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A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Mark G. Sobell

A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux By Mark G. Sobell

A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux by Mark G. Sobell


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A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Summary

A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux by Mark G. Sobell


Master All the Techniques You Need to Succeed with Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux

  • Set up key Internet servers, step by step, including Samba, Apache, sendmail, DNS, FTP, and other Internet servers
  • Automate and streamline administration with this edition's outstanding new chapter on Perl scripting
  • Master GUI-based admin tools and the powerful Linux command line (CLI)

In this book, one of the world's leading Linux experts brings together all the knowledge you'll need to succeed with Fedora or Red Hat Enterprise Linux in any real-world environment. Best-selling author Mark Sobell explains Linux clearly and effectively, focusing on skills you'll actually use as an administrator, user, or programmer.

Sobell assumes no prior Linux knowledge. He starts at the beginning and walks you through every topic and task that matters, using easy-to-understand examples. Step by step, you'll learn how to install and configure Linux from the accompanying DVD, navigate its graphical user interfaces, provide file/print sharing and Internet services, make sure Linux desktops and networks are as secure as possible, work with the powerful command line, administer Linux efficiently, and even automate administration with Perl scripts.

Mark Sobell has taught hundreds of thousands of Linux and UNIX professionals. He knows every Linux nook and cranny-and he never forgets what it's like to be new to Linux. Whatever you'll want to do with Linux-now or in the future-this book gives you everything you'll need.

Compared with the other Linux books out there, A Practical Guide to Fedora (TM) and Red Hat (R) Enterprise Linux (R), Fifth Edition, delivers

  • Complete, up-to-the-minute coverage of Fedora 12 and RHEL 5
  • Deeper coverage of the command line and the newest GUIs, including desktop customization
  • More practical coverage of file sharing using Samba, NFS, and FTP
  • More and better coverage of automating administration with Perl
  • More usable, realistic coverage of Internet server configuration, including Apache, sendmail, NFS, DNS/BIND, and LDAP
  • More state-of-the-art security techniques, including SELinux (Security Enhanced Linux), ACLs (Access Control Lists), firewall setup using both the Red Hat GUI and iptables, and a full chapter on OpenSSH
  • More and better coverage of system/network administration tasks, including new coverage of network monitoring with Cacti
  • Complete instructions on keeping Linux systems up-to-date using yum
  • And much more, including a 500+ term glossary and a comprehensive index

Includes DVD! Get the full version of the Fedora 12 release!

A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Reviews

"I have found this book to be a very useful classroom text, as well as a great Linux resource. It teaches Linux using a ground-up approach that gives students the chance to progress with their skills and grow into the Linux world. I have often pointed to this book when asked to recommend a solid Linux reference."

- Eric Hartwell, Chair, School of Information Technology, ITT Technical Institute

Praise for Previous Editions of A Practical Guide to Fedora (TM) and Red Hat (R) Enterprise Linux (R)

"Since I'm in an educational environment, I found the content of Sobell's book to be right on target and very helpful for anyone managing Linux in the enterprise. His style of writing is very clear. He builds up to the chapter exercises, which I find to be relevant to real-world scenarios a user or admin would encounter. An IT/IS student would find this book a valuable complement to their education. The vast amount of information is extremely well balanced and Sobell manages to present the content without complicated asides and meandering prose. This is a `must have' for anyone managing Linux systems in a networked environment or anyone running a Linux server. I would also highly recommend it to an experienced computer user who is moving to the Linux platform."

-Mary Norbury, IT Director, Barbara Davis Center, University of Colorado at Denver, from a review posted on slashdot.org

"I had the chance to use your UNIX books when I when was in college years ago at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA. I have to say that your books are among the best! They're quality books that teach the theoretical aspects and applications of the operating system."

-Benton Chan, IS Engineer

"The book has more than lived up to my expectations from the many reviews I read, even though it targets FC2. I have found something very rare with your book: It doesn't read like the standard technical text, it reads more like a story. It's a pleasure to read and hard to put down. Did I say that?! :-)"

-David Hopkins, Business Process Architect

"Thanks for your work and for the book you wrote. There are really few books that can help people to become more efficient administrators of different workstations. We hope (in Russia) that you will continue bringing us a new level of understanding of Linux/UNIX systems."

-Anton Petukhov

"Mark Sobell has written a book as approachable as it is authoritative."

-Jeffrey Bianchine, Advocate, Author, Journalist

"Excellent reference book, well suited for the sysadmin of a Linux cluster, or the owner of a PC contemplating installing a recent stable Linux. Don't be put off by the daunting heft of the book. Sobell has striven to be as inclusive as possible, in trying to anticipate your system administration needs."

-Wes Boudville, Inventor

"A Practical Guide to Red Hat (R) Linux (R) is a brilliant book. Thank you, Mark Sobell."

-C. Pozrikidis, University of California at San Diego

"This book presents the best overview of the Linux operating system that I have found. . . . [It] should be very helpful and understandable no matter what the reader's background: traditional UNIX user, new Linux devotee, or even Windows user. Each topic is presented in a clear, complete fashion and very few assumptions are made about what the reader knows. . . . The book is extremely useful as a reference, as it contains a 70-page glossary of terms and is very well indexed. It is organized in such a way that the reader can focus on simple tasks without having to wade through more advanced topics until they are ready."

-Cam Marshall, Marshall Information Service LLC, Member of Front Range UNIX, Users Group [FRUUG], Boulder, Colorado

"Conclusively, this is THE book to get if you are a new Linux user and you just got into RH/Fedora world. There's no other book that discusses so many different topics and in such depth."

-Eugenia Loli-Queru, Editor in Chief, OSNews.com

Praise for Other Books by Mark G. Sobell

"This book is a very useful tool for anyone who wants to `look under the hood' so to speak, and really start putting the power of Linux to work. What I find particularly frustrating about man pages is that they never include examples. Sobell, on the other hand, outlines very clearly what the command does and then gives several common, easy-tounderstand examples that make it a breeze to start shell programming on one's own. As with Sobell's other works, this is simple, straightforward, and easy to read. It's a great book and will stay on the shelf at easy arm's reach for a long time."

-Ray Bartlett, Travel Writer

"Overall I found this book to be quite excellent, and it has earned a spot on the very front of my bookshelf. It covers the real `guts' of Linux-the command line and its utilities-and does so very well. Its strongest points are the outstanding use of examples, and the Command Reference section. Highly recommended for Linux users of all skill levels. Well done to Mark Sobell and Prentice Hall for this outstanding book!"

-Dan Clough, Electronics Engineer and Slackware Linux User

"Totally unlike most Linux books, this book avoids discussing everything via GUI and jumps right into making the power of the command line your friend."

-Bjorn Tipling, Software Engineer, ask.com

"This book is the best distro-agnostic, foundational Linux reference I've ever seen, out of dozens of Linux-related books I've read. Finding this book was a real stroke of luck. If you want to really understand how to get things done at the command line, where the power and flexibility of free UNIX-like OSes really live, this book is among the best tools you'll find toward that end."

-Chad Perrin, Writer, TechRepublic

"I currently own one of your books, A Practical Guide to Linux (R). I believe this book is one of the most comprehensive and, as the title says, practical guides to Linux I have ever read. I consider myself a novice and I come back to this book over and over again."

-Albert J. Nguyen

"Thank you for writing a book to help me get away from Windows XP and to never touch Windows Vista. The book is great; I am learning a lot of new concepts and commands. Linux is definitely getting easier to use."

-James Moritz

"I am so impressed by how Mark Sobell can approach a complex topic in such an understandable manner. His command examples are especially useful in providing a novice (or even an advanced) administrator with a cookbook on how to accomplish real-world tasks on Linux. He is truly an inspired technical writer!"

-George Vish II, Senior Education Consultant, Hewlett-Packard Company

"Overall, I think it's a great, comprehensive Ubuntu book that'll be a valuable resource for people of all technical levels."

-John Dong, Ubuntu Forum Council Member, Backports Team Leader

"The JumpStart sections really offer a quick way to get things up and running, allowing you to dig into the details of the book later."

-Scott Mann, Aztek Networks

"I would so love to be able to use this book to teach a class about not just Ubuntu or Linux but about computers in general. It is thorough and well written with good illustrations that explain important concepts

for computer usage."

-Nathan Eckenrode, New York Local Community Team

"Ubuntu is gaining popularity at the rate alcohol did during Prohibition, and it's great to see a well-known author write a book on the latest and greatest version. Not only does it contain Ubuntu-specific information, but it also touches on general computer-related topics, which will help the average computer user to better understand what's going on in the background. Great work, Mark!"

-Daniel R. Arfsten, Pro/ENGINEER Drafter/Designer

"I read a lot of Linux technical information every day, but I'm rarely impressed by tech books. I usually prefer online information sources instead. Mark Sobell's books are a notable exception. They're clearly written, technically accurate, comprehensive, and actually enjoyable to read."

-Matthew Miller, Senior Systems Analyst/Administrator, BU Linux Project, Boston University Office, of Information Technology

"This is well written, clear, comprehensive information for the Linux user of any type, whether trying Ubuntu on for the first time and wanting to know a little about it, or using the book as a very good reference when doing something more complicated like setting up a server. This book's value goes well beyond its purchase price and it'll make a great addition to the Linux section of your bookshelf."

-Linc Fessenden, Host of The LinuxLink TechShow, tllts.org

"The author has done a very good job at clarifying such a detail-oriented operating system. I have extensive Unix and Windows experience and this text does an excellent job at bridging the gaps between Linux, Windows, and Unix. I highly recommend this book to both `newbs' and experienced users. Great job!"

-Mark Polczynski, Information Technology Consultant

"When I first started working with Linux just a short 10 years or so ago, it was a little more difficult than now to get going. . . . Now, someone new to the community has a vast array of resources available on the web, or if they are inclined to begin with Ubuntu, they can literally find almost every single thing they will need in the single volume of Mark Sobell's A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux (R).

"I'm sure this sounds a bit like hyperbole. Everything a person would need to know? Obviously not everything, but this book, weighing in at just under 1200 pages, covers so much so thoroughly that there won't be much left out. From install to admin, networking, security, shell scripting, package management, and a host of other topics, it is all there. GUI and command line tools are covered. There is not really any wasted space or fluff, just a huge amount of information. There are screen shots when appropriate but they do not take up an inordinate amount of space. This book is information-dense."

-JR Peck, Editor, GeekBook.org

"I have been wanting to make the jump to Linux but did not have the guts to do so-until I saw your familiarly titled A Practical Guide to Red Hat (R) Linux (R) at the bookstore. I picked up a copy and am eagerly looking forward to regaining my freedom."

-Carmine Stoffo, Machine and Process Designer, to pharmaceutical industry

"I am currently reading A Practical Guide to Red Hat (R) Linux (R) and am finally understanding the true power of the command line. I am new to Linux and your book is a treasure."

-Juan Gonzalez

"Overall, A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux (R) by Mark G. Sobell provides all of the information a beginner to intermediate user of Linux would need to be productive. The inclusion of the Live DVD of the Gutsy Gibbon release of Ubuntu makes it easy for the user to test-drive Linux without affecting his installed OS. I have no doubts that you will consider this book money well spent."

-Ray Lodato, Slashdot contributor, www.slashdot.org

About Mark G. Sobell

Mark G. Sobell is President of Sobell Associates Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in UNIX/Linux training, support, and custom software development. He has more than twenty-five years of experience working with UNIX and Linux systems and is the author of many best-selling books, including A Practical Guide to Linux (R) Commands, Editors, and Shell Programming, Second Edition, and A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux (R), Second Edition, both from Prentice Hall, and A Practical Guide to the UNIX System from Addison-Wesley.

Table of Contents

Preface xxxvii

Chapter 1: Welcome to Linux 1

The GNU-Linux Connection 2

The Linux 2.6 Kernel 5

The Heritage of Linux: UNIX 5

What Is So Good About Linux? 6

Overview of Linux 10

Additional Features of Linux 14

Conventions Used in This Book 16

Chapter Summary 19

Exercises 19

Part I: Installing Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 21

Chapter 2: Installation Overview 23

The Desktop Live CD and the Install DVD 24

Planning the Installation 24

The Installation Process 39

The Medium: Where Is the Source Data? 40

Downloading a CD/DVD (FEDORA) 41

Checking and Burning the CD/DVD 45

Rescue Selection of the Install DVD 46

Gathering Information About the System 46

Finding the Installation Manual 47

More Information 48

Chapter Summary 48

Exercises 49

Advanced Exercises 49

Chapter 3: Step-by-Step Installation 51

Running a Fedora Live Session 52

Installing Fedora/RHEL 55

Installation Tasks 68

The X Window System 84

Chapter Summary 85

Exercises 85

Advanced Exercises 86

Part II: Getting Started with Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 87

Chapter 4: Introduction to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 89

Curbing Your Power (Superuser/root Privileges) 90

A Tour of the Fedora/RHEL Desktop 90

Getting the Most Out of the Desktop 109

Updating, Installing, and Removing Software Packages 122

Where to Find Documentation 124

More About Logging In 132

Working from the Command Line 138

Controlling Windows: Advanced Operations 141

Chapter Summary 143

Exercises 144

Advanced Exercises 145

Chapter 5: The Linux Utilities 147

Special Characters 148

Basic Utilities 149

Working with Files 151

| (Pipe): Communicates Between Processes 158

Four More Utilities 159

Compressing and Archiving Files 161

Locating Commands 166

Obtaining User and System Information 168

Communicating with Other Users 172

Email 174

Tutorial: Creating and Editing a File Using vim 174

Chapter Summary 181

Exercises 184

Advanced Exercises 185

Chapter 6: The Linux Filesystem 187

The Hierarchical Filesystem 188

Directory Files and Ordinary Files 188

Pathnames 193

Directory Commands 195

Working with Directories 200

Access Permissions 202

ACLs: Access Control Lists 207

Links 212

Chapter Summary 218

Exercises 220

Advanced Exercises 222

Chapter 7: The Shell 223

The Command Line 224

Standard Input and Standard Output 230

Running a Program in the Background 241

Filename Generation/Pathname Expansion 243

Builtins 247

Chapter Summary 248

Utilities and Builtins Introduced in This Chapter 249

Exercises 249

Advanced Exercises 251

Part III: Digging into Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 253

Chapter 8: Linux GUIs: X and GNOME 255

X Window System 256

The Nautilus File Browser Window 264

The Nautilus Spatial View 270

GNOME Utilities 272

Chapter Summary 276

Exercises 277

Advanced Exercises 277

Chapter 9: The Bourne Again Shell 279

Background 280

Shell Basics 281

Parameters and Variables 299

Special Characters 313

Processes 314

History 316

Aliases 332

Functions 335

Controlling bash Features and Options 338

Processing the Command Line 342

Chapter Summary 351

Exercises 353

Advanced Exercises 355

Chapter 10: Networking and the Internet 357

Types of Networks and How They Work 359

Communicate Over a Network 374

Network Utilities 376

Distributed Computing 383

Usenet 392

WWW: World Wide Web 395

Chapter Summary 397

Exercises 398

Advanced Exercises 399

Part IV: System Administration 401

Chapter 11: System Administration: Core Concepts 403

System Administrator and Superuser 405

Rescue Mode 411

SELinux 414

The Upstart Event-Based init Daemon (FEDORA) 417

System Operation 424

System Administration Utilities 436

Setting Up a Server 441

nsswitch.conf: Which Service to Look at First 455

PAM 458

Chapter Summary 464

Exercises 464

Advanced Exercises 465

Chapter 12: Files, Directories, and Filesystems 467

Important Files and Directories 468

File Types 480

Filesystems 485

Chapter Summary 495

Exercises 495

Advanced Exercises 496

Chapter 13: Downloading and Installing Software 497

yum: Keeps the System Up-to-Date 498

Adding and Removing Software Packages 505

BitTorrent 507

rpm: Red Hat Package Manager 510

Installing Non-rpm Software 513

Keeping Software Up-to-Date 515

wget: Downloads Files Noninteractively 517

Chapter Summary 518

Exercises 518

Advanced Exercises 518

Chapter 14: Printing with CUPS 519

Introduction 520

JumpStart I: Configuring a Local Printer 521

system-config-printer: Configuring a Printer 522

JumpStart II: Setting Up a Local or Remote Printer Using the CUPS Web Interface 527

Traditional UNIX Printing 530

Configuring Printers 532

Printing from Windows 538

Printing to Windows 540

Chapter Summary 540

Exercises 541

Advanced Exercises 541

Chapter 15: Rebuilding the Linux Kernel 543

Preparing the Source Code 544

Read the Documentation 546

Configuring and Compiling the Linux Kernel 547

Installing the Kernel and Associated Files 550

Rebooting the System 550

Boot Loader 551

dmesg: Displays Kernel Messages 553

Chapter Summary 553

Exercises 554

Advanced Exercises 554

Chapter 16: Administration Tasks 555

Configuring User and Group Accounts 556

Backing Up Files 558

Scheduling Tasks 565

System Reports 566

parted: Reports on and Partitions a Hard Disk 568

Keeping Users Informed 572

Creating Problems 572

Solving Problems 574

MySQL 584

Chapter Summary 592

Exercises 593

Advanced Exercises 593

Chapter 17: Configuring and Monitoring a LAN 595

Setting Up the Hardware 596

Configuring the Systems 598

NetworkManager: Configures Network Connections 599

The Network Configuration Window (system-config-network) 601

iwconfig: Configures a Wireless NIC 605

Setting Up Servers 606

Introduction to Cacti 607

More Information 617

Chapter Summary 617

Exercises 618

Advanced Exercises 618

Part V: Using Clients and Setting Up Servers 619

Chapter 18: OpenSSH: Secure Network Communication 621

Introduction 622

About OpenSSH 622

OpenSSH Clients 625

sshd: OpenSSH Server 633

Troubleshooting 637

Tunneling/Port Forwarding 638

Chapter Summary 641

Exercises 641

Advanced Exercises 642

Chapter 19: FTP: Transferring Files Across a Network 643

Introduction 644

More Information 645

FTP Client 645

FTP Server (vsftpd) 654

Chapter Summary 666

Exercises 667

Advanced Exercises 667

Chapter 20: sendmail: Setting Up Mail Clients, Servers, and More 669

Introduction 670

JumpStart I: Configuring sendmail on a Client 672

JumpStart II: Configuring sendmail on a Server 673

How sendmail Works 674

Configuring sendmail 677

Additional Email Tools 682

Authenticated Relaying 689

Alternatives to sendmail 691

Chapter Summary 692

Exercises 692

Advanced Exercises 693

Chapter 21: NIS and LDAP 695

Introduction to NIS 696

How NIS Works 696

Setting Up an NIS Client 699

Setting Up an NIS Server 703

LDAP 710

Setting Up an LDAP Server 713

Chapter Summary 723

Exercises 724

Advanced Exercises 724

Chapter 22: NFS: Sharing Filesystems 727

Introduction 728

More Information 730

Setting Up an NFS Client 730

Setting Up an NFS Server 736

automount: Automatically Mounts Directory Hierarchies 744

Chapter Summary 746

Exercises 746

Advanced Exercises 747

Chapter 23: Samba: Integrating Linux and Windows 749

Introduction 750

About Samba 751

JumpStart: Configuring a Samba Server Using system-config-samba 753

swat: Configures a Samba Server 755

Manually Configuring a Samba Server 759

Accessing Linux Shares from Windows 765

Accessing Windows Shares from Linux 766

Troubleshooting 768

Chapter Summary 770

Exercises 771

Advanced Exercises 771

Chapter 24: DNS/BIND: Tracking Domain Names and Addresses 773

Introduction to DNS 774

About DNS 785

JumpStart I: Setting Up a DNS Cache 787

JumpStart II: Setting Up a Domain Using system-config-bind 789

Setting Up BIND 793

Troubleshooting 805

A Full-Functioned Nameserver 807

A Slave Server 810

A Split Horizon Server 811

Chapter Summary 816

Exercises 816

Advanced Exercises 817

Chapter 25: iptables: Setting Up a Firewall 819

How iptables Works 820

About iptables 822

JumpStart: Building a Firewall Using system-config-firewall 824

Anatomy of an iptables Command 825

Building a Set of Rules 826

system-config-firewall: Generates a Set of Rules 833

Sharing an Internet Connection Using NAT 835

Chapter Summary 839

Exercises 839

Advanced Exercises 839

Chapter 26: Apache (httpd): Setting Up a Web Server 841

Introduction 842

About Apache 842

JumpStart I: Getting Apache Up and Running 844

JumpStart II: Setting Up Apache Using system-config-httpd 846

Filesystem Layout 848

Configuration Directives 850

The Fedora/RHEL httpd.conf File 870

Redirects 873

Multiviews 874

Server-Generated Directory Listings (Indexing) 874

Virtual Hosts 874

Troubleshooting 875

Modules 876

webalizer: Analyzes Web Traffic 881

MRTG: Monitors Traffic Loads 882

Error Codes 882

Chapter Summary 883

Exercises 884

Advanced Exercises 884

Part VI: Programming Tools 885

Chapter 27: Programming the Bourne Again Shell 887

Control Structures 888

File Descriptors 921

Parameters and Variables 924

Builtin Commands 936

Expressions 950

Shell Programs 958

Chapter Summary 968

Exercises 970

Advanced Exercises 972

Chapter 28: The Perl Scripting Language 975

Introduction to Perl 976

Variables 983

Control Structures 991

Working with Files 1000

Sort 1003

Subroutines 1005

Regular Expressions 1007

CPAN Modules 1013

Examples 1015

Chapter Summary 1019

Exercises 1019

Advanced Exercises 1020

Part VII: Appendixes 1021

Appendix A: Regular Expressions 1023

Characters 1024

Delimiters 1024

Simple Strings 1024

Special Characters 1024

Rules 1027

Bracketing Expressions 1028

The Replacement String 1028

Extended Regular Expressions 1029

Appendix Summary 1031

Appendix B: Help 1033

Solving a Problem 1034

Finding Linux-Related Information 1035

Specifying a Terminal 1040

Appendix C: Security 1043

Encryption 1044

File Security 1049

Email Security 1049

Network Security 1050

Host Security 1053

Security Resources 1058

Appendix Summary 1061

Appendix D: The Free Software Definition 1063

Glossary 1067

Index 1117

Additional information

CIN0137060882VG
9780137060887
0137060882
A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux by Mark G. Sobell
Used - Very Good
Hardback
Pearson Education (US)
2010-02-11
1224
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - A Practical Guide to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux