure transfers, 432-433; sharing, 314; special, 112; STDERR (standard error), 54-55; STDIN (standard input), 51-53; STDOUT (standard output), 51-53; text, 112; undeletable, 47-48
Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS), 134
filters: print, 205-208, 211-213; spam, 387-388
find command, 63-65
finding. See also searching.: applications. See online resources; software review sites.; files, 63-65; users, 44
finger command, 44
FIPS, 32
firewalls, 376-377, 466-471
floppy-based Linux: LOAF (Linux On A Floppy), 343-344; tomsrtbt, 344-345; Trinux, 345-348
forcing commands, 50-51
forest view of processes, 68-70
form feeds, extraneous, 207
free command, 478-479
Freshmeat, 170-171
fsck program, 120-121
Ftape-HOWTO, 263

games, 116
GDiskFree, 123
gdm program, 136-138
Gelians, Jacques, 334
gfcc program, 470
ghostscript, 211-213
GIDs (group IDs), 93
GIMP, 263
GNOME (GNU Network Object Model Environment): online resources, 158, 491; window manager, 152-153
gnomecc, 341-342
gnorpm program, 189-190, 342
GNU Emacs, 80
GNU (GNU's Not Unix), 2, 7
GNU Network Object Model Environment (GNOME). See GNOME (GNU Network Object Model Environment).
GnuPG (GNU Privacy Guard), 433-439. See also encryption.
GNU's Not Unix (GNU): definition, 2; online resources, 7
Google Groups, 27
gppp-wvdial program, 168
grace periods, quota violations, 132-134
Grand Salmar Station, 363-367
graphical login managers, 136-138
Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs). See GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces).
greater than sign (>): redirecting STDERR, 54; redirecting STDOUT, 51
Gregorian dates, converting to Discordian, 344-345
grep command, 65-66
group files, 92, 103
group IDs (GIDs), 93
group ownership, 57-58
groupadd command, 96
groupdel command, 97
groupmod command, 96-97
groups: default, 98; defining, 98-99; managing, command line interface, 96-97; managing, graphical interface, 342
grpck command, 103
GTK+ Firewall Control Center, 470
GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces). See also desktops; window managers; X window system.: benefits of, 5; gnomecc, 341-342; gnorpm, 342; Grand Salmar Station, 363-367; kcontrol, 342; kdat, 342; KDE control panel, 341-342; klpq, 342; kpackage, 342; kuser, 342; Linuxconf, 334-338; timetool, 342; VNC (Virtual Network Computing), 348-352; Web browser interfaces, 334-341; Webmin, 338-341; xinitrc file, 139-140; .xinitrc file, 139-140; Xresources file, 141-143; .xserverrc file, 140-141

hacking. See cracking.
hard disks. See disks.
hard mounts, 320
hardware compatibility, 30, 41
hardware requirements, 30-31
Harris, David, 384
hash mark. See pound sign.
hashing, 107
hdparm command, 487-489
header files. location, 115
Heinlein, Robert A., 233
help. See also documentation; man pages; online resources.: in vi editor, 74-75
hidden files, 47
Hipp, D. Richard, 165
home directory, 56, 98
$HOME environment variable, 56
HOWTOs, 24-25
HP JetDirect adapters, 208-209
HP710C printers, 204
htpasswd command, 367

IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority), 292

ibiblio.org site, 174-175

ICE window manager, 158

identity backups, 272-275

ifconfig command, 299-301

import program, 157-158

indirect blocks, 124

inetd process, 289-290

info command, 23-24

info files, 23-24

init process, 82-83, 289-290

inittab file, 82-83

inodes, 123-124

input file, standard. See STDIN (standard input).

installing applications. See also package managers.

compiling from source, 175-178

on a Debian system, 180-185

unpacking archives, 176-177

installing Linux. See also package managers.

applications, selecting, 36-37

boot disks, creating, 38-39

boot disks, provided, 33

boot options, passing, 31

booting, 33

CD-ROM drivers, 31

compiling from source, 175-178

dual booting, 32

hardware requirements, 30-31

installation type, selecting, 33-34

keyboard type, selecting, 34

language, selecting, 34

LILO (Linux loader), 36

MBR (master boot record), 36

monitors, configuring, 38

mouse, selecting, 34

network, configuring, 37

partitioning, 32, 35-36

passwords, selecting, 37

root partitions, 35

swap partitions, 35

time required, 29

time zone, selecting, 34

UMSDOS file system, 32

unpacking archives, 176-177

X window system, configuring, 37-38

installing Perl modules, 178-179

installpkg program, 191

interactive sessions, scripting, 242-247

Intermezzo, 296-298

Internet. See also e-mail; intranets; IP addresses; PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol).

dial-up connections, setting up, 370-372

firewalls, 376-377

graphical interface, 162-164

IP forwarding, 374-375

ISPs, choosing, 370

Linux resources. See online resources.

masquerading, 374-375

SLIP (Serial Line Interface Protocol), 371

Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), 292

Internet Service Providers (ISPs), 160, 370

Internet Software Consortium, 304-305

interrupting processes, 70-71

intranets. See also Internet.

Apache Web server

building, 356-358

configuring, 358-359

databases

DBD (DataBase Dependent) module, 362-363

DBI (DataBase Interface) module, 362-363

PostgreSQL, 360-361

programming with Perl, 362-363

Web-connected, 359

definition, 355-356

Grand Salmar Station, 363-367

passwords, 366-367

user interface, 363-367

IP addresses

defining, 292-294

reverse mapping, 311-312

setting up, 299-301

IP forwarding, 374-375

IP packets, 288

ipchains program, 466-468, 473

ipfwadm program, 466

ISC, 332

ISPs (Internet Service Providers), 160, 370

jobs. See processes.
jobs command, 71
Jörg Schilling's site, 253

K Desktop Environment (KDE). See KDE (K Desktop Environment).

kcontrol, 342

kdat, 342

KDat program, 280-281

KDE (K Desktop Environment)

control panel, 341-342

online resources, 90, 158, 491

window manager, 151-152

KDiskFree, 123

kdm program, 136-138

"kernel too big" message, 197

kernels

2.4 kernel, 199-200

definition, 193

Linux Kernel Archives, 30

online resources, 201

rebuilding

automatically, 199

building a new kernel, 194-198

downloading a new kernel, 194

identifying need for, 193-194

including in LILO, 197-198

"kernel too big" message, 197

loadable modules, 196

rereading the configuration file, 197-198

source documentation, 200

key mapping, 154-155

keyboard type, selecting, 34

kill command, 72-73

killing processes, 72-73

Kjos, Ian, 255

klpq, 342

Kourai, Kenichi, 153-154

kpackage program, 184, 342

ksysv program, 88-90

kuser command, 104-105, 342

kwvdial program, 168

Kyoseon, Koo, 470

lame servers, 313
Langford, Jacob A., 215
language, selecting, 34
last command, 44
lastlog command, 102-103
LDA (local delivery agent), 378
LDP (Linux Documentation Project), 25-26
less command, 45
less than sign (<), redirecting STDIN, 51
LILO (Linux loader), 36
line feeds, converting to carriage returns, 205-208
links, on documentation pages, 24
Linux: application software, 6; definition, 1-3; distributions. See distributions.; installing. See installing Linux.; Internet resources. See online resources.; limitations, 6; running from CD-ROM, 16; running Windows applications. See Windows.; sources for, 15; updating on a Debian system, 180-185; vs. UNIX, 9-10; vs. Windows, 10
linux command, 40
Linux Kernel Archives, 30, 201
Linux Kernel HOWTO, 201
Linux Router Project, 332
LinuxBerg site, 171
Linuxconf, 334-338
LinuxPrinting.org, 218
listing. See displaying.
loadable modules, 196
LOAF (Linux On A Floppy), 343-344
local delivery agent (LDA), 378
log files: Analog, 419-421; analyzing, 415-424; archiving, 410-411; automating, 415-416; cleaning up, 409-411; contents, specifying, 412-418; detecting crackers, 452; displaying, 407-408; Logcheck, 416-418; logger program, 414-415; master logger, 411-414; names, 408-409; recreating, 410-411; rotating, 410-411; syslog.conf file, 412-414; syslogd daemon, 411-414; system logs, 407; user-generated entries, 414-415; Web server logs, 418-424; Webalizer, 421-424; wtmp file, 409
Logcheck, 416-418
logged-in users, querying, 44
logger program, 414-415
login managers, 136-138
logins: most recent, determining, 102; multiple, preventing, 226-228; source location, determining, 108-109
logrotate program, 410
/lost+found file systems, 120-122
lpc command, 209-210
lpq command, 210
lprm command, 210
ls command, 45-46
lsattr command, 61-63
LUGs (Linux User Groups), 26

MAC (Media Access Control) addresses, 300

mail server, setting up, 377-378

mail transport agent (MTA), 378

mail user agent (MUA), 378, 383-385

mailboxes, deleting, 101

mailing lists, 368

major device numbers, 249-251

man command, 19-20

man pages, 19-23. See also documentation; online resources.

Mandrake distribution, 13

MANPATHs, 23

masquerading, 374-375

master boot record (MBR), 36

master logger, 411-414

master process, 82-83

master server, configuring, 325-327

MBR (master boot record), 36

Media Access Control (MAC) addresses, 300

memory, monitoring, 478-479

menus, on documentation pages, 24

metacharacters, 46

metalab.unc.edu site, 174-175

Mills, David L., 330

minor device numbers, 249-251

mkbootdisk command, 39

mkdir command, 55

mkfs command, 129

mknod command, 249-251

ModSSL, 446

monitoring

changes to files, 189

command execution time, 490-491

CPU usage, 479-481

disk I/O, 480

disk space, 122-123, 229-231

memory, 478-479

up time, 476

monitors, configuring, 38

more command, 45

mount command, 124-125, 320-321

mounting file systems

description, 124-126

/etc/fstab, 321-322

Linux autofs, 322-323

mount command, 124-125

mount requests, 317

NFS (Network File System)

with /etc/fstab, 321-322

hard mounts, 320

with Linux autofs, 322-323

with mount command, 320-321

mount requests, 317

rpc.mountd daemon, 317

soft mounts, 320

mouse, selecting, 34

moving

directories, 55

files, 45

mpage command, 214

mt command, 261

MTA (mail transport agent), 378

MUA (mail user agent), 378, 383-385

multidrop domains, 387

mv command, 45, 55

Nagree, Yusuf, 278
naming conventions, files, 45
ncftp program, 240-241
ncftpget program, 240
ncftpput program, 240
netmasks, 295-298
Netscape, 429
Netscape Communicator, 388
netstat program, 302-303
Netwatch, 473
network administration. See also DNS (domain name servers); Internet; intranets; IP addresses; NFS (Network File System).: breaking up a network, 294-296; broadcast addresses, 295-296; CIDR (Classless InterDomain Routing), 296-298; configuring during installation, 37; connectionless protocols, 288; connection-oriented protocols, 288; country codes, 292; datagrams, 288; domains, 291-292; drivers, 298-299; file sharing, 314; graphical interfaces, 331; IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority), 292; inetd process, 289-290; init process, 289-290; Intermezzo, 296-298; IP packets, 288; MAC (Media Access Control) addresses, 300; netmasks, 295-298; network classes, 293-294; ntop program, 347; NTP, 330-331; online resources, 332; ports, 289-290; protocols, 288; rdate command, 330; routers, 296; routing, configuring, 301-303; routing, performance tuning, 482-484; services, 289-290; subnets, 296; TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), 288; TCP/IP, 288-289; time synchronization, 330-331; TLDs (top-level domains), 291; UDP (User Datagram Protocol), 288; usage, displaying, 347
network classes, 293-294
Network File System (NFS). See NFS (Network File System).
network information service (NIS). See NIS (network information service).
Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP), 161
NFS (Network File System): file locking/recovery, 317; hard mounts, 320; mount requests, 317; mounting, 320-323; overview, 315-316; quota support, 317; remote file systems, making available, 317-320; RPC services, determining, 316; rpc.mountd daemon, 317; rpc.nfsd daemon, 317; rpc.quotad daemon, 317; rpc.statd daemon, 317; soft mounts, 320; squashing permissions, 317-320; user requests, 317
NFS project, 315
NIS (network information service). See also DNS (domain name servers).: configuring the master server, 325-327; configuring the NIS client, 327-328; /etc/nsswitch.conf file, 328-329; overview, 324-325
Nmap, 473
NNTP (Network News Transfer Protocol), 161
no_hide option, 318
Norman, Tim, 204
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Linux System Administration: A User's Guide

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