SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

Fundamentals
COU RSE 3071

Novell Training Services

AUTHORIZED COURSEWA RE

Part # 100-005096-001
Version 2

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Contents

Contents

Introduction
Course Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-2
Audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-2
Certification and Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-3
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Support and
Maintenance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-5
Novell Customer Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-6
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Online Resources . . . . . Intro-7
Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-8
Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-9
Exercise Conventions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro-10
SECTION 1

Understand the Linux Story

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

Objective 1

The History of Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2

The Historical Development of UNIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
The Development of Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
The Software Differences Between SUSE Linux
and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6

Objective 2

Version 2

Understand the Multiuser Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 3

Perform a Simple Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise

Server 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Pre-Installation Requirements and Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . .
Installation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Basic Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 1-1 Install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10. . . . . .

1-11
1-13
1-15
1-22
1-34

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-35
SECTION 2

Use the Linux Desktop

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2

Objective 1

Overview of the Linux Desktop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Objective 2

Use the GNOME Desktop Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

Log in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Log out and Shut down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 2-1 Log in to and Log out from the GNOME
Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Identify GNOME Desktop Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manage Icons in GNOME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 2-2 Work with Icons in GNOME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 2-3 Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus) . . . .

Objective 3

2-6
2-9
2-11
2-12
2-15
2-20
2-21
2-23

Access the Command Line Interface from the Desktop . . . . . 2-24

Exercise 2-4 Access the Command Line Interface . . . . . . . . . 2-26
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-27

TOC-2

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SECTION 3

Administer Linux with YaST

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1

Objective 1

Get to Know YaST. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2

Exercise 3-1 Get to Know YaST. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6

Objective 2

Understand the Role of SuSEconfig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7

Objective 3

Manage the Network Configuration Information from YaST . 3-9

Exercise 3-2 Manage the Network Configuration Information
from YaST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-20

Objective 4

Install Software Packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21

Objective 5

Manage Installation Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24

Exercise 3-3 Install New Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27

SECTION 4

Locate and Use Help Resources

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1

Objective 1

Access and Use man Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2

Exercise 4-1 Access and Use man Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8

Objective 2

Use info Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-9

Exercise 4-2 Access and Use info Pages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-11

Objective 3

Access Release Notes and White Papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-12

Release Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Manuals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Help for Installed Packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Howtos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 4-3 Access Release Notes and White Papers Pages .

Objective 4

Version 2

4-12
4-13
4-13
4-14
4-15

Use GUI-Based Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 5

Find Help on the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-17

Exercise 4-4 Find Help on the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-18
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-19

SECTION 5

Manage Directories and Files

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1

Objective 1

Understand the File System Hierarchy Standard (FHS) . . . . . 5-2

The Hierarchical Structure of the File System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
FHS (Filesystem Hierarchy Standard) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Root Directory / . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Essential Binaries for Use by All Users (/bin) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Boot Directory (/boot) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Other Partitions (/data) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Device Files (/dev) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Configuration Files (/etc) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
User Directories (/home) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Libraries (/lib) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Mount Points for Removable Media (/media/*) . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Application Directory (/opt) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Home Directory of the Administrator (/root) . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
System Binaries (/sbin) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Data Directories for Services (/srv) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Subdomain AppArmor (/subdomain) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Temporary Area (/tmp) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
The Hierarchy Below /usr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Variable Files (/var) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Windows Partitions (/windows) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Process Files (/proc) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
System Information Directory (/sys) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Mount Point for Temporarily Mounted File Systems (/mnt) . 5-23
Directories for Mounting Other File Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Exercise 5-1 Explore the SUSE Linux File System Hierarchy 5-26

TOC-4

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Objective 2

Identify File Types in the Linux System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27

Normal Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Device Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sockets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
FIFOs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 3

5-27
5-27
5-28
5-28
5-28
5-28

Change Directories and List Directory Contents . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29

cd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
pwd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-2 Change Directories and List Directory Contents

Objective 4

Create and View Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33

Create a New File with touch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
View a File with cat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
View a File with less . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
View a File with head and tail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-3 Create and View Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 5

5-33
5-34
5-34
5-35
5-37

Work with Files and Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38

Copy and Move Files and Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-4 Copy and Move Files and Directories . . . . . . . .
Create Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-5 Create Directories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Delete Files and Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-6 Delete Files and Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Link Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-7 Link Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Version 2

5-29
5-30
5-31
5-32

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5-38
5-41
5-42
5-43
5-44
5-46
5-47
5-50

TOC-5

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 6

Find Files on Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-51

Graphical Search Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
find . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
locate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
whereis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
which . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 5-8 Find Files on Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 7

5-52
5-54
5-57
5-59
5-60
5-61
5-62

Search File Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-63

Use the grep Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-63
Use Regular Expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
Exercise 5-9 Search File Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-67

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-68
SECTION 6

Work with the Linux Shell and Command Line

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1

Objective 1

Get to Know the Command Shells. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2

Types of Shells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
bash Configuration Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Completion of Commands and Filenames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5

Objective 2

Execute Commands at the Command Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6

History Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Switch to User root . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Exercise 6-1 Execute Commands at the Command Line . . . . . 6-8

Objective 3

Get to Know Common Command Line Tasks. . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9

Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Aliases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Exercise 6-2 Perform Common Command Line Tasks . . . . . 6-13

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Objective 4

Understand Command Syntax and Special Characters . . . . . . 6-14

Select your Character Encoding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Use Search Patterns for Name Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Prevent the Shell from Interpreting Special Characters . . . . .
Exercise 6-3 Work with Command Syntax and Special
Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 5

6-14
6-17
6-18
6-20

Use Piping and Redirection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21

Exercise 6-4 Use Piping and Redirection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-26
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-27

SECTION 7

Use Linux Text Editors

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1

Objective 1

Get to Know Linux Text Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2

Objective 2

Use the Editor vi to Edit Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4

Start vi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Use the Editor vi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Learn the Working Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 7-1 Use vi to Edit Files in the Linux System . . . . . . .

7-5
7-5
7-6
7-9

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10
SECTION 8

Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1

Objective 1

Manage User and Group Accounts with YaST . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-2

Basics about Users and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-2
User and Group Administration with YaST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-3
Exercise 8-1 Manage User Accounts with YaST . . . . . . . . . . 8-14

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 2

Describe Basic Linux User Security Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-15

File System Security Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-15
Users and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-16
Exercise 8-2 Check User and Group Information on Your
Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-27

Objective 3

Manage User and Group Accounts from the Command Line . 8-28
Manage User Accounts from the Command Line . . . . . . . . .
Manage Groups from the Command Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Create Text Login Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 8-3 Create and Manage Users and Groups from the
Command Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 4

8-37

Manage File Permissions and Ownership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-38

Understand File Permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Change File Permissions with chmod . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Change File Ownership with chown and chgrp . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercise 8-4 Manage File Permissions and Ownership . . . . .
Modify Default Access Permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Configure Special File Permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 5

8-28
8-34
8-36

8-38
8-41
8-43
8-45
8-46
8-48

Ensure File System Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8-51

The Basic Rules for User Write Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-51
The Basic Rules for User Read Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-52
How Special File Permissions Affect the Security of the
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-53

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-55
APPENDIX A
Objective 1

Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Install the KDE Desktop Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Install KDE during Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Install KDE after Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3
Exercise A-1 Install the KDE Desktop Environment . . . . . . . . A-4

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Contents

Objective 2

Log in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5

Objective 3

Log out and Shut down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-8

Objective 4

Identify KDE Desktop Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-10

The Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The KDE Control Panel (Kicker) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The KDE Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Virtual Desktops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Objective 5

A-10
A-10
A-12
A-13

Manage Icons in the KDE Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-14

Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-14
Kicker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-14
KDE Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-15

Objective 6

Use the Konqueror File Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-16

Exercise A-2 Explore Your KDE Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-18
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-19

APPENDIX B

Network Components and Architecture

Network Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2
Client/Server and Peer-to-Peer Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-6
Network Topology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-8
Elements of a Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-17
TCP/IP Layer Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-22

Index

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

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Introduction

Introduction

In the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals (3071)

course, you learn the basic Linux skills necessary to prepare you for
performing SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 administrative tasks.
These skills, along with those taught in the SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10 Administration (3072) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
10 Advanced Administration (3073) courses, prepare you to take the
Novell Certified Linux Professional 10 (Novell CLP 10)
certification practicum test.
The contents of your student kit include the following:

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals Manual

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals Workbook

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals Course DVD

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Product DVD

SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 Product DVD

The SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals Course DVD

contains a VMware Workstation SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10
server (in the directory vmware) that you can use with the SUSE
Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals Workbook outside the
classroom to practice the skills you need to prepare for the 3071
course.

x
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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Course Objectives
This course teaches you the following concepts and skills
fundamental to understanding SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10:

Understand the Linux story

Use the Linux desktop

Manage the network configuration

Manage software packages

Locate and use help resources

Manage directories and files

Work with the command line

Use Linux text editors

Manage user, groups and permissions

These are fundamental and prerequisite to learning the skills of an

entry level SUSE Linux administrator or help desk technician in an
enterprise environment.

Audience
While the primary audience for this course are administrators who
are interested in Linux, certification candidates with experience in
other operating systems can also use this course to begin preparing
for the Novell CLP 10 Practicum.

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Introduction

Certification and Prerequisites

This course helps you prepare for the Novell Certified Linux
Professional 10 (Novell CLP 10) Practical Test, called a practicum.
The Novell CLP 10 is the administrator-level certification for SUSE
Linux Enterprise Server 10.
As with all Novell certifications, course work is recommended. To
achieve the certification, you are required to pass the Novell CLP 10
Practicum (050-697).
The Novell CLP 10 Practicum is a hands-on, scenario-based exam
where you apply the knowledge you have learned to solve real-life
problemsdemonstrating that you know what to do and how to do
it.
The practicum tests you on objectives in this course (SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server Fundamentals - Course 3071) and the skills
outlined in the following Novell CLP 10 courses:

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Administration - Course 3072

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Advanced Administration Course 3073

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The following illustrates the training/testing path for Novell CLP

10:
Figure Intro-1 .

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Introduction

For more information about Novell certification programs and taking the
Novell CLP 10 Practicum, see http://www.novell.com/training/certinfo,
http://www.novell.com/training/certinfo/clp10, and
http://www.novell.com/training/certinfo/cle10.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Support and

Maintenance
The copy of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 you receive in your
student kit is a fully functioning copy of the SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10 product.
However, to receive official support and maintenance updates, you
need to do one of the following:

Register for a free registration/serial code that provides you

with 30 days of support and maintenance.

Purchase a copy of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 from

Novell (or an authorized dealer).

You can obtain your free 30-day support and maintenance code at
http://www.novell.com/products/linuxenterpriseserver/eval.html.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Novell Customer Center

Novell Customer Center is an intuitive, web-based interface that
helps you to manage your business and technical interactions with
Novell. Novell Customer Center consolidates access to information,
tools and services such as:

Automated registration for new SUSE Linux Enterprise

products

Patches and updates for all shipping Linux products from

Novell

Order history for all Novell products, subscriptions and services

Entitlement visibility for new SUSE Linux Enterprise products

Linux subscription-renewal status

Subscription renewals via partners or Novell

For example, a company might have an administrator who needs to

download SUSE Linux Enterprise software updates, a purchaser
who wants to review the order history and an IT manager who has
to reconcile licensing. With Novell Customer Center, the company
can meet all these needs in one location and can give each user
access rights appropriate to their roles.
You can access the Novell Customer Center at
http://www.novell.com/center.

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Introduction

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Online

Resources
Novell provides a variety of online resources to help you configure
and implement SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.
These include the following:

http://www.novell.com/products/linuxenterpriseserver/
This is the Novell home page for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
10.

http://www.novell.com/documentation/sles10/index.html
This is the Novell Documentation web site for SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server 10.

http://support.novell.com/linux/
This is the home page for all Novell Linux support, and
includes links to support options such as the Knowledgebase,
downloads, and FAQs.

http://www.novell.com/coolsolutions
This Novell web site provides the latest implementation
guidelines and suggestions from Novell on a variety of
products, including SUSE Linux.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Agenda
The following is the agenda for this 3-day course:
Table Intro-1
Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Intro-8

Section

Duration

Introduction

00:30

Section 1: Understand the Linux Story

01:30

Section 2: Use the Linux Desktop

01:30

Section 3: Administer Linux with YaST

02:30

Section 4: Locate and Use Help Ressources 01:00

Section 5: Manage Directories and Files

05:00

Section 6: Work with the Linux Shell and

Command Line

02:30

Section 7: Use Linux Text Editors

00:30

Section 8: Manage Users, Groups, and

Permissions

03:00

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Scenario
You are system administrator for your Digital Airlines office. The
management is considering migration of some network services to
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 servers.
As system administrator, you decide to do the following:

Install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 on a test workstation.

Become familiar with the graphical user interface and the

command line interface.

Learn how to integrate your SUSE Linux Enterprise Server into

an existing network.

Learn how to get help for all problems you might have.

Learn how to manage software packages with the configuration

tool YaST2.

Learn how to edit configuration files with an graphical editor or

the command line editor vi.

Understand the structure of the Linux file system and basic

shell commands for working in the file system (e.g. copying,
moving).

Learn how to manage users, groups and file permissions to

ensure a basic file system security.

Once you complete this training, you will be able to install SUSE
Linux Enterprise Server 10 and set up a system for further tests.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise Conventions
When working through an exercise, you will see conventions that
indicate information you need to enter that is specific to your server.
The following describes the most common conventions:

italicized/bolded text. This is a reference to your unique

situation, such as the host name of your server.
For example, if the host name of your server is DA50, and you
see the following,
hostname.digitalairlines.com
you would enter
DA50.digitalairlines.com

10.0.0.xx. This is the IP address that is assigned to your SUSE

Linux Enterprise Server 10 server.
For example, if your IP address is 10.0.0.50, and you see the
following
10.0.0.xx
you would enter
10.0.0.50

Select. The word select is used in exercise steps to indicate a

variety of actions including clicking a button on the interface
and selecting a menu item.

Enter and Type. The words enter and type have distinct
meanings.
The word enter means to type text in a field or at a command
line and press the Enter key when necessary. The word type
means to type text without pressing the Enter key.
If you are directed to type a value, make sure you do not press
the Enter key or you might activate a process that you are not
ready to start.

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Understand the Linux Story

SECTION 1

Understand the Linux Story

This section provides background information about Linux and

guides you through an installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
10.

Objectives

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1.

The History of Linux

2.

Understand the Multiuser Environment

3.

Perform a Simple Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

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Objective 1

The History of Linux

Linux is closely related to the UNIX operating system. To
understand the history of Linux, you need to know the following:

The Historical Development of UNIX

The Development of Linux

The Software Differences Between SUSE Linux and SUSE

Linux Enterprise Server

The Historical Development of UNIX

At the end of the 1960s, most operating systems were only designed
for batch operations. If you wanted to run a program, you inserted a
pile of punch cards or a roll of perforated strips into a reading
device and waited until the result was sent to a printer.
If there was an error in the program or if you did not get the
required result, you had to rewrite the perforated roll or replace one
or several punch cards, reread the stack, and again wait for the
result.
This procedure was long-winded and inefficient which led computer
developers to look for a way to allow a number of users to
simultaneously use a dialog-oriented way of working with the
system.
MULTICS was one of the first programs created to meet this
demand. It allowed you to work in a dialog with the computer, but it
was still very strongly influenced by the batch operation, and it was
difficult to operate.
In 1969, one of the MULTICS developers, Ken Thompson, began
creating an operating system that, apart from a dialog-oriented
operation, aimed to provide a high functionality and structural
simplicity.

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Understand the Linux Story

The first version of UNIX was written in Assembler, a

programming language close to the machine-level. To be
machine-independent in its further development, UNIX was
rewritten in 1971 in the programming language C, developed by
Dennis Ritchie.
Because Bell Laboratories (a subsidiary company of AT&T)
provided documentation and the source text of UNIX to universities
almost at cost, the system spread relatively quickly.
The simple operation of the system, the almost unlimited
availability of the source text, and its relative portability motivated
many users and companies to become actively engaged in the
development, so functionalities were very quickly added to UNIX
and it reached a very high level of maturity.
At the same time, a series of commercial UNIX derivatives arose
including versions from IBM, DEC, and HP (HP-UX, 1982), as well
as BSD UNIX (Berkeley Software Distribution, 1978), developed
by the University of California in Berkeley.
In 1983, AT&T began marketing UNIX System V commercially via
its sister company USL, proclaiming System V as the UNIX
standard.
As a consequence of this, the licensing of UNIX changed
considerably, leading, among other things, to a long-lasting legal
battle with BSD. At the same time, with never-ending quarrels
between UNIX vendors, a genuine standardization of the UNIX
operating system family was prevented.
Modern UNIX operating systems can still be separated as either
more System V or more BSD types, although there are no pure
systems of one or the other kind.
Linux tries to combine the best from both worlds.

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As Linux is written in C, it is available for a lot of different

hardware platforms, including the following:

Intel/AMD: 32 bit

Intel/AMD: 64 bit

PowerPC (Macintosh, RS/6000)

SPARC (Sun)

IBM pSeries

IBM zSeries (S/390)

Embedded

The Development of Linux

In the spring of 1991, the Finnish student Linus Benedict Torvalds
began to develop a UNIX-like operating system for his PC.

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Understand the Linux Story

A few months later he had developed a rudimentary kernel which he

passed on as a source text to others who were interested via the
Internet with the following message:
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
portable (uses 386 task switching etc), and it probably
never will support anything other than AT-harddisks, as
that's all I have :-(.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Linus Torvalds made the source code of his Linux kernel available
with the GPL (GNU General Public License). The GPL allows
everyone to read and edit the source code. The GPL license also
requires any edited source code to be made available to the public.
Linux rapidly developed into a project involving many people,
although the development of the system's core (Linux kernel) is still
coordinated by Linus Torvalds. All kernel modifications are
integrated by him.
The functions of the kernel include input and output control, device
control, process management, and file management. Other system
components (shell utilities, network programs, and implementations
of the kernel for non-Intel processors) are looked after by other
people or groups.

The Software Differences Between SUSE Linux and

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 is based on the SUSE Linux 10.1
distribution. The time between release of the SUSE Linux
distribution and release of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server is used for
intensive testing and applying patches which improve security and
stability of the system.
Additionally, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server contains some features
which will be made available in future versions of the SUSE Linux
distribution.

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Understand the Linux Story

The following illustrates the relationships between open source

code, SUSE Linux and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server:
Figure 1-1

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 has fewer packages (about 1,000)

than the SUSE Linux distribution (about 3,500). Most packages that
have been removed are desktop applications.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server has a guaranteed life cycle of seven
years. During this time, you are provided patches and fixes that help
you maintain SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. In addition, you can
choose from a range of support offers.
Only the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server product is certified by
independent hardware and software vendors.

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Objective 2

Understand the Multiuser Environment

One of the goals of UNIX was to enable a number of users to use
the system simultaneously (multiuser capability).
Because several users might also want to use several different
programs simultaneously, mechanisms must be available to allow
these programs to run simultaneously (multitasking capability).
The implementation of a multiuser and multitasking system appears
to be simultaneous in a single processor system, but this is only
possible in a multiprocessor system.
Even in a single-processor system, advantages can be gained
through multitasking because waiting times for input or output from
processes can be used for other processes.
UNIX implements preemptive multitaskingeach process is
allowed a maximum time with which it can work. When this time
has expired, the operating system takes processor time away from
the process and assigns it to another process waiting to run.
Other operating systems (such as versions older than the MAC OS
version X) do not intervene in this process cycle. Instead, control
over the processor must be released by the running process before
another process can run.
This can lead to one process hijacking the processor, leaving other
processes without processing time and blocking the system.
The operating system coordinates access to the resources available
in the system (hard drives, tapes, interfaces). If there is competition
among processes, e.g., for access to a tape device, only one process
can be granted access. The others must be rejected.

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This coordination task is very complex and no operating system is

able to implement an ideal solution. The classic problem involves a
situation in which two or more processes exclusively need the same
resources, as illustrated in the following resource conflict:
Figure 1-2

The following describes the resource conflict:

Process A needs resources Res.1 and Res.2.

Process B needs resources Res.2 and Res.1.

Process A has received access to Res.1 and would now also like
access to Res.2. In the meantime, however, B has already
gained access to Res.2 and, in turn, would like access to Res.1
as well.
If these two processes wait until what they need is available,
nothing more will happen-they are deadlocked.

Multithreading is an extension of multitasking, and helps solve this

problem. In multithreading, a number of parts independent from one
another (threads) can be produced within a process. Multithreading
increases the level of parallel processes with each thread needing to
be administered, which makes the use of a multiprocessor system
more valuable.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

A clear distinction should be made here between programs and

processes: as a rule, a program exists only once in the system, but
there can be several processes that perform the same program.
If a number of users are active, both programs and processes can be
used independently of one another (such as a program used to
display directories).

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Understand the Linux Story

Objective 3

Perform a Simple Installation of SUSE

Linux Enterprise Server 10
The process of installing the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 can
be divided into the following steps:

Pre-Installation Requirements and Guidelines

Installation Options

Basic Installation

Configuration

Pre-Installation Requirements and Guidelines

The following are basic system requirements for SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server 10:

Minimum system requirements for operation:

256 MB RAM

500 MB hard disk space for software

500 MB hard disk space for user data

Recommended system requirements:

512 MB to 3 GB RAM

4 GB hard disk space

Network interface

After installing SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10, some system

configurations can be hard to change.
In order to make sure you are prepared to install SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server 10 with the configuration settings you need, you
should consider the following:

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Hardware compatibility. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

supports most enterprise hardware for servers. It also supports
hardware for desktops. Some laptop computer hardware might
not be compatible with SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.
To verify that your hardware is compatible with SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server 10, you can use the following web site:
http://www.novell.com/partnerguide/section/481.html

File system types. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 supports

various file system types. Make sure you select the file system
type that is right for your particular needs and requirements.
The default file system is Reiser. It should be the right choice
for the most cases. More about the different file system types
you can learn in course 3072 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
10 Administration.

Partitioning scheme. Make sure you plan for the appropriate

partitions and partition sizes before starting your installation (if
you are using traditional instead of virtual partitions).
Modifying partition sizes after installation can be impossible or
difficult to achieve.
Its also easier to configure Software RAID or Logical Volumes
(LVM) during installation. This is especially true of installing
the root file system.

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1-12

Software package selection. Although you can install software

packages after installation, it can be easier to decide ahead of
time which packages you want to be installed and do the
configuration during SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
installation.
To increase the security of your system, make sure you install only
required services on your computer.

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Installation Options
When you boot your computer from the installation DVD, the
following welcome screen appears:
Figure 1-3

If you do not choose an option within 20 seconds, the first entry in

the list (Boot from Hard Disk) is chosen automatically. To stop this
countdown, simply press any key.
The following are the most important options on the welcome
screen:

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Boot from Hard Disk: Boots the operating system installed on

your hard disk.

Installation: Starts the normal installation process.

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Installation - Local APIC Disabled: In APIC-based system

(Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller), each CPU is
made of a core and a local APIC. The local APIC is responsible
for handling CPU-specific interrupt configuration. With this
kind of installation, you can disable the local APIC features of
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.

Installation - ACPI Disabled: Some old computers don't have

ACPI power management (Advanced Configuration and Power
Interface). This can lead to problems during the installation.
With this kind of installation, you can disable the ACPI features
of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.

Installation - Safe Settings: Some older computers don't have

any kind of power management or hard disk acceleration. If you
have problems with your installation, you should try this.

Rescue System: A minimal Linux system (without a graphical

user interface) starts from the DVD and lets you repair the
Linux installation on the hard disk.

Memory Test: Tests the RAM for physical errors.

When you select an installation option and press Enter, the

installation program (YaST) starts.
If you press F1 a window appears showing information about the
possible boot options. Use the arrow keys and Return to navigate
though the text. Esc closes the help window.
Boot options can be entered in the Boot Options field.
To change the language of the boot menu, press F2.
To change the dispay resolution for the installation process, press
F3.

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Basic Installation
At the beginning, YaST asks you for the language to be used during
the installation process.
Figure 1-4

If you selected a language in the boot menu by pressing F2, this dialog does
not appear.

Select your language and select Next.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Before you can install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10, you must
read and accept the following Novell Software License Agreement
by selecting Yes, I Agree to the Licence Agreement and Next.
Figure 1-5

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If you have Linux already installed on your computer, the following

dialog appears:
Figure 1-6

From this dialog, you can do the following:

Install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 by selecting New

installation

Update an existing system by selecting Update

If you select Other you also have the following possibilities:

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Repair an installed system by selecting Repair Installed

System

Boot an installed system by selecting Boot installed system

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

After selecting Next, you have to select the time zone you are living
in and the time zone your hardware clock is set to.
Figure 1-7

Select Next.

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YaST displays the following information about your hardware and

makes suggestions for the installation:
Figure 1-8

You can change these settings by selecting the headline of each of

the sections or by using the Change menu.
The following sections are available at the Overview tab:

Keyboard Layout. Identifies the layout of your keyboard.

Partitioning. Lets you create and change the partitioning table

of your hard disk. If you have free space on your hard disk, the
configuration program tries to use it for the installation.
If a Windows partition exists, YaST tries to resize it. An
existing Linux partition is overwritten. In any case, you should
make a backup of still needed partitions.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Software. Lets you select the software to be installed (see the

following section).

Language. Lets you select the default language for your

installation.

The Expert tab also includes these three sections and some more:

System. Lists details about your hardware.

Add-On Products. If you have foreign installation media with

add-ons, you can add them here.

Booting. Lets you install and configure the GRUB boot loader.

Time Zone. Lets you select your time zone.

Language. Lets you select the default language for your

installation.

Default Runlevel. Lets you select your default runlevel for

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.
Runlevels are different modes your system can work in.
Runlevel 5 offers full networking capabilities and starts the
graphical user interface.

Normally you do not need to change the recommendations made by

YaST.
If you already have another operating system installed on the
computer, but your hard drive has free, unpartitioned space left,
YaST automatically recommends installing SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10 in that free space and creating a dual boot configuration
for both operating systems.

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After selecting Accept, you need to confirm your settings again.

Selecting Install starts the installation process. The installation can
take some time, depending on your hardware.
Figure 1-9

The specified partitions are being formatted and the selected

software packages are being installed.
Figure 1-10

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Configuration
During the configuration phase of the installation, you configure the
following:

Root Password

Network Devices

Services

Users

Hardware

Root Password

If the installation was successful, the computer reboots. YaST starts

again, because you need to configure some basic settings.
First you need to specify the name of your host and the name of
your domain.
Figure 1-11

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The option Change Hostname via DHCP can be activated if the

entered hostname should be overwritten by the hostname a DHCP
server delivers.
After selecting Next, you have to enter a password for the
administrator root in the following dialog:
Figure 1-12

Warnings appear if the selected password is too simple and if the

password contains only lowercase letters.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Network Devices

After you have specified a password, you need to review your

network configuration. YaST displays a summary of the network
devices it has discovered:
Figure 1-13

The following are types of network devices displayed:

Network Interfaces

DSL Connections

ISDN Adapters

Modems

By default, YaST selects the DHCP configuration for the network

interfaces. You can change the network configuration by selecting
the headline of the section or by using the Change menu.

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At the top of the list, there are two more items concerning network
shown:

Network Mode. The NetworkManager is an applet that tries to

manage the configuration of your network automatically. This
is useful if your computer often changes the network location
(e.g. notebooks with wireless LAN).

Firewall. A firewall will be activated by default and the SSH

port is blocked.

At the bottom of the list, there are two more items concerning
network shown:

VNC Remote Administration. VNC allows you to export the

desktop of your computer.
The desktop of the computer running the VNC server is shown
in a window on the VNC client. You are able to start graphical
applications and to use the mouse as if you were sitting in front
of the remote computer.

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Proxy. Configure and enable a proxy for the internet protocols

HTTP, HTTPS and FTP.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

In the next dialog, you can test your Internet connection:

Figure 1-14

If you select Yes, Test Connection to the Internet, the latest

release notes will be downloaded and YaST will start the Novell
Customer Center to check for new updates.
If new updates are found, YaST asks you to verify the download and
installation. You should apply any updates to ensure your new
system has the latest patches applied.

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Services

In the next dialog you can configure two very important services:
Figure 1-15

These services include the following:

CA Management: The purpose of a CA (Certificate Authority)

is to guarantee a trust relationship among all network services
communicating with each other.

OpenLDAP Server: You can run an LDAP server on your host

to provide a central facility managing a range of configuration
files.
Typically, an LDAP server handles user account data, but with
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, it can also be used for mail-,
DHCP-, and DNS-related data.

By default, a CA is created. An LDAP server is set up during the

installation, but it is not started.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Users

After you configure the services, you configure user authentication.

First, select the authentication method you want to use:
Figure 1-16

Four different methods are available:

1-28

Local (/etc/passwd). The user accounts are managed using the

local /etc/passwd file. Select this option for computers without
a network connection or if you want to administer your
accounts locally.

LDAP. User account data is managed centrally by an LDAP

server. Users must be authenticated via LDAP if you are
working in a network environment that has both UNIX and
Windows computers.

NIS. User account data is managed centrally by a NIS server.

NIS can only be used in pure UNIX environments.

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Windows Domain. User account data is managed centrally by

Windows or a Samba server. Samba normally allows
authentication in a Windows environment.

The next dialog displayed depends on your chosen authentication

method.

We will not use LDAP authentication in this course. The topic is covered in
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10: Networking Services (Course 3074). In
this course, only the local authentication is explained.

If you choose Local (/etc/passwd) and select Next, the following

dialog appears:
Figure 1-17

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

To add a user, you need to provide the following information:

Users Full Name: The full name of the user.

Username: The login name of the user. This name must be

unique on the system.

Password: The case-sensitive login password for the user. You

have to enter the password twice for verification. YaST displays
warnings if the password is insecure.

If you want the user to receive automatically generated email for

root, then select Receive System Mail.
If you use your Linux computer only at your own desk and you
want to avoid the login during the startup, select Automatic Login
option.

For security reasons, we recommended that you deselect this option.

Warning messages appear if the password you choose is too simple

and if it contains only lowercase letters.

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After setting up one or more users, the system information is written

to disk. YaST opens a window with the release notes.
Figure 1-18

Go to the last step of the installation by selecting Next.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Hardware

At this point, the final configuration dialog appears (hardware

configuration):
Figure 1-19

From this dialog you configure additional hardware items such as

the following:

Graphics Cards

Printers

Sound

YaST configures the graphics card and the sound card automatically.
YaST also detects local printers automatically. Confirm the settings
and write them to the system by selecting Next.

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The last dialog tells you that the installation was successful.
Figure 1-20

The option Clone This System for Autoyast is activated by

default. Autoyast is a tool to clone a system configuration.
Normally, you can deselect this option.
Select Finish. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 is now ready for
use.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 1-1

Install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

In this exercise, you install SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Summary
Objective

Summary

1. The History of Linux

The development of UNIX started

in the sixties. UNIX comprises two
main development lines: System
V and BSD.
The development of Linux was
launched in 1991 by Linus
Benedict Torvalds.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

2. Understand the Multiuser

Linux is a multitasking system; in

other words, the processes seem
to be executed concurrently.

Environment

An important task of the operating

system is to coordinate access to
the resources available in the
system.
Multithreading is an extension of
multitasking. Here, within a
process, a number of parts
independent from one another
(threads) can be produced.
A program exists only once in the
system, but there can be several
processes using the same
program at the same time.
3. Perform a Simple Installation of
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

The process of installing the

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10
can be divided into the following
steps:

Choose the installation option

Basic installation

Configuration

The most important installation

options are

1-36

Installation

Installation - ACPI Disabled

Installation - Safe Settings

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SECTION 2

Use the Linux Desktop

This section gives an overview of the graphical user interfaces of

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and explains how to access the
command line.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Overview of the Linux Desktop

2.

Use the GNOME Desktop Environment

3.

Access the Command Line Interface from the Desktop

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Introduction
You cannot install Windows without its graphical user interface
(GUI). In Linux, the GUI is a normal application that you can
choose whether or not to install.
Most services in Linux can be configured by editing an ASCII text
file, so you do not need a GUI if you want your computer to act
only as a server.
Not installing a graphical user interface has the following
advantages:

2-2

Stability. Every program contains errors that can make your

system unstable. The fewer programs are installed, the more
stable your system will be. A graphical user front end is a large
program that might contain a large number of undiscovered
programming errors, even if the error ratio is low.

Performance. Every running program needs system resources.

Fewer programs running on your computer means increased
performance.

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Objective 1

Overview of the Linux Desktop

The base of any graphical user interface is the X Window System
(simply called X or X11). It allows you to control the input and
output of several applications in different windows of a graphical
interface.
You need to distinguish between graphical applications, which run
in their own windows, and text-based applications, which are
carried out in a terminal window.
The X Window System was created in 1984 at MIT (Massachusetts
Institute of Technology). The aim of the development was to be able
to use graphical applications across a network, independent of
hardware.
The X Window System allows graphical applications to be
displayed and operated on any monitor, without running the
applications on the machines to which these monitors are
connected.
The basis for this is the separation into a server component (X
server) and the application itself (client application). The X server
and client application communicate with each other by way of
various communication channels.

X server. The X server controls the graphical screen. This

corresponds roughly to what would be called a graphics driver
on other systems. In addition, it manages the input devices,
such as keyboard and mouse, and transmits their actions to the
X client.
The X server, however, has nothing to do with the appearance
of the window and the desktop; this is the task of the window
manager. XFree86 and XOrg are free implementations of the X
server. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 defaults to using
XOrg.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Client application. The client application is a graphical

application that uses the services of the X server to receive
keyboard and mouse actions and to have its own output
displayed on the screen.

The communication between X server and X client uses the network protocol
TCP/IPeven if the server and client run on the same computer.

Window managers are specialized client applications. A window

manager works together with the X server and provides additional
functionality. The window manager

Provides control elements

Manages virtual desktops

Provides functionality of window frames (for example,

changing their size)

The X Window System is not linked to any specific window

manager and thus it is not linked to any particular look and feel.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 is currently released with several
window managers, including Metacity (the GNOME window
manager) and twm (Tab Window Manager).
Desktop environments go far beyond the look and feel window
managers provide for desktops and manipulating windows. The aim
is to provide clients with a unified look and feel. GNOME is the
standard graphical desktop for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10,
but you can install the KDE desktop instead.

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As can be seen in the following figure, the X server is running on

computer da5, while the X applications are running on computers
da1 and da2:
Figure 2-1

The display of the client applications, however, is performed by the

X server on the machine da5. All of these computers can be running
different operating systems.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 2

Use the GNOME Desktop Environment

GNOME is a comfortable desktop environment. GNOME supports
drag and drop. Numerous programs are specifically designed for
GNOME.
To use the GNOME desktop environment, you need to know the
following:

Log in

Log out and Shut down

Identify GNOME Desktop Components

Manage Icons in GNOME

Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus)

Log in
If computer users want to work with a multiuser-capable operating
system, they must first identify themselves to the operating system.
For this purpose, they need

2-6

A login string or username

A password (usually assigned by the system administrator when

a new user is added)

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When the computer is booted and ready for work, the following
login dialog appears:
Figure 2-2

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

After entering a username, press Enter. Then enter your password

and press Enter again. If the login is successful, the following
GNOME desktop environment appears:
Figure 2-3

2-8

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Use the Linux Desktop

Log out and Shut down

When you are ready to log out of the system, open the Computer
menu (also called main menu) in the bottom panel.
Figure 2-4

At the right side of the Computer menu, select the Log Out entry.
After selecting Log Out, a confirmation dialog appears.
Figure 2-5

If you select Save Current setup, your current desktop

environment settings are saved and restored after your next login.
Select OK after selecting an action.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

If you are at the login screen, there are four options availabe in the
lower left corner:

Language. Select the language of the desktop environment.

Session. You can choose a window manager other than

GNOME. In this student manual, we cover only GNOME (the
default window manager). Some basic informations about the
KDE environment you find in the appendix A.

Reboot. Reboots the system.

Only root is allowed to reboot the system. So you have to enter the root
password.

Shut Down. Shuts down your computer.

Only root is allowed to shut down the system. So you have to enter the
root password.

Older computers that do not have power management and

cannot switch themselves off can be switched off when the
following message appears:
Master Resource Control: runlevel 0 has been
reached

If you switch the machine off too soon, this could possibly lead
to loss of data.

x
2-10

You should always shut down your computer before you turn it off.

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Exercise 2-1

Log in to and Log out from the GNOME Desktop

In this exercise, you learn how to log in to and log out from your
GNOME desktop.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Identify GNOME Desktop Components

The GNOME desktop includes one panel at the bottom of the
screen.
Figure 2-6

There is a menu at the left side of the panel. This menu is labeled
Computer. It is called the main menu.
The empty space in the middle of the panel includes the task
manager. All opened windows on the screen will be listed here.
At the right of the panel there are some more items. Which icons are
available depends from your hardware:

2-12

Globe. Searches for new updates.

Battery. Power management for laptops.

Speaker. Volume control.

Clock. Shows date and time.

Board. Minimizes all open windows or shows them again on

the desktop.

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You can start a programs with an icon on the desktop by

double-clicking the icon. But normally, programs are started from
the main menu.
Figure 2-7

At the top of the left frame there is a pull-down menu showing three
different filters:

Version 2

Favorite Applications

Recently Used Applications

Recent Documents

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

In the left frame, there is also a button labeled More Applications.

If you select this button, the application browser appears.
Figure 2-8

The right frame of the application browser shows a list of the most
important installed applications. The applications are grouped and
you can see a list of the groups in the left frame. Select a group to
see only the applications that belong to this group.
The filter option adds even more flexibility. Enter a part of the name
of the application you want to start in the Filter textbox in the left
frame. The filtered applications are shown immediately in the right
frame.

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In the right frame of the main menu, there are five system options:

Help. Starts the online help.

Control Center. Starts the GNOME Control Center where you

can configure your desktop with.

Install Software. Shows a list with the available software on

your registered installation media.

Lock Screen. Locks the screen. To unlock you have to enter

your password.

Log Out. Must be selected to log out of the system.

At the bottom of the right frame you can see the status of your hard
drives and network.
To start an application select the icon in the main menu or the
application browser with a single mouse click.

Manage Icons in GNOME

You can manage icons on your desktop in different ways. For
simplicity, we will describe only the most important methods.
You can find icons in the following three areas on your desktop:

Version 2

Desktop

Panel

Main Menu

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Desktop

To create an icon for an application on your desktop, select the item

in your application menu, drag it to a free space on your desktop,
and release the mouse button.
Notice there is a small plus icon at the mouse pointer when moving
the icon. This indicates, that a copy of the icon will be created.
To create a new icon right-click a free space on your desktop. A
menu pops up.
Figure 2-9

At the top of the pop-up menu there are three entries to create a new
item:

Create Folder. Creates a new and empty folder icon.

When the icon appears you can enter the folders name.

Figure 2-10

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Create Launcher. Creates a new application launcher. A

dialog appears:

Figure 2-11

Enter the following information:

Version 2

Name. Name and label of the launcher.

Generic name. (Optional) You can enter a generic name

here.

Comment. (Optional) This comment is shown as a tool tip

when moving the mouse pointer over the icon.

Command. Command that should be executed when

double-clicking the launcher icon.

Type. You can create launchers for different file types (e.g.,
application, directory, link, device) using this dialog.

Icon. (Optional) Select an icon for the launcher.

Run in terminal. Select this option if the application does

not have a graphical user interface and runs in a terminal
window.

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Create Document. You can create an empty document by

using this menu.
Depending on your installed software there are various
document types available in this menu. After a default
installation there is only the possibility to create an empty text
file.
When the icon appears you can enter the text files name.

Figure 2-12

Panel

You can add new programs to the bottom panel by right-clicking a

free area of the panel and then selecting Add to Panel. From the
dialog thar appears, select the application you want to add.
Figure 2-13

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Use the Linux Desktop

You can remove a program from the control panel by right-clicking

its icon in the bottom panel and then selecting Remove From
Panel.
You can move icons in the panel by holding down the right mouse
button and selecting Move from the Context menu.

Main Menu

Only the user root is allowed to add a new entry to a menu. Normal
users are only allowed to declare favorite applications. Therefore do
the following:
1.

Open the main menu in the panel.

The menu appears.

Version 2

2.

Select More Applications.

3.

Select an application item in the right frame with the right mouse
botton.

4.

Select Add to Favorites from the pop-up menu.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 2-2

Work with Icons in GNOME

In this exercise, you add a new icon to your desktop. You also add
and remove an applet to and from the bottom panel.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Use the Linux Desktop

Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus)

GNOME provides its own file manager (called Nautilus):
Figure 2-14

You can start Nautilus by selecting the usernames Home icon on

the desktop or by selecting Nautilus from the main menu. By
default Nautilus is marked as a favorite application.
Normally Nautilus shows the content of the users home directory
after starting.
The right frame of the Nautilus windows shows the content of the
current directory.
You can see your current position in the location bar below the tool
bar. All higher directories are shown as buttons. Select one of these
buttons to switch into the higher directory.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The left frame is called Side Panel.

Figure 2-15

At the top of the side panel there is a menu where you can select the
content of the side panel:

Places. Shows the most important directories and devices to

store files.

Information. Shows some information about the current

directory.

Tree. Shows the file system tree and the tree of the home
directory.

History. Shows a history of the last visited directories.

Notes. Enter notes for the current directory.

Emblems. Shows the list of emblems.

To add an emblem to an icon use drag and drop. Erase removes
all emblems from an icon.

Figure 2-16

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Exercise 2-3

Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus)

In this exercise, you explore your GNOME desktop and learn how
to use the GNOME File Manager Nautilus.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 3

Access the Command Line Interface from

the Desktop
A classic multiuser environment can be implemented by connecting
several terminals (dialog stations)monitor and keyboard unitsto
the serial interface of a single computer.
You can also connect several terminals to the serial interface in a
Linux system. However, because more than one person often uses
the same PC, virtual terminals were created in Linux.
With virtual terminals, you can work in Linux as if you had several
classic terminals available at the same time.
You can have up to six virtual terminals (F1-F6) running on your
computer. By pressing Ctrl+Alt+Fx, you can switch between
individual terminals. By pressing Ctrl+Alt+F7, you can switch
back to your graphical user interface.
You can determine the terminal currently being used from the tty
number (tty1tty6). tty is an abbreviation for teletype, which is
another word for terminal.
When you switch to a virtual terminal, a login prompt appears:
Welcome to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 (i586) - Kernel
2.6.16.14-6-default (tty1).

da51 login:

From here you can enter your login name and password. To logout
enter exit.

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Use the Linux Desktop

Besides using the virtual terminals, you can start a terminal

emulation from your GNOME desktop by selecting Gnome
Terminal (shown in the following picture) or X Terminal from the
main menu. Both belong to the System application group.
Figure 2-17

The terminal appears inside a window with options you can select to
modify the display of the terminal (such as font and background
color).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 2-4

Access the Command Line Interface

In this exercise, you switch to virtual terminals and back to the
graphical user interface. You also log in and log out at a virtual
terminal.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Overview of the Linux Desktop

The X Window System consists of

a server component (X server)
and client applications.

2. Use the GNOME Desktop

You learned how to log in and log

out of the GNOME system and
how to navigate in the GNOME
desktop environment.

Environment

You learned how to manage icons

at

The GNOME desktop

The bottom panel

The Applications menu

The file manager of GNOME is

called Nautilus.
3. Access the Command Line
Interface from the Desktop

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

provides the user with six virtual
terminals.
You can use the key combinations
Ctrl+Alt+F1 to Ctrl+Alt+F6 to
switch between the individual
terminals.
You can switch back to your
graphical user interface by
pressing Ctrl+Alt+F7.
With Gnome Terminal you can
access the command line
interface within an window.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

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Administer Linux with YaST

SECTION 3

Administer Linux with YaST

YaST is a powerful tool to configure your SUSE Linux Enterprise

Server 10. There are many modules for all important configuration
tasks available but in this section you will only learn about the
network configuration module and the software module as
examples.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Get to Know YaST

2.

Understand the Role of SuSEconfig

3.

Manage the Network Configuration Information from YaST

4.

Install Software Packages

5.

Manage Installation Sources

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Get to Know YaST

YaST stands for Yet another Setup Tool. You can use YaST to
complete many configuration tasks as a SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server administrator.
The YaST user interface can appear in two kinds:

ncurses. Text mode

QT. Fully graphical mode

The appearance of the user interface depends on which command

you use to start YaST and on whether you use the graphical system
or the command line, as indicated in the following:
Table 3-1

Command

Terminal in X Window

Command Line

yast2

Qt

ncurses

yast

ncurses

ncurses

In the graphical interface, you can control YaST with the mouse. To
start it, select YaST from the main menu (application group:
System). You are asked to enter the root password.
Figure 3-1

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Administer Linux with YaST

The YaST dialog appears.

Figure 3-2

You control the ncurses interface with the keyboard. To start the
ncurses interface of YaST, you can start a terminal emulation from
your GNOME desktop by selecting Gnome Terminal from the
main menu (application group: System).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Enter su - to get root permissions. After entering the root password,

start YaST by entering yast.
Figure 3-3

Press Tab to move from one box to another or to the text buttons. To
go back to the previous box, press Shift+Tab. Use the arrow keys to
navigate within the box. Mark highlighted menu items by pressing
the Spacebar.
To select a menu item, press Enter. You can often press Alt and the
highlighted letter to access an item directly.
Except for the controls and the appearance, the graphical mode and
the text mode of YaST are identical.
You can list the available YaST modules with the yast -l or yast
--list command. To start an individual module, specify its name. For
example, you can enter the following to start the software
installation module:
yast sw_single

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You can enter the software module name with the yast or yast2
command, as in the following:

yast sw_single (text mode)

yast2 sw_single (graphical mode)

To install a software package you can also enter yast -i package.rpm. The
package is installed directly without any dialogs.

To display a list of YaST options, enter one of the following:

yast --help

yast -h

The main dialog of YaST is called the YaST Control Center.

From here you can select a category on the left (such as Software or
System) and a module on the right (such as Online Update) to
configure and manage your system.
When you finish making changes with a YaST module, YaST uses
backend services such as SuSEconfig (see Understand the Role of
SuSEconfig on 3-7) to implement the changes in the system.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 3-1

Get to Know YaST

In this exercise, you learn how to use the different user interfaces of
YaST and how to start some YaST modules.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Objective 2

Understand the Role of SuSEconfig

You can consider YaST as a front end to various other programs,
such as a front end to RPM (RPM Package Manager) software
management, a front end to user management, or a front end to
various configuration files of different services (such as a mail or
web server).
Sometimes YaST writes the configuration changes you make
directly into the final configuration file. In other cases there is an
additional intermediate step, where the information you enter is first
written to a file in the /etc/sysconfig/ directory before it is written
into the final configuration file.
This is where the program SuSEconfig becomes important.
SuSEconfig is a tool used in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server to
configure the system according to the variables that are set in the
various files in /etc/sysconfig/ and its subdirectories.
These files contain variables such as SYSLOGD_PARAMS= in
/etc/sysconfig/syslog and SMTPD_LISTEN_REMOTE=no in
/etc/sysconfig/mail.
Some of these variables are used directly (such as in some start
scripts). For example, if SYSLOGD_PARAMS is set to -r, the
daemon that logs system messages is directed to listen on port 514
for system messages from other hosts.
Other variables are used to modify other files. For example, if
SMTPD_LISTEN_REMOTE is set to yes, the variable
INET_INTERFACES in /etc/postfix/main.cf is set to all by the
script /sbin/SuSEconfig and the scripts in /sbin/conf.d/.
SuSEconfig acts as a back end for YaST and activates the
configuration changes you make when using a YaST module.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

If you modify files in /etc/sysconfig/ using an editor, all you might

need to do is restart a service for the change to take place. However,
you might also need to run SuSEconfig.
For this reason, we recommend running SuSEconfig after manually
editing files in /etc/sysconfig/.
SuSEconfig uses the subsystem specific scripts in /sbin/conf.d/ to
configure the various subsystems. For example the variables in
/etc/sysconfig/postfix are evaluated by the script
/sbin/conf.d/SuSEconfig.postfix.

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Objective 3

Manage the Network Configuration

Information from YaST
The YaST module for configuring network cards and the network
connection can be accessed from the YaST Control Center.
To activate the network configuration module, select
Network Devices > Network Card.

Figure 3-4

YaST wants to know the network setup method:

Version 2

User Controlled with NetworkManager. Use a desktop applet

that manages the connections for all network interfaces.

Traditional Method with ifup. The traditional method uses the

ifup command. (We recommend you to use this setup method.)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Using the traditional method, the next dialog shows the detected
network cards.
Figure 3-5

Select the card you want to configure; then select Edit.

Usually the cards are autodetected by YaST, and the correct kernel
module is used.

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If the card is not recognized by YaST, the required module must be

entered manually in YaST. Select Add. A Manual Card Setup dialog
appears:
Figure 3-6

From this dialog, you enter details of the interface to configure such
as Network Device Type (Ethernet) and Configuration Name (0).
Under Kernel Module, enter the name of the module to load. You
can select the card model from a list of network cards.
Some kernel modules can be configured more precisely by adding
options or parameters for the kernel. Details about parameters for
specific modules can be found in the kernel documentation.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

After selecting Next, the following dialog appears:

Figure 3-7

From this dialog you enter the following information to integrate the
network device into an existing network:

Automatic Address Setup (via DHCP). Select this option if

the network card should receive an IP address from a DHCP
server.

Static Address Setup. If you choose this option, you need to

enter the IP address of the network interface or of the computer
in the network under IP Address.
Each computer in the network has at least one address for each
network interface, which must be unique in the entire network.
According to the currently valid standard (IPv4), this address
consists of a sequence of four bytes, separated by dots (such as
10.10.0.69).

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When choosing the IP address, you need to know if the

computer will be directly connected to the Internet. In this case,
use an assigned official IP address. Otherwise, use an address
from a private address space.

Subnet Mask. The network mask (referred to as subnet mask in

YaST), determines in which network an IP address is located.
The mask divides the IP address into a network section and a
host section, thus defining the size of a network. All computers
within the network can reach each other directly without a
router in between.

Hostname and Name Server. Computers in the network can

be addressed directly using their IP addresses or with a unique
name. A name server (DNS) must exist for the resolution of
names into IP addresses and vice versa.
After selecting Hostname and Name Server and if you are
using DHCP, the following appears:

Figure 3-8

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

If you want to change data delivered by DHCP (e.g., IP

number), select Modify. If you only want to change other
information you can select Accept here.
Figure 3-9

This dialog lets you enter the following:

Hostname. Enter a name with which the computer can be

addressed. This name should be unique within the network.

Domain Name. This is the name of the DNS domain to

which the computer belongs. Domains help to divide
networks. All computers in a defined organizational area
normally belong to the same domain.
A computer can be addressed uniquely by giving its FQDN
(Fully Qualified Domain Name). This consists of the host
name and the name of the domain, such as
da51.digitalairlines.com. In this case, the domain would
be digitalairlines.com.

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Administer Linux with YaST

List of name servers. To address other computers in the

network with their host names, identify the name server,
which guarantees the conversion of computer names to IP
addresses and vice versa.
You can specify a maximum of three name servers.

Domain search list. In the local network, it is more

appropriate to address other hosts not with their FQDN, but
with their host names. The domain search list specifies the
domains with which the system can expand the host name
to the FQDN.
This complete name is then passed to the name server to be
resolved. For example, da51 is expanded with the search
list digitalairlines.com to the FQDN
da51.digitalairlines.com. This name is then passed to the
name server to be resolved.
If the search list contains several domains, the completion
takes place one after the other, and the resulting FQDN is
passed to the name server until an entry returns an
associated IP address.
Separate the domains with commas or white space.

Version 2

Routing. If the computer is intended only to reach other

computers in the same subnet, then it is not necessary to enter
any routes.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

However, if you need to enter a default gateway or create a

routing table, select Routing from the Network address setup
dialog. The following appears:
Figure 3-10

You can define the following:

Default Gateway. If the network has a gateway (a

computer that forwards information from a network to
other networks), its address can be specified in the network
configuration.
All data not addressed to the local network is then
forwarded directly to the gateway.

3-16

Routing Table. You can create entries in the routing table

of the system after selecting Expert Configuration.

Enable IP Forwarding. If you select this option IP

packages that are not dedicated for your computer are
routed.

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Administer Linux with YaST

All the necessary information is now available to activate the

network card.
In the General tab of the Network Address Setup dialog, you can set
up a few more options.
Figure 3-11

Version 2

Firewall Zone. (De-)activate the firewall for the interface. If

activated, you can specify the zone to put the interface in. Three
zones are possible:

Internal Zone

Demilitarized Zone

External Zone

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Device Activation. Choose when the interface should be set up.

Possible values are:

At Boot Time. During system start.

On Cable Connection. If there is a physical network

connection.

On Hotplug. When the hardware is plugged in.

Manually.

Never.

Normally only root is allowed to activate and deactivate a

network interface. To allow this for normal users activate the
option User Controlled.

MTU. (Maximum Transfer Unit) Maximum size of an IP

package. The size depends on the hardware (Ethernet: max.
1,500 Bytes).

After you save the configuration with YaST, the ethernet card
should be available in the computer. You can verify this with the ip
command, as shown in the following:
da51:~ # ip address show
1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP> mtu 16436 qdisc noqueue
link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
inet 127.0.0.1/8 brd 127.255.255.255 scope host lo
inet6 ::1/128 scope host
2: eth0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP> mtu 1500 qdisc pfifo_fast
qlen 100
link/ether 00:e0:7d:9e:02:e8 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
inet 10.0.0.51/24 brd 10.0.0.255 scope global eth0
inet6 fec0::1:200:1cff:feb5:6516/64 scope site dynamic
valid_lft 2591994sec preferred_lft 604794sec
inet6 fe80::200:1cff:feb5:6516/10 scope link
3: sit0@NONE: <NOARP> mtu 1480 qdisc noop
link/sit 0.0.0.0 brd 0.0.0.0

In this example, the interface eth0 was configured.

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Administer Linux with YaST

Two network devices are always set up by default-the loopback

device (lo) and the device sit0@NONE, which is needed for
integrating cards in networks with IPv6.
If you run this command as a user other than root, you must enter
the absolute path to the command (/sbin/ip).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 3-2

Manage the Network Configuration Information from YaST

Up to now, your system got all network configuration information
via DHCP. In this exercise, you change all the network
configuration information into static values.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Objective 4

Install Software Packages

After performing a standard SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10
installation, you will often need to install additional software. To do
this, start the YaST module Software > Software Management.
The installed packages and the packages that are available on the
installation media are analyzed and dependencies between packages
are checked.
After this checking, the following dialog for searching packages
appears:

Figure 3-12

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

To help you find the software you want to install, you can choose
from different filters listed in the drop-down list in the top left
corner of the window labeled Filter. The following filters are
available:

Patterns. Displays all software that is available on the known

installation media. It is grouped in predefined sets of packages
that logically belong together.

Package Groups. Displays all software that is available on the

known installation media. It is grouped by category.

Languages. Displays all language related files (e.g., spell

checker, help)

Installation Sources. Lists all registrated installation sources

and displays the available packages of this source.

Search. Lets you enter a search term and where you want YaST
to search for the software package.

Installation Summary. Displays all the packages with a

marked status.

To find a package, select the Search filter, enter the package name
or parts of the package name or some keywords in the Search field;
then select Search.

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The matched packages are listed in the right area. The installation
state is shown by a small symbol in front of the package name. The
most commonly displayed symbols include the following:
Figure 3-13

To view a list of all possible symbols, select Help > Symbols.

Select the symbol of the package you want to install several times
until the Install symbol appears; then select Accept.
You might see a dialog indicating that the dependencies between the
packages cannot be solved and that some other packages need to be
installed, too. In most cases you can simply confirm this dialog.
If the wrong CD or DVD is in your drive, a warning appears.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 5

Manage Installation Sources

The software installation dialog lists only the packages that are on
the current installation media.
If you want to add more installation sources, select Software >
Installation Source from the YaST Control Center. The following
appears:

Figure 3-14

To add a new source, select the Add drop-down list and select the
type of installation source. Depending on the type of source, you
might have to provide additional information (such as the IP address
of an installation server).
To edit the configuration of an existing installation source, select the
source in the list and select Edit.

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If you want to enable or disable an installation source temporarily,

select the source in the list and select Enable or Disable.
To remove an installation source permanently, select the source
from the list and select Delete.
YaST uses the first installation source in the list that has the
software package you want to install. To change the order of a
source in the list, select the source and Up or Down.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 3-3

Install New Software

In this exercise, you install another software package that is
available on the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 installation
media.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Administer Linux with YaST

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Get to Know YaST

The appearance of the user

interface of YaST depends on the
command used for starting:

In the graphical interface, YaST

can be controlled intuitively with
the mouse.

The ncurses interface is

controlled exclusively with the
keyboard.

Individual modules can also be

started directly. Available modules
can be listed with the yast -l or
yast --list command.
2. Understand the Role of
SuSEconfig

Sometimes YaST writes the

configuration changes you make
directly into the final configuration
file.
In other cases the information you
enter is first written to a file in the
/etc/sysconfig/ directory and then
written to its final destination.
SuSEconfig is a tool used in
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server to
configure the system according to
the variables that are set in the
various files in /etc/sysconfig/ and
its subdirectories.
SuSEconfig acts as a back end for
YaST and activates the
configuration changes you make
when using a YaST module.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

3. Manage the Network

The YaST module for configuring

the network card and the network
connection can be found at
Network Devices > Network
Card.

Configuration Information from

YaST

The following details are then

needed to integrate the network
device into an existing network:

Method of network setup

Static IP address

Network mask

Host name

Name server

Routing (gateway)

After you save the configuration

with YaST, the ethernet card
should be available in the
computer. You can verify this with
the ip address show command.
4. Install Software Packages

To install new software packages

use the YaST module Software >
Software Management.
The installation status of a
package is indicated by a symbol.
An overview about all possible
symbols can be reached via the
Help > Symbols menu.
There are dependencies between
the packages. In most cases
these dependencies can be
resolved automatically. Otherwise
they must be resolved manually.

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Administer Linux with YaST

Version 2

Objective

Summary

5. Manage Installation Sources

To add a new installation source,

start the YaST module Software >
Installation Source.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

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Locate and Use Help Resources

SECTION 4

Locate and Use Help Resources

Linux is one of the best documented operating systems. This section

shows you how to find and use several sources of help information.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Access and Use man Pages

2.

Use info Pages

3.

Access Release Notes and White Papers

4.

Use GUI-Based Help

5.

Find Help on the Web

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Access and Use man Pages

The most important command for online help is man (an
abbreviation of manual or man page).
All manual pages are available in English and many have been
translated into other languages. Because these translations are often
incomplete or not maintained, we recommend using the English
versions.
To display the man page of the man command, enter
geeko@da51:~ > man man

If the English man pages are not shown automatically with the man
command, you can display the English version of the man page by
using the variable LANG=en_EN.
For example, to display the English version of the man page for the
man command, enter the following:
geeko@da51:~ > LANG=en_EN man man

Using the parameter LANG=en_EN switches to the English

language for the requested man pages only.

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Locate and Use Help Resources

The following is the first page of the manual pages for the man
command:
man(1)

Manual pager utils

man(1)

NAME
man an interface to the on-line reference manuals

SYNOPSIS
man [-c|-w|-tZT device] [-adhu7V] [-m system[,...]] [-L
locale] [-p string] [-M path] [-P pager] [-r prompt] [-S
list] [-e extension] [[section] page ...] ...
man -l [-7] [-tZT device] [-p string] [-P pager] [-r
prompt] file ...
man -k [apropos options] regexp ...
man -f [whatis options] page ...
DESCRIPTION
man is the system's manual pager. Each page
argument given to man is normally the name of
a program, utility or function. The manual
page associated with each of these arguments
is then found and displayed. A section, if
provided, will direct man to look only in that
section of the manual. The default action
is to search in all of the available sections,
following a pre-defined order and to show
only the first page found, even if page exists
in several sections.

The header of each manual page contains the command name at the
left and right sides and the section number to which the manual
page belongs. In the center of the header is the name of the section.
The last line usually contains the date of the last changes.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

A manual page should be divided into the following parts:

Table 4-1

Part

Contents

NAME

Name and short description of the command

SYNOPSIS

Description of the syntax

DESCRIPTION

Detailed description of the command

OPTIONS

Description of all available options

COMMANDS

Instruction that can be given to the program while it

is running

FILES

Files connected in some way to the command

SEE ALSO

Hints on related commands

DIAGNOSTICS

Possible error messages of the program

EXAMPLES

Examples of calling up a command

BUGS

Known errors and problems with the command

To view manual pages, internally the less command is used which

displays one screen of information at a time. The following keys are
available to use with the less command:
Table 4-2

4-4

Key Command

Description

Space

Page one screen forward.

Page one screen backward.

PageDown

Page half a screen forward.

PageUp

Page half a screen backward.

Down-arrow, Enter

Jump one line forward.

Up-arrow

Jump one line backward.

End

Go to end of the manual page.

Home

Go to beginning of manual page.

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Table 4-2 (continued)

Key Command

Description

/expression

Search forward from the current cursor position

for expression; matching line is displayed as
first line on the screen.

?expression

Search backwards from current cursor position

for expression; matching line is displayed as
first line on the screen.

Move to next instance of expression in the

search.

Move to previous instance of expression in the

search.

End display of the manual page.

The manual pages are organized in the following sections:

Table 4-3

Version 2

Section

Contents

Executable programs and shell commands (user

commands)

System calls

Functions and library routines

Device files

Configuration files and file formats

Games

Macro packages and file formats

System administration commands

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

For example, entering the following displays general information

about the crontab command:
man 1 crontab
Entering the following displays information about the configuration
file for the crontab command (which also has the name crontab):
man 5 crontab
It is especially important to know to which section a command
belongs when there is more than one manual for a command.
For example, the uname command is both a user command and a
system call. Entering the following displays information about the
user command:
man 1 uname
Entering the following displays information about the system call
(such as name and information about the current kernel):
man 2 uname
You can display a brief description of all the available manual pages
for a command or utility by using the whatis command (as in the
following):
geeko@da51:~
uname (1) uname (2) uname (1p) uname (3p) -

4-6

> whatis uname

print system information
get name and information about current kernel
return system name
get the name of the current system

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Manual pages whose output is marked with p are POSIX manual pages of
the uname command (uname (1p)) and the function (uname (3p)). POSIX
(Portable Operating System Interface for UniX) was developed from the
IEEE and the Open Group for Unix as standarized interface between
application and operating system.

In SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, the manual pages are located in

the /usr/share/man/ directory.
If you enter man -k keyword or apropos keyword, a list of
manual pages in which the keyword appears in the NAME section is
displayed. For example:
geeko@da51:~ > man -k printf
vasprintf (3) - print to allocated string
vwprintf (3p) - wide-character formatted output of a stdarg
argument list
vfprintf (3) - formatted output conversion
snprintf (3) - formatted output conversion
format (n) - format a string in the style of sprintf
swprintf (3) - formatted wide character output conversion
asprintf (3) - print to allocated string
vsprintf (3p) - format output of a stdarg argument list
printf (3p) - print formatted output
sprintf (3p) - print formatted output
wprintf (3p) - print formatted wide-character output
vdprintf (3) - print to a file descriptor
fwprintf (3) - formatted wide character output conversion
sprintf (3) - formatted output conversion
dprintf (3) - print to a file descriptor
wprintf (3) - formatted wide character output conversion
printf (3) - formatted output conversion
...

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 4-1

Access and Use man Pages

In this exercise, you learn how to use the whatis and man command
and how to navigate in the help text.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

4-8

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Objective 2

Use info Pages

Unfortunately, a whole series of programs are no longer provided
with manual pages (or the pages have become outdated). Instead,
info files are used, which can be read with the info command.
In SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, the info files are located in the
/usr/share/info/ directory.
The following is the beginning of the info file for the info
command:
File: info.info, Node: Top, Next: Getting Started, Up:
(dir)
Info: An Introduction
*********************
Info is a program, which you are using now, for reading
documentation of computer programs. The GNU Project
distributes most of its on-line manuals in the Info format,
so you need a program called "Info reader" to read the
manuals. One of such programs you are using now.
If you are new to Info and want to learn how to use it,
type the command `h' now. It brings you to a programmed
instruction sequence.
To learn advanced Info commands, type `n' twice. This
brings you to`Info for Experts', skipping over the `Getting
Started' chapter.
* Menu:
*
*
*
*

Version 2

Getting Started:: Getting started using an Info reader.

Advanced Info::
Advanced commands within Info.
Creating an Info File:: How to make your own Info file.
Index::
An index of topics, commands, and variables.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following are advantages of the info file format:

It uses a structured document setup

Specific sections can be reached directly from the table of

contents

Specific sections can be linked

The following are the most commonly used key commands for the
command info:
Table 4-4

4-10

Key Command

Description

Space, PageDown

Page down one screen.

Backspace, PageUp

Page up one screen.

Move cursor to the beginning of current info

page.

Move cursor to the end of current info page.

Tab

Move cursor to the next reference (*).

Enter

Follow the reference.

Move to the next info page of the same level

(Next:).

Move to the previous info page of the same

level.

Move one level higher.

Move back to the last text displayed; end help.

Search in the info page.

Display help.

List a summary of commands.

End display of info document.

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Exercise 4-2

Access and Use info Pages

In this exercise, you learn how to use the info command and how to
navigate in the info text.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 3

Access Release Notes and White Papers

Release notes, white papers and other helpful information are stored
in the /usr/share/doc/ directory. This directory contains the
following:

Release Notes

Manuals

Help for Installed Packages

Howtos

Release Notes
When you complete the installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server, the release notes appear in a window.
Figure 4-1

4-12

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Locate and Use Help Resources

If you want to access these release notes later, you can find them in
the directory:
/usr/share/doc/release-notes/
SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_Server_10/
There are two release note files available:

RELEASE-NOTES.en.html

RELEASE-NOTES.en.rtf

The content of these files is identical. Only the file format is

different.

Manuals
The administration manual is also installed during the installation of
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.
In /usr/share/doc/manual/sles-admin_en/ there is a PDF version
of the manual.
If you prefer HTML, an HTML version is available in the html/
subfolder.

Help for Installed Packages

Help files are available in the following directory for most installed
packages:
/usr/share/doc/packages/package-name
These help files are written by the programmers of the package.
Therefore, the format of these files is not standardized. Some
packages provide help files in HTML, while others are in regular
ASCII.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Howtos
You can find additional information (including background
material) in the howtos. There is a howto for almost every
imaginable topic in Linux.
On SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 the howtos are not installed
by default, but you can install them manually later.
The howtos are also available in different formats, such as ASCII,
PostScript, and HTML. In addition, many of the howtos have been
translated into various languages.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server installation media contain a large
number of howtos. The howtos of the Linux Documentation Project
(TLDP) in HTML format are installed in the
/usr/share/doc/howto/en/html/ directory.
You can also install the howtos in ASCII format (package howto,
ASCII format). After installation, you can find them in the
/usr/share/doc/howto/en/txt/ directory.
You can find a list of all current howtos (together with available
translations) at http://www.tldp.org/.

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Exercise 4-3

Access Release Notes and White Papers Pages

In this exercise, you access release notes and white paper pages.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 4

Use GUI-Based Help

There is also an online help tool available for graphical applications
of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10.
To start the online help select Help in the System area of the main
menu.

Figure 4-2

Use the links to navigate through the content.

You also can use the search function to quicken your search for
help. Enter a topic in the Search textbox in the tool bar and press
Return.
The online help is available in most GNOME applications and can
be started by pressing F1.

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Objective 5

Find Help on the Web

You can find an extensive collection of information about Linux on
the Internet for both for general issues and special issues. The
following are some of the more frequently used Linux sites:

http://www.novell.com/linux/

http://www.tldp.org

http://www.cert.org (especially for security issues)

http://www.securityfocus.com (especially for security issues)

http://www.kernel.org (especially for issues in connection with

the Linux kernel)

To find other sources of information, you can use a search web site
such as Google. Google offers a special search web site for
questions about Linux at www.google.com/linux.

Version 2

Be careful with information you find on personal home pages. This

information can be old or wrong.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 4-4

Find Help on the Web

In this exercise, you learn how to find help on the web. You look for
updates for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 on the Novell support
website. You also use the Google Linux search engine to find
information on GNOME and SLES10 in the internet.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

4-18

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Access and Use man Pages

The most important command for

online help is man.
The manual pages are always
divided into parts and arranged
according to various sections.
Use the command less to view
the manual pages.

2. Use info Pages

Many programs are no longer

provided with manual pages.
Instead, info files are used, which
can be read with the command
info.
The following are advantages of
the info format:

Version 2

Structured document setup is

available.

Specific sections can be

reached directly from the table
of contents.

Links between specific sections

are possible.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

3. Access Release Notes and White

The release notes can be found in

the following directory:

Papers

/usr/share/doc/release-notes/
In /usr/share/doc/manual/
sles-admin_en/ there is a PDF
and an HTML version of the
administrator manual available.
Howtos are not available after the
installation of the SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server 10. If you install
them manually, you can find them
in the following directory:
/usr/share/doc/howto/en/
For most installed packages, there
are help files available in the
following directory:
/usr/share/doc/packages/
package-name
4. Use GUI-Based Help

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

provides a help system for
graphical applications.
To start the online help, select
Help from the main menu.
Help programs are available in
most GNOME applications and
can be started by pressing F1.

4-20

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Locate and Use Help Resources

Objective

Summary

5. Find Help on the Web

The Internet is a very extensive

source of expert knowledge for
general issues and special issues
with Linux.
The following are a few of the
more commonly-used web sites:

Version 2

http://www.novell.com/linux/suse

http://www.tldp.org

http://www.cert.org

http://www.securityfocus.com

http://www.kernel.org

http://www.google.com/linux

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

4-22

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Manage Directories and Files

SECTION 5

Manage Directories and Files

In this section, you learn about the structure of the Linux file system
and the most important file operation commands for working at the
command line.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Understand the File System Hierarchy Standard (FHS)

2.

Identify File Types in the Linux System

3.

Change Directories and List Directory Contents

4.

Create and View Files

5.

Work with Files and Directories

6.

Find Files on Linux

7.

Search File Content

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Understand the File System Hierarchy

Standard (FHS)
The file system concept of Linux (and, in general, of all UNIX
systems) is considerably different than that of other operating
systems.
A filename in Linux can be up to 255 characters long. It can contain
any number of special characters (_ or %, for example).
Certain special characters (the dollar sign $, the semicolon ;, or
the space, for example) have a specific meaning. If you want to use
one of these characters without the associated special meaning, the
character must be preceded by a \ (backslash) to mask (switch off)
its special meaning.
You can also use umlauts, letters with diacritical marks, or other
country-specific characters. But if you exchanged data with people
in other countries using other settings, you could could get
problems, because these characters were not present on their
keyboards.
Linux differentiates between upper-case and lower-case letters. For
example, Invoice, invoice, and INVOICE identify three different
files.
To understand the concept of the Linux file system, you need to
know the following:

5-2

The Hierarchical Structure of the File System

FHS (Filesystem Hierarchy Standard)

Root Directory /

Essential Binaries for Use by All Users (/bin)

Boot Directory (/boot)

Other Partitions (/data)

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Manage Directories and Files

Version 2

Device Files (/dev)

Configuration Files (/etc)

User Directories (/home)

Libraries (/lib)

Mount Points for Removable Media (/media/*)

Application Directory (/opt)

Home Directory of the Administrator (/root)

System Binaries (/sbin)

Data Directories for Services (/srv)

Subdomain AppArmor (/subdomain)

Temporary Area (/tmp)

The Hierarchy Below /usr

Variable Files (/var)

Windows Partitions (/windows)

Process Files (/proc)

System Information Directory (/sys)

Mount Point for Temporarily Mounted File Systems (/mnt)

Directories for Mounting Other File Systems

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The Hierarchical Structure of the File System

The file system concept of Linux involves a hierarchical file system
that can be depicted in the form of a tree.
This tree is not limited to a local partition. It can stretch over several
partitions, which can be located on different computers in a
network. It begins at the root, from where the name for the system
administrator comes, and branches out like the branches of a tree.
The following is an extract from a typical file system tree:
Figure 5-1

A file in this directory tree is uniquely defined by its path. A path

refers to the directory names which lead to this file.
The separation character between individual directory names is the
slash (/). The path can be specified in two ways:

5-4

As a relative path starting from the current directory

As an absolute path starting from the root of the entire file

system tree.

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Manage Directories and Files

The absolute path always begins with a slash (/), the symbol for
the root directory.
Figure 5-2

In this figure the current position in the file system is geekos home
directory. To change into the /etc directory, you can use the
following commands:

absolute: cd /etc

relative: cd ../../etc

cd is the command to change the current working directory. It will be

explained later in detail.

Sometimes it is necessary to specify the absolute path, because

certain files can only be uniquely addressed in this way. The length
of the path cannot exceed 4096 characters, including the slashes.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

FHS (Filesystem Hierarchy Standard)

The structure of the file system is described in the Filesystem
Hierarchy Standard (FHS). Here, it is specified which directories
must be located on the first level after the root directory and what
they contain.
The FHS does not specify all details. In some areas it allows leeway
for your own definitions. The FHS defines a two-layered hierarchy:

The directories in the top layer (immediately below the root

directory /).

As a second layer, the directories under /usr and /var.

You can find information on FHS at http://www.pathname.com/fhs/ on the

Internet.

Root Directory /
The root directory refers to the highest layer of the file system tree.
Normally only directories (not files) are located here. When the
system is booted, the partition on which this directory is located is
the first one mounted.
As the kernel cannot fulfill all the tasks of the operating system, all
programs that are run at system start must be available on this
partition (they cannot be located on another partition).
The following directories always have to be on the same partition as
the root directory: /bin, /dev, /etc, /lib, and /sbin.

5-6

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Manage Directories and Files

Essential Binaries for Use by All Users (/bin)

The /bin directory contains important executable programs that are
required when no other file systems are mounted, such as all
programs necessary for the system start.
These include the various shells, the most important commands for
working with files, and several commands for system analysis and
configuration.
The following table provides an overview of the contents of the /bin
directory:
Table 5-1

Version 2

File

Description

/bin/bash

The bash shell

/bin/cat

Displaying files

/bin/cp

Copying files

/bin/dd

Copying files byte-wise

/bin/gzip

Compressing files

/bin/mount

Mounting file systems

/bin/rm

Deleting files

/bin/vi

vi editor

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Boot Directory (/boot)

The /boot directory contains static files of the boot loader GRUB
(Grand Unified Bootloader). These are files required for the boot
process (with the exception of configuration files).
The backed-up information for the Master Boot Record (MBR) and
the system map files are also stored here. These contain information
about where exactly the kernel is located on the partition. In
addition, this directory contains the kernel which has the file name
vmlinuz.
According to the FHS, however, the kernel can also be located
directly in the root directory.

Other Partitions (/data)

If YaST finds other (non-Windows) partitions or another hard disk
during the installation it creates mount points for each partition
labeled:

5-8

/data1

/data2

...

/dataX

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Device Files (/dev)

Each hardware component existing in the system (such as hard drive
partitions, CD drives, printer, and mouse) is represented as a file in
the /dev directory.
The hardware components are addressed via these files by writing to
or reading from one of these files. Two kinds of device files are
included:

Character-oriented device files (for devices working

sequentially, such as printer, mouse, or tape drive)

Block-oriented device files (such as floppy disks and hard

drives).

The connection to device drivers in the kernel is implemented via

numbered channels, which correspond to the number of the device
driver in question. These are referred to as major device numbers.
A driver might be responsible for several devices of the same type.
To distinguish between these devices, the minor device number is
used.
Instead of the size of the files, these two numbers are displayed (the
files do not occupy any space on the hard drive anyway):
da51:~ # ls -l /dev/hda*
brw-rw---- 1 root disk 3, 0 Mar 22 06:12 /dev/hda
brw-rw---- 1 root disk 3, 1 Mar 22 06:12 /dev/hda1

In this example, the major device number 3 is listed for all files.
This refers to the driver for IDE hard drives. The minor device
numbers run from 1 to 15 (for SCSI hard drives) and up to 63 (for
IDE hard drives) and refer to the various possible partitions.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Many device files are already available by default. Some of these,

however, are never needed. If special device files are required for
specific devices, these can be generated with the mknod command.
The necessary parameters must be provided by the hardware
manufacturer.
The null device /dev/null is also located in this directory. Program
output that would normally be sent to the screen can be redirected to
this device (for example, using redirects). The redirected data will
be deleted.
The following are some important device files:
Table 5-2

5-10

Device

Device File

Description

Terminals

/dev/console

The system console

/dev/tty1

The first virtual console,

reachable with
Ctrl+Alt+F1.

Serial ports

/dev/ttyS0
/dev/ttyS*

The first serial port.

Parallel ports

/dev/lp0
/dev/lp*

The first parallel port.

Floppy disk drives

/dev/fd0
/dev/fd*

The first floppy disk

drive. If the drives are
addressed via the device
files fd0 and fd1, the
kernel tries to recognize
the floppy disk format
itself.

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Table 5-2 (continued)

Version 2

Device

Device File

Description

IDE hard drives

/dev/hda

The first IDE hard drive

on the first IDE controller.

/dev/hdc

The first IDE hard drive

on the second IDE
controller.

/dev/hd*

To label the partitions,

the device names are
given numbers. Numbers
1 to 4 refer to the primary
partitions, higher
numbers to logical
partitions. Example:
/dev/hda1 is the first
primary partition on the
first IDE hard drive.

IDE CD-ROM drives

/dev/hd*

The drives are named in

the same way as the IDE
hard drives. This means
that the CD-ROM drive
/dev/hdd is the second
drive on the second IDE
controller.

SCSI hard drives

/dev/sda

The first SCSI hard drive

/dev/sda*

With SCSI hard drives,

the device names are
given numbers to label
the various partitions.
For example, /dev/sda1
is the first primary
partition on the first SCSI
hard drive.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Table 5-2 (continued)

Device

Device File

Description

SATA hard drives

/dev/sda

The first SATA hard drive

/dev/sda*

With SATA hard drives,

the device names are
given numbers to label
the various partitions.
For example, /dev/sda1
is the first primary
partition on the first SATA
hard drive.

/dev/scd0

The first SCSI CD-ROM

drive.

SCSI CD-ROM drives

/dev/scd*

Configuration Files (/etc)

This directory and its subdirectories contain system configuration
files. Almost all these files are ASCII files, which can be processed
with any editor.
Normal users can read nearly all of these files, but they cannot edit
any of them. According to the FHS, no executable programs can be
located here.
However, the subdirectories contain many shell scripts. Some
important configuration files are listed in the following table:
Table 5-3

5-12

File

Description

/etc/SuSE-release

Version number of the installed SUSE Linux

Enterprise Server

/etc/inittab

Configuration file for the init process

/etc/init.d/*

Scripts for starting services

/etc/modprobe.conf

Configuration file of the kernel modules

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Table 5-3 (continued)

File

Description

/etc/DIR_COLORS

Specifies the colors for ls

/etc/X11/xorg.conf

Configuration file of the X Window System

/etc/fstab

Table of the file systems automatically

mounted at the system start

/etc/profile

Login script of the shell

/etc/passwd

User database; all information except

passwords

/etc/shadow

Encrypted passwords of users

/etc/group

Database of user groups

/etc/cups/*

Files for the CUPS printing system

/etc/hosts

Allocation of computer names to IP addresses

/etc/motd

Welcome message after a user logs in

(message of the day)

/etc/issue

Linux welcome message before the login

prompt

/etc/sysconfig/*

Central configuration files of the system

Nearly every installed service has at least one configuration file in

the /etc directory or a subdirectory.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

User Directories (/home)

Every user on a Linux system has his own area in which to work
with files. This area is called the home directory of the user. When a
user logs in, he is in his own home directory.
Individual configuration files can be found in the user's home
directory. These configuration files are hidden files, because they
are normally not displayed by the ls command. All these files have
names that begin with a dot.
The following are the most important files in a user's home
directory:
Table 5-4

File

Description

.profile

Private login script of the user

.bashrc

Configuration file for bash

.bash_history

List of commands previously run in bash

If there are no special settings, the home directories of all users are
located beneath the /home directory. The home directory of a user
can also be addressed via the short cut ~, so ~/.bashrc refers to the
.bashrc file in the user's home directory.
In many cases, the /home directory is located on a different partition
or can even be located on a different computer (with central
administration of home directories).

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Libraries (/lib)
Many programs use specific functions that are also used by other
programs. Such standard functions are removed from the actual
program, stored in the system, and only called up when the program
runs. They are called shared libraries.
The /lib directory contains the libraries that are used by programs in
the /bin and /sbin directories. The kernel modules (hardware drivers
not compiled into the kernel) are located in the /lib/modules/
directory.
You can find additional libraries below the /usr directory.

Mount Points for Removable Media (/media/*)

SUSE Linux creates directories in the /media/ directory for
mounting removable media when detecting a media:

/media/floppy/. Created for a floppy disk drive.

/media/cdrom/. Created for a CD-Rom drive.

/media/cdrecorder/. Created for a CD burner.

/media/dvd/. Created for a DVD drive.

/media/usbdisk/. Created for a USB stick.

/media/media_name. Created after inserting a labeled

removable media.

Application Directory (/opt)

Installed programs can store their static files in the /opt directory.
First, a directory with the name of the application is created. The
files are then stored in that directory.
Examples include GNOME (/opt/gnome) and KDE (/opt/kde3).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Home Directory of the Administrator (/root)

The home directory of the system administrator is not located
beneath /home as that of a normal user. Preferably, it should be on
the same partition as the root directory, /. Only then is it
guaranteed that the user root can always log in without a problem
and have her own configured environment available.

System Binaries (/sbin)

The /sbin directory contains important programs for system
administration. Programs that are run by normal users as well are
located in /bin.
Programs in the /sbin directory can also, as a rule, be run by normal
users, but only to display the configured values. Changes to the
configuration can only be made by the user root.
The following is an overview of important files in the /sbin
directory:
Table 5-5

File

Description

/sbin/SuSEconfig

Starts the SuSEconfig modules in the

/sbin/conf.d/ directory.

/sbin/conf.d/*

Contains the scripts from the SuSEconfig family

that are called up by /sbin/SuSEconfig.
They are used to configure the overall system,
evaluate entries in the configuration files in the
/etc/sysconfig/ directory, and write further
configuration files

5-16

/sbin/yast

Administration tool for SUSE Linux Enterprise

Server.

/sbin/fdisk

Modifies partitions.

/sbin/fsck*

Checks file systems (file system check).

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Table 5-5 (continued)

File

Description

/sbin/init

Initializes the system.

/sbin/mkfs*

Creates a file system (formatting).

/sbin/shutdown

Shuts down the system.

Data Directories for Services (/srv)

The /srv directory contains subdirectories designed for containing
data of various services. For example, the files of the Apache web
server are located in the /srv/www/ directory and the FTP server
files are located in the /srv/ftp/ directory.

Subdomain AppArmor (/subdomain)

Novell AppArmor is an effective and easy-to-use Linux application
security system that protects your Linux operating system and
applications from the effects of attacks, viruses and malicious
applications. AppArmor is not a firewall or a virus-detection
application; it is a complete intrusion-prevention system.
AppArmor (formerly called Subdomain) is a kernel enhancement to
confine programs to a limited set of resources. AppArmor's unique
security model is to bind access control attributes to programs rather
than to users.

Temporary Area (/tmp)

Various programs create temporary files that are stored in /tmp/ until
they are deleted.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The Hierarchy Below /usr

The /usr directory, in accordance with the FHS, represents a second
hierarchical layer.
/usr means Unix Specific Resources or Unix System Resources.
This is the location for all application programs, graphical interface
files, additional libraries, locally installed programs, and commonly
shared directories containing documentation.
These include the following:
Table 5-6

5-18

Directory

Description

/usr/X11R6/

Files of the X Window System

/usr/bin/

Almost all executable programs

/usr/lib/

Libraries

/usr/local/

Locally installed programs, now frequently

found in the /opt/ directory

/usr/sbin/

Programs for system administration

/usr/share/doc/

Documentation

/usr/share/man/

The manual pages (command descriptions)

/usr/src/

Source files of all programs and the kernel (if

installed)

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Variable Files (/var)

This directory and its subdirectories contain files that can be
modified while the system is running.
The following table provides an overview of the most important
directories beneath /var:
Table 5-7

Directory

Description

/var/lib/

Variable libraries (such as databases for the

commands locate and rpm)

/var/log/

Log files for most services

/var/run/

Files with information on running processes

/var/spool/

Directory for queues (printers, email)

/var/lock/

Lock files to protect devices from multiple use

Windows Partitions (/windows)

If YaST finds any partitions with a Microsoft file system it creates a
/windows directory automatically. Inside this directory there are
subdirectories labeled with Windows drive characters (e.g., C, D).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Process Files (/proc)

Linux handles process information that is made available to users
via the /proc directory. This directory does not contain any real files
and therefore does not occupy any space on the hard disk.
It is generated dynamically when it is accessed (for example, with
ls /proc). Each process has its own directory. The values in these
directories can be read as if they were in a file. Some values can
also be set by writing to the corresponding files. Changes to this
virtual file system only have an effect as long as the system is
running.
For example, the process init always has the process number 1.
Information about it is therefore found in the /proc/1/ directory. This
directory contains the following files:
da51:~ # ls -l /proc/1
total 0
dr-xr-xr-x 3 root root
dr-xr-xr-x 62 root root
dr-xr-xr-x 2 root root
-r-------- 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
-r-------- 1 root root
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root
dr-x------ 2 root root
-rw------- 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
-rw------- 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
dr-xr-xr-x 3 root root
-r--r--r-- 1 root root
da51:~ #

5-20

0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

Apr
Mar
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr
Apr

5 17:28 .
30 15:09 ..
5 17:36 attr
5 17:36 auxv
5 17:28 cmdline
5 17:36 cwd -> /
5 17:36 delay
5 17:36 environ
5 17:28 exe -> /sbin/init
5 17:36 fd
5 17:36 map_base
5 17:36 maps
5 17:36 mem
5 17:36 mounts
5 17:36 root -> /
5 17:28 stat
5 17:36 statm
5 17:36 status
5 17:36 task
5 17:36 wchan

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The contents of the files can be viewed with the cat command,
which shows the status of the process, as in the following:
da51:~ # cat /proc/1/status
Name: init
State: S (sleeping)
SleepAVG:
26%
Tgid: 1
Pid: 1
PPid: 0
TracerPid:
0
Uid: 0
0
0
0
Gid: 0
0
0
0
FDSize: 32
Groups:
VmSize:
588 kB
VmLck:
0 kB
VmRSS:
108 kB
VmData:
136 kB
VmStk:
8 kB
VmExe:
432 kB
VmLib:
0 kB
Threads:
1
SigPnd: 0000000000000000
ShdPnd: 0000000000000000
SigBlk: 0000000000000000
SigIgn: ffffffffd770d8fc
SigCgt: 00000000288b2603
CapInh: 0000000000000000
CapPrm: 00000000ffffffff
CapEff: 00000000fffffeff
da51:~ #

In this example, a list is displayed of what the process is called

(init), what state it is in (sleeping), and to which user it belongs
(Uid: 0 for root).
In addition to directories for each individual process, /proc also
includes directories and files containing information about the state
of the system.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following are the most important of these:

Table 5-8

File

Description

/proc/cpuinfo

Information about the processor

/proc/dma

Use of the DMA ports (Direct Memory Access)

/proc/interrupts

Use of the interrupt

/proc/ioports

Use of the intrasystem I/O ports

/proc/filesystems

File system formats that the kernel understands

/proc/modules

Active modules

/proc/mounts

Mounted file systems

/proc/net/*

Network-specific information and statistics in

human-readable form.

/proc/partitions

Existing partitions

/proc/bus/pci

Existing PCI devices

/proc/bus/scsi/

Connected SCSI devices

/proc/sys/*

System and kernel information

/proc/version

Kernel version

System Information Directory (/sys)

The /sys directory provides information in the form of a tree
structure on various hardware buses, hardware devices, active
devices, and their drivers.

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Mount Point for Temporarily Mounted File Systems

(/mnt)
The standard directory for integrating file systems is /mnt. It should
only be used for temporary purposes. For permanent mounts, you
should create an appropriately named directory.
In the following example, the hard drive partition /dev/hda7 is
mounted at the position /mnt in the directory tree using the mount
command:
da51:~ # mount /dev/hda7 /mnt

All files on this partition can now be reached via the /mnt directory.
To remove this partition again, you use the umount command:
da51:~ # umount /mnt

If you do not include any options with the mount command, the
program tries out several file system formats. If you want to specify
a specific file system, use the option -t.
If the file system format is not supported by the kernel, the
command is aborted, and you receive an error message. In this case,
you must compile a new kernel that supports the file system format.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Directories for Mounting Other File Systems

Other file systems such as other hard drive partitions, directories
from other computers via the network, or removable media (floppy
disk, CD-ROM, removable hard drive) can be mounted to the file
system at any point.
A directory must exist at the point where you intend to mount the
file system. This directory is referred to as the mount point. The
complete directory structure of the mounted file system can be
found beneath this directory.
In most cases, only the user root can mount and unmount
directories. Removable media, such as floppy disks and CDs, can be
changed by a normal user.
To mount a file system, enter the mount command, specifying the
device file and the directory to which the file system should be
mounted.
A file system can be removed again with the umount command.
The /etc/mtab file, which is updated by the command mount, shows
which file systems are currently mounted. It is possible to mount
one file system at diffentent positions.
You can mount file systems in directories that are occupied. The
existing contents of these directories, however, will no longer be
accessible. After the file system is removed, this data becomes
available again.
You can also share certain directories with many computers. This
approach is often used for the home directories of users, which are
then located centrally on one machine and exported to other
computers in the network.

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The following directories can be shared:

Table 5-9

Directory

Description

/home

Home directories

/opt

Applications

/usr

The hierarchy below /usr

The following directories cannot be imported from other computers.

They must always be located locally on each computer:
Table 5-10

Version 2

Directory

Description

/bin

Important programs

/boot

Kernel and boot files

/dev

Device files

/etc

Configuration files

/lib

Libraries

/sbin

Important programs for system administration

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 5-1

Explore the SUSE Linux File System Hierarchy

In this exercise, you explore the SUSE File System Hierarchy. You
find out the mount point of the DVD and mount the DVD manually
at another position (/mnt) in the file system.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Objective 2

Identify File Types in the Linux System

The Linux file system is distinct from the file systems of other
operating systems because of the various file types.
The file types in Linux referred to as normal files and directories are
also known in other operating systems. However, the following are
additional types of files that are UNIX-specific:

Normal Files

Directories

Device Files

Links

Sockets

FIFOs

Normal Files
Normal files refer to files as they are also known in other operating
systems: a set of contiguous data addressed with one name. This
includes all the files normally expected under this term (ASCII
texts, executable programs, graphics files, etc.).
The names for such files can be freely chosen and there is no
division into file name and file type (such as report.txt).
A number of file names still retain this structure, but these are
requirements of the corresponding applications, such as a word
processing program or a compiler.

Directories
Directories contain two entries with which the structure of the
hierarchical file system is implemented.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

One of these entries (.) points to the directory itself. The other
entry (..) points to the entry one level higher in the hierarchy.

Device Files
Each piece of hardware in a Linux system is represented by a device
file. These files represent links between the hardware components
or the device drivers in the kernel and the applications.
Every program that wants to access hardware must access it through
the corresponding device file. The programs write to or read from a
device file. The kernel then ensures that the data finds its way to the
hardware or can be read from the file.

Links
Links are references to files located at other points in the file
system. Data maintenance is simplified through the use of such
links. Changes only need to be made to the original file. The
changes are then automatically valid for all links.

Sockets
A socket refers to a special file with which data exchange between
two locally running processes can be implemented through the file
system.

FIFOs
FIFO (first in first out) or named pipe is a term used for files used to
exchange data between processes. However, the file can only
exchange data in one direction.

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Objective 3

Change Directories and List Directory

Contents
The prompt of a shell terminal contains the current directory (such
as geeko@da51:~). The tilde ~ indicates that you are in the user's
home directory.
You can use the following commands to change the active directory
and list the contents of a directory:

cd

ls

pwd

cd
You can use the cd command (change directory) to change between
directories. Some examples include the following:
Table 5-11

Version 2

Command

Meaning

cd plan

Change to the subdirectory plan

cd /etc

Change directly to the /etc directory (absolute path)

cd

Change from any directory to the home directory

cd ..

Move one directory level higher

cd ../..

Move two directory levels higher

cd -

Move to the last valid directory

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

ls
The ls command (list) lists the specified files. If a directory is
included with ls, the directory's contents are displayed. Without an
option, the contents of the current directory are listed.
The following are the most important options you can use with ls:
Table 5-12

5-30

Option

Meaning

None

Displays the contents of the current directory in

several columns (file and directory names only).

-a

Also displays hidden files (such as .bashrc)

-F

After each name, a character indicates the file type.

(/ for directories, * for executable files, | for FIFO
files, @ symbolic link)

-l

(long list) Gives a detailed list of all files. For each

file name, information about permissions,
modification time, and size is included.

-t

Files are sorted by date of alteration. Combined with

the option -r, the output takes place in reverse order
(the newest file is displayed last).

-R

Output is recursive, including all subdirectories.

-u

Sorted by date of last access.

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The following are examples of using ls:

geeko@da51:/ > ls var/
adm cache games lib lock log mail opt run spool tmp X11R6
yp
geeko@da51:/ > ls -l var/
total 2
drwxr-xr-x 10 root root 272 2004-03-29 12:31 adm
drwxr-xr-x 6 root root 144 2004-03-29 11:58 cache
drwxrwxr-x 2 games games 48 2004-03-23 18:41 games
drwxr-xr-x 22 root root 624 2004-04-13 04:17 lib
drwxrwxr-x 4 root uucp 96 2004-04-06 14:45 lock
drwxr-xr-x 6 root root 800 2004-04-05 17:29 log
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 10 2004-03-29 11:23 mail ->
spool/mail
drwxr-xr-x 3 root root 72 2004-03-29 11:26 opt
drwxr-xr-x 12 root root 776 2004-04-08 11:21 run
drwxr-xr-x 11 root root 296 2004-03-29 12:00 spool
drwxrwxrwt 5 root root 144 2004-04-06 14:44 tmp
drwxr-xr-x 4 root root 120 2004-03-29 11:47 X11R6
drwxr-xr-x 3 root root 104 2004-03-29 11:46 yp
geeko@da51:/ >

pwd
You can use the pwd command (print working directory) to display
the path of the current directory. If you enter pwd with the -P
option, pwd prints the physical directory without any symbolic
links:
geeko@da51:~ > ls -l doc/
lrwxrwxrwx 1 geeko users
/usr/share/doc/
geeko@da51:~ > cd doc/
geeko@da51:~ > pwd
/home/geeko/doc
geeko@da51:~ > pwd -P
/usr/share/doc
geeko@da51:~ >

Version 2

15 2004-02-12 08:43 doc ->

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 5-2

Change Directories and List Directory Contents

In this exercise, you learn how to use the cd, pwd, and ls command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Objective 4

Create and View Files

To create and view files, you need to know how to do the following:

Create a New File with touch

View a File with cat

View a File with less

View a File with head and tail

Create a New File with touch

You can use the touch command to change the time stamp of a file
or create a new file with a size of 0 bytes. The following are the
most important options:
Table 5-13

Command

Description

-a

Changes only the time of the last read access

(access time).

-m

Changes only the time of the last modification

(modification time).

-r file

Sets the time stamp of file instead of the current

time.

-t time

Instead of the current time, sets

time (structure: [[CC]YY]MMDDhhmm.[ss]
([Century]Year] Month Day Hour Minute
[Seconds], two digits in each case)).

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The following is an example of using touch:

geeko@da51:~> ls
bin Desktop Documents public_html
geeko@da51:~> touch example
geeko@da51:~> ls
bin Desktop Documents example public_html
geeko@da51:~>

View a File with cat

You can use the cat command (concatenate) to view the contents of
a file. The command must include the filename of the file you want
to see, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~> cat /etc/HOSTNAME
da51.digitalairlines.com
geeko@da51:~>

View a File with less

You can use the less command to display the contents of a file page
by page. Even compressed files (such as .gz and .bz2) can be
displayed. You can use the following keystrokes with less:
Table 5-14

5-34

Keystroke

Description

Spacebar

Move one screen down.

Move one screen up.

Down arrow

Move one line down.

Up arrow

Move one line up.

/pattern

Search for pattern forward from current cursor

position.

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Table 5-14 (continued)

Keystroke

Description

?pattern

Search for pattern backwards from the current

cursor position.

Move to the next instance in the search for

pattern.

Move to the previous instance in the search for

pattern.

Quit.

View a File with head and tail

With the head command, you can view only the first few lines of a
file. The tail command shows you only the last few lines of a file.
By default, these commands only show ten lines. To change these
number, just append the option -number.
When used with the tail command, the option -f displays a
continuously updated view of the last lines of a file. If a line is
added at the end of the file while tail -f is running, the line is
displayed. This is a very useful feature for observing log files. To
exit tail -f, press Ctrl+c.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following is an example of using the head command:

geeko@da51:~> head
/usr/share/doc/release-notes/SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_Server_
10/RELEASE-NOTES.en.html
<H1>Release Notes for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 for
x86</H1>
<H1>GA Release Notes</H1>
<P>
These release notes cover the following areas:
<ul>
<li>General: Information that everybody should read.</li>
<li>Update: Explains changes that are not mentioned in the
Admin Guide.</li>
<li>Installation: Additional pertinent information for the
Installation.</li>
<li>Technical: These sections contains a number of
technical changes and enhancements for the experienced
user.</li>
da51:~ #?

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Exercise 5-3

Create and View Files

In this exercise, you create an empty file and view the content of a
file. You use the touch, cat, less, head, and tail command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 5

Work with Files and Directories

In this objective, you learn how to do the following to work with
files:

Copy and Move Files and Directories

Create Directories

Delete Files and Directories

Link Files

Copy and Move Files and Directories

To copy and move files and directories, you need to know how to do
the following:

Move Files with mv

Copy Files with cp

Move Files with mv

You can use the mv command (move) to move one or more files to
another directory, as in the following:
mv *.txt /tmp
You can also use the mv command to rename a file, as in the
following:
mv recipe new_recipe

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The following are some important options you can use with mv:
Table 5-15

Option

Description

-i

Asks for confirmation before moving or

renaming a file. This prevents existing files with
the same name from being overwritten.

-u

Only moves files that are newer than the target

files of the same name.

Copy Files with cp

You can copy files and directories (using the option -r) with the cp
command (copy). The syntax for using cp is
cp source destination
When using the cp command, you need to remember the following:

The cp command overwrites existing files without

confirmation.

You can avoid automatic overwriting by using the option -i.

This option requires confirmation before overwriting occurs.

If you want to copy just the contents of a directory (without the

directory itself), the target directory must already exist. An
example is making a backup copy of a directory using a
different name.

For example, to copy the /tmp/quarterly-1/ directory with all its

subdirectories to the /tmp/expenses/ directory (which already
exists), you would enter the following:
cp -r /tmp/quarterly-1 /tmp/expenses
The result is a /tmp/expenses/quarterly-1/ directory.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

To copy the contents of the directory proposals/ (all the files

contained in it, including hidden files and subdirectories) to the
directory proposals_old/ (this must already exist), you would enter
the following:
geeko@da51:~
. .. .hidden
quarterly-4
geeko@da51:~
geeko@da51:~
. .. .hidden
quarterly-4

> ls -a proposals
quarterly-1 quarterly-2 quarterly-3
> cp -r proposals/. proposals_old
> ls -a proposals_old
quarterly-1 quarterly-2 quarterly-3

To avoid copying the hidden files, you would enter the following:
geeko@da51:~ > cp -r proposals/* proposals_old
geeko@da51:~ > ls -a proposals_old
. .. quarterly-1 quarterly-2 quarterly-3 quarterly-4

You can use the following options with cp:

Table 5-16

5-40

Option

Description

-a, --archive

Copies a directory and subdirectories (compare

-R); symbolic links, file permissions, owners,
and time stamps are not changed.

--help

Displays the options of cp.

-i, --interactive

Asks before overwriting.

-R, -r, --recursive

Copies directories recursively (the directory and

any subdirectories).

-s, --symbolic-link

Makes symbolic links instead of copying

-l, --link

Links files instead of copying them.

-u, --update

Copies a file only when the source file is newer

than the destination file or when the destination
file is missing.

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Exercise 5-4

Copy and Move Files and Directories

In this exercise, you copy and move files with the cp and mv
command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Create Directories
You can use the mkdir command (make directory) to create new
directories (such as mkdir proposal). The option -p lets you create
a complete path, as in the following:
mkdir -p proposal/january

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Exercise 5-5

Create Directories
In this exercise, you create the new directories with the mkdir
command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Delete Files and Directories

In this section, you learn how to do the following:

Delete Empty Directories with rmdir

Delete Files and Directories with rm

Delete Empty Directories with rmdir

You can use the rmdir (remove directory) command to remove the
indicated the directory or directories (for example, rmdir
proposal). The directory or directories must be empty before you
can delete them.

Delete Files and Directories with rm

You can use the rm command (remove) to delete files, as in the

following:
rm part*
This example deletes all files in the current directory that begin with
part without asking for confirmation. If the user does not have
sufficient permissions to delete a file, this file is ignored and an
error message is printed.

5-44

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The following are some important options you can use with rm:
Table 5-17

Version 2

Option

Description

-i

Asks for confirmation before deleting.

-r

(recursively) Allows full directories to be

deleted.

-f

(force) By default rm asks for confirmation if the

file that should be deleted is read-only. Using
this option the files are deleted without asking
for confirmation.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 5-6

Delete Files and Directories

In this exercise, you learn how to delete files and directories with
the rmdir and rm command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Link Files
File system formats in Linux keep data and administration
information separate. How data is organized differs from one file
system format to another.
Each file is described by an inode (index node or information node).
To see the inode number you can enter ls -i.
Each of these inodes has a size of 128-bytes and contains all the
information about this file apart from the filename. This includes
information such as details of the owner, access permissions, the
size, various time details (time of modification, time of access, time
of modification of the inode), and the links to the data blocks of this
file.
The ln command creates a link. A link is a reference to a file.
Through a link, you can access a file from anywhere in the file
system using different names for it. This means that the file itself
exists only once on the system, but it can be found under different
names.
Linux recognizes two kinds of links:

Hard links

Symbolic links

You create a hard link by using the ln command, which points to the
inode of an already existing file. Thereafter, the file can be accessed
under both namesthat of the file and that of the link, and you can
no longer discern which name existed first or how the original file
and the link differ.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following is an example of using the ln command:

geeko@da51:~/sell > ls -li
total 4
88658 -rw-r--r-- 1 geeko users 82 2004-04-06 14:21 old
geeko@da51:~/sell > ln old new
geeko@da51:~/sell > ls -li
total 8
88658 -rw-r--r-- 2 geeko users 82 2004-04-06 14:21 old
88658 -rw-r--r-- 2 geeko users 82 2004-04-06 14:21 new
geeko@da51:~/sell >

Hard links can only be used when both the file and the link are in
the same file system (on the same partition), because inode numbers
are only unique within the same file system.
You can create a symbolic link with the command ln and the option
-s. A symbolic link is assigned its own inodethe link refers to a
file, so a distinction can always be made between the link and the
actual file.
The following is an example of creating a symbolic link:
geeko@da51:~/sell > ls -li
total 4
88658 -rw-r--r-- 1 geeko users 82 2004-04-06 14:21 old
geeko@da51:~/sell > ln -s old new
geeko@da51:~/sell > ls -li
total 4
88658 -rw-r--r-- 1 geeko users 82 2004-04-06 14:21 old
88657 lrwxrwxrwx 1 geeko users 3 2004-04-06 14:27 new ->
old
geeko@da51:~/sell >

With symbolic links, the limits of the file system can be overcome,
because the name of the object is shown, not the object itself. The
disadvantage is that a symbolic link can point to a non-existing
object if the object and its corresponding name no longer exist.

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Manage Directories and Files

If you erase the old file in the above example, new will point to a
non-existing file. You can not see in the ls output, that the link is
broken:
geeko@da51:~/sell > rm old
geeko@da51:~/sell > ls -li
total 0
88657 lrwxrwxrwx 1 geeko users 3 2004-04-06 14:27 new ->
old
geeko@da51:~/sell >

An advantage of symbolic links is that you can create links to

directories.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 5-7

Link Files
In this exercise, you create a symbolic link and a hardlink with the
ln command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Manage Directories and Files

Objective 6

Find Files on Linux

In this objective you learn how to find files and programs.
If the name of the file is not completely known, you can use the two
wildcards ? (for any character) and * (for none, one, or several
characters).
Suppose the following files exist:

File

file

File1

File1a

File1b

File2

File2a

MyFile

The following table shows the results of three different search

strings:
Table 5-18

Search String

Files Found

File?

File1
File2

File*

File
File1
File1a
File1b
File2
File2a

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Table 5-18 (continued)

Search String

Files Found

?ile*

File
file
File1
File1a
File1b
File2
File2a

The following tools are introduced:

Graphical Search Tools

find

locate

whereis

which

type

Graphical Search Tools

Sometimes you need to find a file so you can edit it, but you do not
know exactly where it is located in the file system. You might know
the name of this file or only a part of the name.
At another time, you might need a list of all files that have been
modified in the last two days or that exceed a certain size.

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If you enter search in the application browser, two applications are

found:

Nautilus Search Tool (Browse application group). The

Nautilus file manager is used for searching files. This tool
allows only to search for file names.

GNOME Search Tool (System application group). This tool

allows you to search for information such as file size, date, or
file owner.

After selecting the GNOME Search tool from the application

browser, the following dialog appears.
Figure 5-3

In the Name contains field, enter a part of the filename you want to
find.
Enter the directory you want to search in Look in Folder. Select
Find to start the search process. All matching files and directories
are shown in the lower window with details of their locations.
Further settings can be made when you open the menu under Select
More Options. Select a search rule from the pulldown menu
Available Options.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

After selecting Add, a new text field is added and you can enter the
information the option needs. To remove a search rule, select
Remove next to the rule.
Figure 5-4

find
To search for files on the command line, you can use the find
command. The following is the syntax for the find command:
find path criterion action
The command has a multitude of options, a few of which are
explained here. You can use the following arguments with the
command:

5-54

path. The section of the file system to search (the specified

directory and all its subdirectories). If nothing is specified, the
file system below the current directory is used.

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Table 5-19

Version 2

criterion. The properties the file should have (refer to the

following):
Option

Description

-ctime [+/-]days

Searches for files whose last change took

place no later than (no earlier than) a
specified number of days ago.

-gid number

Searches for files with the numeric GID

(Group ID) number.

-group name

Searches for files that are owned by the

group name. Instead of a name, the
numeric GID is allowed.

-name pattern

Searches for files whose names contain

the given pattern. If the pattern contains
meta characters (see table Character on
5-65) or wild cards, it must be enclosed by
quotation marks. Otherwise it will be
interpreted by the shell and not by find.

-size [+/-]size

Matches files that are above or below a

certain size. As an argument, the size (in
blocks of 512 bytes) is given. The suffix c
switches to byte and k to blocks of 1024
bytes. A preceding + stands for all larger
files and a - for all smaller files.

-type file_type

Searches for a file type. A file type can be

one of the following: d for a directory, f
for a file, or l for a symbolic link.

-uid number

Searches for files with the numeric UID

(User ID) number.

-user name

Searches for files, which are owned by user

name. Instead of a name, the numeric UID
is allowed.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

action: Options that influence the following conditions or

control the search as a whole, such as the following:

-print (default)

-exec command

With the option -exec, you can call up another command. This
option is frequently used to link find and grep as in the following:
geeko@da51:~ > find ~ -name letter* -type f -exec grep
appointment {} \;
appointment for next meeting: 23.08.
/home/geeko/letters/letter_Smith
geeko@da51:~ >

In this example, the find command searches for files starting with
letter in their names, and then passes the names of the files found
with -exec to the following command (in this case grep
appointment {}).
The two brackets {} stand as placeholders for the filenames which
are found and passed to the grep command. The semicolon closes
the -exec instruction. As this is a special character, it is masked by
placing a backslash in front of it.
When grep is used alone, it searches for a specific expression in a
file whose exact position in the file system is known. When used in
combination with find, the search is for a file that contains a certain
expression, but whose location is unknown.

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locate
The locate command is an alternative to find -name (the package
findutils-locate must be installed). The find command must search
through the selected part of the file system, a process that can be
quite slow.
On the other hand, locate searches through a database previously
created for this purpose (/var/lib/locatedb), making it much faster.
The database is automatically created and updated daily by SUSE
Linux Enterprise Server. But changes made after the update has
been performed are not taken into account by locate, unless the
database is updated manually using the updatedb command.
The following example shows the output of locate:
geeko@da51:~ > locate letter_Miller
/home/geeko/letters/letter_Miller

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The following example shows that a search with locate returns all
files whose names contain the search string:
geeko@da51:~ > locate umount
/bin/umount
/lib/klibc/bin/umount
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/3floppy_
umount.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/5floppy_
umount.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/camera_u
mount.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/cdaudio_
umount.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/cdrom_um
ount.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/cdwriter
_umount.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/dvd_umou
nt.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/hdd_umou
nt.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/mo_umoun
t.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/nfs_umou
nt.svgz
/opt/kde3/share/icons/crystalsvg/scalable/devices/zip_umou
nt.svgz
/usr/bin/humount
/usr/bin/smbumount
/usr/share/man/man1/humount.1.gz
/usr/share/man/man2/umount.2.gz
/usr/share/man/man2/umount2.2.gz
/usr/share/man/man8/smbumount.8.gz
/usr/share/man/man8/umount.8.gz
geeko@da51:~ >

b
5-58

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whereis
The whereis command returns the binaries (option -b), manual
pages (option -m), and the source code (option -s) of the specified
command.
If no option is used, all this information is returned, provided the
information is available. This command is faster than find, but it is
less thorough.
The following is an example of using whereis:
geeko@da51:~ > whereis grep
grep: /bin/grep /usr/bin/grep
/usr/share/man/man1/grep.1.gz
/usr/share/man/man1p/grep.1p.gz
geeko@da51:~ > whereis -b grep
grep: /bin/grep /usr/bin/grep
geeko@da51:~ > whereis -m grep
grep: /usr/share/man/man1/grep.1.gz
/usr/share/man/man1p/grep.1p.gz
geeko@da51:~ > whereis -s grep
grep:
geeko@da51:~ >

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

which
The which command searches all paths listed in the variable PATH
for the specified command and returns the full path of the
command. In the variable PATH the most important directories are
listed where the shell looks for executable files.

To see the content of a variable use the echo command and add a $ in front
of the variables name. To see the content of the variable PATH enter echo
$PATH.

The which command is especially useful if several versions of a

command exist in different directories and you want to know which
version is executed when entered without specifying a path.
The following is an example of using the which command:
geeko@da51:~ > which find
/usr/bin/find
geeko@da51:~ > which cp
/bin/cp
geeko@da51:~ > which grep
/usr/bin/grep
geeko@da51:~ >

5-60

For more information on which, enter man which.

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type
The type command command can be used to find out what kind of
command is executed when command is entereda shell built in
command (an essential command that is hardcoded in the shell), an
external command (called by the shell), an alias, or a function. The
option -a delivers all instances of a command bearing this name in
the file system.
The following is an example of using the type command:
geeko@da51:~ > type type
type is a shell built in
geeko@da51:~ > type grep
grep is /usr/bin/grep
geeko@da51:~ > type -a grep
grep is /usr/bin/grep
grep is /bin/grep
geeko@da51:~ >

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 5-8

Find Files on Linux

In this exercise, you learn how to find files with the whereis, which,
and find command, and the GNOME search tool.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Manage Directories and Files

Objective 7

Search File Content

Suppose you have dozens of text files and you need to find all files
that include a particular word, phrase, or item. To scan these files
without opening them in an editor, you need to know the following:

Use the grep Command

Use Regular Expressions

Use the grep Command

The grep command and its variant egrep are used to search files for
certain patterns using the syntax grep search_pattern filename. The
command searches filename for all text that matches
search_pattern, and prints the lines that contains the pattern.
You can also specify several files, in which case the output will not
only print the matching line, but also the corresponding file names.
Several options are available to specify that only the line number
should be printed, for instance, or that the matching line should be
printed together with leading and trailing context lines.
You can specify search patterns in the form of regular expressions,
although the basic grep command is limited in this regard. To
search for more complex patterns, use the egrep command (or grep
-E) instead, which accepts extended regular expressions.
As a simple way to deal with the difference between the two
commands, make sure you use egrep in all of your shell scripts.
The regular expressions used with egrep need to comply with the
standard syntax of regular expressions. You can read details of
about this topic in the manual page of grep.
To avoid having special characters in search patterns interpreted by
the shell, enclose the pattern in quotation marks.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following is an example of using egrep and grep:

geeko@da51:~> egrep (b|B)lurb file*
bash: syntax error near unexpected token `|'
geeko@da51:~> grep "(b|B)lurb" file*
geeko@da51:~> egrep "(b|B)lurb" file*
file1:blurb
filei2:Blurb

The following are options you can use with the grep command:
Table 5-20

Option

Description

-i

Ignores case.

-l

Shows only the names of files that contain the search string.

-r

Searches entire directory trees recursively.

-v

Gives all lines that do not contain the search string.

-n

Shows the line numbers.

-h

Shows no file names.

Use Regular Expressions

Regular expressions are strings consisting of metacharacters and
literals (regular characters and numerals). In the context of regular
expressions, meta characters are those characters that do not
represent themselves but have special meanings.
They can act as placeholders for other characters or can be used to
indicate a position in a string.
Many commands (such as egrep) rely on regular expressions for
pattern matching. It is important to remember, however, that some
metacharacters used by the shell for filename expansion have a
meaning different from the one discussed here.

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To learn more about the structure of regular expressions, read the

corresponding manual page with man 7 regex.
The following table presents the most important meta characters and
their meanings:
Table 5-21

Character

Meaning

Example

Beginning of the line ^The: The is matched if at the

beginning of the line

End of the line

eighty$: eighty is matched if at

the end of line

\<

Beginning of the
word

\<thing\>:matches the whole

word thing

\>

End of the word

\<thing\>:matches the whole

word thing

[abc]

One character from

the set

[abc]: matches any one of a, b,

or c

[0-9]

Any one from the

specified range

[0-9]: matches any one number

from 0 to 9
[-:+]: any one of -, : and +

Version 2

[^xyz]

None of the
characters

[^xyz]: x, y, and z are not

matched

Any single character file.: matches file1 and file2, but

not file10

One or more of the

preceding
expression

[0-9]+: matches any number

Any number
(including none) of
preceding single
character

file.*: matches file, file2, and

file10

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Table 5-21 (continued)

5-66

Character

Meaning

Example

{min,max}

The preceding
expression min
times at minimum
and max times at
maximum

[0-9]{1,5}: matches any one-digit

to five-digit number

The expression
before or after

file|File: matches file and File

( ...)

Enclose alternatives
for grouping with
others

(f|F)ile: matches file and File

\?

Zero or one of the

preceding

file1\?2: matches both file2 and

file12

Escape the following

character to remove
its special meaning

www\.novell\.com: matches
www.novell.com, literally (with the
dot not being treated as a
metacharacter); this is also
necessary for parentheses, e.g.,
matching a parenthetical pattern
would require the expression
\([a-zA-Z]+\)

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Exercise 5-9

Search File Content

In this exercise, you learn how to find a special character
combination in a file with the grep and egrep command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Understand the File System

The Linux file system involves a

hierarchical file system that can
be depicted in the form of a tree.
This tree is not limited to a local
partition, but can stretch over
several partitions, which can be
located on different computers in
a network.

Hierarchy Standard (FHS)

The separation character between

individual directory names is the
slash (/). The path can be
specified in two ways:

As a relative path

As an absolute path

The structure of the file system is

described in the Filesystem
Hierarchy Standard (FHS).
2. Identify File Types in the Linux
System

5-68

The 6 file types in Linux include

the following:

Normal files

Directories

Links

Device files

Sockets

FIFOs

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Objective

Summary

3. Change Directories and List

The current directory is shown in

the prompt of a shell terminal:
geeko@da51:~.

Directory Contents

The tilde ~ shows that you are in

the user's home directory.
With cd (change directory),
change between directories.
The pwd command (print working
directory) shows the path of the
current directory. The pwd
command combined with the
option -P prints the physical
directory without any symbolic
links.
The ls command (list) lists the
files specified. If a directory is
specified, its contents are
displayed. Without an option, the
contents of the current directory
are shown.
4. Create and View Files

With touch, change the time

stamp of a file or create a new file
with a size of 0 bytes.
With the cat command, the
contents of the file can be
displayed. The command needs
the filename of the file you want to
see.
less displays the contents of a file
page by page. Even compressed
files (.gz, .bz2 ...) can be
displayed.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

4. Create and View Files (continued)

With head you can view only the

first few lines. The opposite is the
tail command, which shows you
only the last few lines of a file.
By default ten lines are shown by
the two commands. To change
these number, just append the
option -number. With the option
-f, tail appends data to the output
as the file grows.

5. Work with Files and Directories

mv (move) moves one or more

files to another directory or
renames a file.
Copying files and directories (with
the option -r) is done with the cp
command (copy): cp source
destination. Existing files are
overwritten without confirmation.
With mkdir (make directory),
create new directories. The option
-p allows you to create a complete
path.
With rmdir (remove directory) the
directory or directories given are
deleted.
The directory or directories must
be empty.
The rm command (remove) is
used to delete files.
With the option -i you are asked
for confirmation before deleting.

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Objective

Summary

5. Work with Files and Directories

The option -r allows non-empty

directories to be deleted.

(continued)

Files that are deleted with this

command cannot be restored.
A link is a reference to a file.
Hard links can only be used when
both the file and the link are in the
same file system, because the
inode numbers of link and target
are identical.
A symbolic link is assigned its own
inodethe link refers to a file, so
a distinction can always be made
between the link and the actual
file.
A symbolic link can be made with
the option -s.
6. Find Files on Linux

The Nautilus program can be

used to find files with specific
features.
To search for files, the find
command is helpful: find path
criterion action
The command has a multitude of
options, the most important option
is -name, which searches for files
with the given name.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

6. Find Files on Linux (continued)

An alternative to find -name is the

locate command (package
findutils-locate must be installed).
locate searches through a
database previously created for
this purpose, thus making it much
faster.
The database is automatically
created and updated daily by
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server or
manually using the updatedb
command.
The whereis command returns
the binaries (option -b), manual
pages (option -m), and the source
code (option -s) of the specified
command.
The which command searches all
paths listed in the variable PATH,
for the specified command and
returns the full path of the
command.
The type command (a shell built
in) can also be used to find out
what kind of command is
executed when command is
entered, a shell built in or an
external command.

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Objective

Summary

7. Search File Content

The grep command and its

variant egrep are used to search
files for certain patterns,
according to this syntax: grep
search_pattern filename
The command prints lines that
contain the given search pattern.
It is also possible to specify
several files, in which case the
output will not only print the
matching line, but also the
corresponding filenames.
Search patterns can be supplied
in the form of regular expressions,
although the bare grep command
is limited in this regard. To search
for more complex patterns, use
the egrep command (or grep -E)
instead, which accepts extended
regular expressions.
Regular expressions are strings
consisting of metacharacters and
literals. In the context of regular
expressions, metacharacters are
those characters that do not
represent themselves but have
special meanings:

Version 2

^: beginning of the line

$: end of the line

\<: beginning of the word

\>: end of the word

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5-74

Objective

Summary

7. Search File Content (continued)

[abc]: one character from the

set

[0-9]: any one from the specified

range

[^xyz]: none of the characters

.: any single character

+: one or more of the preceding

expression

*: any number (including none)

of preceding single character

{min,max}: the preceding

expression min times at
minimum and max times at
maximum

|: the expression before or after

(...): enclose alternatives for

grouping with others

\?: zero or one of the preceding

\: escape the following character

to remove its special meaning

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SECTION 6

Work with the Linux Shell and

Command Line

In this section, you learn about the basic features of the bash shell.
In addition, you are introduced to some important administration
commands.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Get to Know the Command Shells

2.

Execute Commands at the Command Line

3.

Get to Know Common Command Line Tasks

4.

Understand Command Syntax and Special Characters

5.

Use Piping and Redirection

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Get to Know the Command Shells

You cannot communicate directly with the operating system kernel.
You need to use a program that serves as an interface between the
user and operating system.
In the operating systems of the UNIX family, this program is called
the shell.
The shell accepts a user's entries, interprets them, converts them to
system calls, and delivers system messages back to the user, making
it a command interpreter.
To understand command shells, you need to know the following:

Types of Shells

bash Configuration Files

Completion of Commands and Filenames

Types of Shells
UNIX has a whole series of shells, most of which are provided by
Linux in freely usable versions. The following are examples of
some popular shells:

The Bourne shell (/bin/sh; symbolic link to /bin/bash)

The Bourne Again shell (/bin/bash)

The Korn shell (/bin/ksh)

The C shell (/bin/csh; symbolic link to /bin/tcsh)

The TC shell (/bin/tcsh)

The various shells differ in the functionality they provide.

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Every shell can be started like a program and you can switch at any
time to a different shell. For example, you can switch to the C shell
by entering tcsh; you can switch to the Korn shell by entering ksh.
Unlike most other programs, the shell does not terminate on its own.
You need to enter the exit command to return to the previous shell.
A shell is started at a text console right after a user logs in. This is
called the login shell. Which shell is started for which user is
determined in the user database.
The standard Linux shell is bash, so we will only cover bash shell in
this objective.

bash Configuration Files

To customize bash for an interactive session, you need to know
about the configuration files and about the order in which they are
processed.
To understand how shells work, you need to know the difference
between the following:

Login Shells

Non-Login Shells

Login Shells

A login shell is started whenever a user logs in to the system. By

contrast, any shell started from within a running shell is a non-login
shell. The only differences between these two are the configuration
files read when starting the shell.
A login shell is also started whenever a user logs in through an X
display manager. Therefore, all subsequent terminal emulation
programs run non-login shells.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following files are read when starting a login shell:

1.

/etc/profile. A system-wide configuration file read by all shells.

It sets global configuration options.This configuration file will be
read not only by the bash, but also by other shells.
~/.profile is a file created for each new user by default on the
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. Any user-specific
customizations can be stored in it.

2.

/etc/bash.bashrc. some useful configurations for the bash shell

are made. For example:

Appearance of the prompt

Colors for the ls command

Aliases

For your own system-wide bash configurations use the

/etc/bash.bashrc.local file that is imported from
/etc/bash.bashrc.
~/.bashrc is a configuration file in which users store their
customizations.

Non-Login Shells

Only the /etc/bash.bashrc, /etc/bash.bashrc.local and ~/.bashrc

files are read when a non-login shell is started.
Like most other Linux distributions, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
has a default setup that ensures users do not see any difference
between a login shell and a non-login shell. In most cases, this is
achieved by also reading the ~/.bashrc file when a login shell is
started.
If you change any settings and want them to be applied during the
same shell session, the changed configuration file needs to be read
in again.

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The proper way to read in a changed configuration file and to apply

the changes to the current session is by using the internal shell
command source, as in the following example:
source ~/.bashrc
You can also use the short form of this command, which happens
to be included in many configuration files, where it is used to read
in other configuration files, as in the following (with a space
between the period and the tilde):
. ~/.bashrc

Completion of Commands and Filenames

The bash shell supports a function of completing commands and
filenames. Just enter the first characters of a command (or a
filename) and press Tab. The bash shell completes the name of the
command.
If there is more than one possibility, the bash shell shows all
possibilities when you press the Tab key a second time. This feature
makes entering long filenames very easy.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 2

Execute Commands at the Command Line

If you do not have a graphical user interface, you can use the
following to help make entering shell commands to administer
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server much easier:

History Function

Switch to User root

History Function
bash stores the commands you enter so you have easy access to
them. By default, the commands are written in the .bash_history
file in the user's home directory. In SUSE Linux Enterprise Server,
the size of this file is set to a maximum of 1,000 entries.
You can display the content of the file by using the history
command.
You can display the commands stored in the history cache (one at a
time) by using the arrow keys. Up-arrow shows the previous
command; the Down-arrow shows the next command. After finding
the desired command, edit it as needed then execute it by pressing
Enter.
When browsing the entries of the history, you can also select
specific commands. Typing one or several letters, and pressing
PageUp or PageDown, displays the preceding or next command in
the history cache beginning with this letter.
If you enter part of the command (not necessarily the beginning of
the command), pressing Ctrl+r searches the history list for
matching commands and displays them. Searching starts with the
last command executed.

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Switch to User root

If you are working with a shell, you can become root by entering the
su - command and the root password.
You can check to make sure you are root by entering id or whoami.
To quit the root administrator shell, you enter the exit command.

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6-7

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 6-1

Execute Commands at the Command Line

In this exercise, you use the history feature of the shell and get root
permissions at the command line. You use the history and su
command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

6-8

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Work with the Linux Shell and Command Line

Objective 3

Get to Know Common Command Line

Tasks
Two features make working with the bash shell more powerful:

Variables

Aliases

Variables
With shell and environment variables, you are able to configure the
behavior of the shell and to adjust its environment to your own
requirements.
The convention is to write variables such as PATH in uppercase
letters. If you set your own variables, they should also be written in
capitals for the sake of clarity.
Environment variables are used to control the behavior of a program
that is started from a shell. Shell variables, on the other hand, are
used to control the behavior of shell itself.
Some important environment variables include the following:

PATH. When a program is called up, the program is searched

for in the directories specified here (each separated by :). The
order in which directories are listed is important, since they are
searched in turn.

HOME. The user's home directory.

USER. The login name of the actual user.

To display the value of a shell or environment variable, enter

echo $variable, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~ > echo $HOME
/home/geeko

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

To set the value of a variable or to create a new variable, use the

syntax variable=value, as in the following:
da51:~ # MYVAR=myvalue
da51:~ # echo $MYVAR
myvalue
da51:~ #

The value can be a number, a character or a string. If the string

includes a space, you have to write the value in full quotes, as in the
following:
da51:~ # MYVAR=my value
da51:~ # echo $MYVAR
my value
da51:~ #

Aliases
Defining aliases allows you to create shortcuts for commands and
their options or to create commands with entirely different names.
On a SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10, whenever you enter the dir,
md, or ls command, for instance, you will be using aliases.
You can find out about the aliases defined on your system with the
alias command. This will show you that dir, for instance, is an alias
for ls -l and that md is an alias for mkdir -p.
The following are examples of aliases through which new
commands are defined:
geeko@da51:~> alias md
alias md='mkdir -p'
geeko@da51:~> alias dir
alias dir='ls -l'

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To see whether a given command is an alias for something else, use

the type command. For each command specified, type will tell you
whether it is a built-in shell command, a regular command, a
function, or an alias.
For regular commands, the output of type lists the path to the
corresponding executable. For aliases, it lists the elements aliased:
geeko@da51:~> type -a ls
ls is aliased to `/bin/ls $LS_OPTIONS'
ls is /bin/ls

The above example shows that ls is an alias although, in this case, it

is only used to add some options to the command.
The -a option was used with type to show both the contents of the
alias and the path to the original ls command. The output shows that
ls is always run with the options stored in the variable
LS_OPTIONS.
These options cause ls to list different file types in different colors
(among other things).
Most of the aliases used on a system-wide basis are defined in the
/etc/bash.bashrc file. Aliases are defined with the alias command
and can be removed with the unalias command.
For example, entering unalias ls removes the alias for ls, causing ls
to stop coloring its output.
The following is the syntax for defining aliases:
alias aliasname="command options"

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

An alias defined in this way is only valid for the current shell and
will not be inherited by subshells, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~> alias ps="echo Hello"
geeko@da51:~> ps
Hello
geeko@da51:~> bash
geeko@da51:~> ps
PID TTY
TIME CMD
858 pts/0 00:00:00 bash
895 pts/1 00:00:00 bash
...

To make an alias persistent, you need to store the definition in one

of the shell's configuration files. On the SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server, the ~/.alias file is created for personal aliases defined by
each user.
This file is read in by ~/.bashrc, where a command is included to
that effect. Aliases are not relevant to shell scripts at all, but can be a
real time saver when using the shell interactively.

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Work with the Linux Shell and Command Line

Exercise 6-2

Perform Common Command Line Tasks

In this exercise, you create an alias labeled hello that prints a
personal welcome message Hello username on the screen.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 4

Understand Command Syntax and Special

Characters
You can use specific characters to provide special functionality.
Using them can save you a lot of time and effort. In this objective,
you will learn about the following:

Select your Character Encoding

Use Search Patterns for Name Expansion

Prevent the Shell from Interpreting Special Characters

Select your Character Encoding

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server is internationalized and can be
adapted to local standards easily.
There are some variables that determine the localization. Use the
locale command to get a list of the localization variables.
geeko@da51:~> locale
LANG=en_US.UTF-8
LC_CTYPE="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_NUMERIC="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_TIME="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_COLLATE="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_MONETARY="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_MESSAGES="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_PAPER="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_NAME="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_ADDRESS="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_TELEPHONE="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_MEASUREMENT="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_IDENTIFICATION="en_US.UTF-8"
LC_ALL=
geeko@da51:~>

The variable LANG specifies the language. In this example the

language is set to US English.

6-14

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The characters are encoded in UTF-8 (UCS Transformation

Format), which means Unicode (Universal Character Set). Unicode
has the advantage that it is possible to use all kind of letters and not
only Latin letters.
For all users SUSE Linux Enterprise Server uses UTF-8 encoding.
The exeption is user root.
da51:~ # locale
LANG=POSIX
LC_CTYPE=en_US.UTF-8
LC_NUMERIC="POSIX"
LC_TIME="POSIX"
LC_COLLATE="POSIX"
LC_MONETARY="POSIX"
LC_MESSAGES="POSIX"
LC_PAPER="POSIX"
LC_NAME="POSIX"
LC_ADDRESS="POSIX"
LC_TELEPHONE="POSIX"
LC_MEASUREMENT="POSIX"
LC_IDENTIFICATION="POSIX"
LC_ALL=
da51:~ #

There the LANG variable is set to POSIX, which means the

characters are ASCII encoded.
The state of the LANG variable is important for this section,
because the results depend on the type of encoding. The order of the
characters is different in POSIX and in UTF-8.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

You can see the diffences between UTF-8 and POSIX encoding,
when you use the ls command. For user Geeko, the content of the
/usr/share/doc/packages/yast2-users/ directory looks like this:
geeko@da51:~> ls -l /usr/share/doc/packages/yast2-users/
total 65
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 1352 2006-02-02 15:42 autodocs
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 17992 2006-01-27 00:34 COPYING
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 17992 2006-01-27 00:34
COPYRIGHT.english
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2013 2005-09-08 02:36 crack.html
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root
75 2006-01-27 00:34 README
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root
193 2005-09-08 02:36 TODO.txt
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 9583 2005-09-08 02:36 users.html
geeko@da51:~>

For user root the output is different:

da51:~ # ls -l /usr/share/doc/packages/yast2-users/
total 79
drwxr-xr-x
3 root root
248 Feb 2 15:42 .
drwxr-xr-x 492 root root 13976 Feb 2 16:02 ..
-rw-r--r-1 root root 17992 Jan 27 00:34 COPYING
-rw-r--r-1 root root 17992 Jan 27 00:34
COPYRIGHT.english
-rw-r--r-1 root root
75 Jan 27 00:34 README
-rw-r--r-1 root root
193 Sep 8 02:36 TODO.txt
drwxr-xr-x
2 root root 1352 Feb 2 15:42 autodocs
-rw-r--r-1 root root 2013 Sep 8 02:36 crack.html
-rw-r--r-1 root root 9583 Sep 8 02:36 users.html
da51:~ #

The first file in the list of the normal user is autodocs. The first file
in the list of user root is COPYING.
In the POSIX encoding table all the lowercase characters are behind
the uppercase characters. In UTF-8 the lowercase a follows the
uppercase A immediately.
This means, between A and C in POSIX, the only character is
B. But in UTF-8, there are a, B and b in between.

6-16

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Work with the Linux Shell and Command Line

x
b

The behavior of POSIX encoding is much more intuitive here and we

recommend setting the LANG variable to POSIX for this section.

To change the locale variables permanently, you have to edit the

/etc/sysconfig/language file. The functionalities of the other variables are
described in that file. Further information you can find in the man page of
locale (man locale).

Use Search Patterns for Name Expansion

Occasionally, you might want to perform operations on a series of
files without having to name all the files. In this case, you could
make use of the following search patterns:
Table 6-1

x
Version 2

Search Pattern

Description

Any single character (except /).

Any string length, including zero characters (except

. at the beginning of a file name and /).

[0-9]

Any of the characters enclosed (here: numbers from

0 to 9).

[a-ek-s]

Any character from the ranges a-e or k-s.

[abcdefg]

Any of these characters.

[!abc]

None of these characters.

Some of the search patterns have a different meaning than they have as
regular expressions.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following is an example of using some of these search patterns:

geeko@da51:/usr/X11/bin
xcalc xclipboard xclock
geeko@da51:/usr/X11/bin
xcalc xclipboard xclock
geeko@da51:/usr/X11/bin
xcalc xclipboard xclock
geeko@da51:/usr/X11/bin
xcalc xclipboard xclock

> ls xc*
xcmsdb xconsole xcursorgen xcutsel
> ls xc[alo]*
xconsole
> ls xc[!o]*
xcmsdb xcursorgen xcutsel
> ls xc*l*
xconsole xcutsel

If search patterns (wild cards) are given on the command line, the
shell tries to compare these with the filenames in the file system
and, if they match, the expression is replaced with all the filenames
found.

Prevent the Shell from Interpreting Special Characters

To prevent the shell from interpreting special characters in the
command line, these characters must be masked by using the
following:

\: The backslash protects one character from being interpreted

by the shell, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~ > mkdir new\ directory
geeko@da51:~ >

"...": Double quotes protect all special characters except $, \,

and ` (back tick) from being interpreted by the shell, as in the
following:
geeko@da51:~ > echo Home =
Home = /home/geeko
geeko@da51:~ > echo Home =
Home =
/home/geeko
geeko@da51:~ >

6-18

$HOME
$HOME

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'...' Apart from regular expressions, variables are also protected

with single quotes, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~ > echo 'Home =
Home =
$HOME
geeko@da51:~ >

Version 2

$HOME'

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 6-3

Work with Command Syntax and Special Characters

In this exercise, you learn how to use wildcards and other special
characters.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

6-20

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Work with the Linux Shell and Command Line

Objective 5

Use Piping and Redirection

Linux has three standard data channels:

Figure 6-1
Standard
input 0

command

Standard
error
output

Standard

>_

output 1

>_

The following describes these channels:

Standard input (stdin). The currently running program reads

the input from this channel (usually the keyboard).

Standard output (stdout). The program sends its output to this

channel (usually the monitor).

Standard error (stderr). Errors are issued through this channel

(usually the monitor).

These input and output channels are assigned the following

numbers:
Table 6-2

Version 2

Channel

Number Assigned

Standard input (stdin)

Standard output (stdout)

Standard error output (stderr)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Each channel can be redirected by the shell. For example, stdin can
come from a file or stdout and stderr can be directed to a file. The
following are the redirection characters:
Table 6-3

Redirection Character

Description

<

Redirects standard input.

>

Redirects standard output (>

without a preceding number is just
an abbreviation for 1>).

2>

Redirects standard error output.

> overwrites an existing file. If the output should be appended to an existing

file, you have to use >> or 2>>.

The following is an example of a standard input, standard output,

and standard error output:
geeko@da51:~ > ls /opt /recipe
/bin/ls: /recipe: No such file or directory
/opt:
gnome kde3

If the standard error output is redirected to /dev/null, only the

standard output is displayed on the screen:
geeko@da51:~ > ls /opt /recipe 2> /dev/null
/opt:
gnome kde3

To redirect standard output and standard error output to a file (such

as list), enter the following:
ls /opt /recipe > list 2>&1

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First, the standard output is redirected to the list file (> list); then the
standard error output is directed to the standard output (2>&1). The
& refers to the file descriptor that follows (1 for the standard
output).
You can display the contents of the list file by using the cat
command, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~> cat list
/bin/ls: /recipe: No such file or directory
/opt:
gnome
kde3

This option of process communication is available not only in the

shell, but can also be used in programs directly. All known files in
the system can be used as input or output.
Occasionally, you might want to use a file as input for a program
that expect input from the keyboard. To do this, the standard input is
redirected, as in the following:
geeko@da51:~ # echo "Hello Tux,
>
> how are you?
> Is everything okay?" > greetings
geeko@da51:~ # mail tux < greetings

First, the text is redirected to the greetings file through the >
command. The mail program, mail, receives its input from the
greetings file (not the keyboard), and then the email program sends
the email to the user tux.
The output of one command can be used as the input for another
command by using the pipe ( | ):
command1 | command2

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

In a pipe, a maximum of 4 KB of not yet processed data can exist. If

the process creating the output tries to write to a full pipe, it is
stopped and only allowed to continue if the writing process can be
completed. On the other side, the reading process is stopped if it
tries to read an empty pipe.
geeko@da51:~ > ls -l /etc | less

Occasionally the user might want output from a command displayed

on the screen and written to a file. This can be done using the tee
command:
ls -l | tee output
In this example, the output of the command is displayed on the
screen as well as written to the output file.
To redirect the output of several consecutive commands on the
command line, the commands must be separated with semi-colons
and enclosed in parentheses (command1; command2; ...):
geeko@da51:~> (id ; ls ~) > output
geeko@da51:~> cat output
uid=1000(geeko) gid=100(users)
groups=14(uucp),16(dialout),33(video),100(users)
bin
Desktop
Documents
output
public_html
geeko@da51:~>

The shell starts a separate subshell for processing the individual

commands. To redirect the linked commands, the shell must be
forced to execute the command chain in the same subshell by
enclosing the expression in parentheses.

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Upon completion, every program returns a value that states the

success of the execution. If this return value is 0, the command
completed successfully. If an error occurred, the return value is
greater than 0. (Depending on the program, different return values
indicate different errors.)
You can use the echo $? command to display a return value.
The return value can be used to trigger the execution of another
command:
Table 6-4

Link

Result

command1 && command2

command2 is only executed if

command1 is completed without
any errors.

command1 || command2

command2 is only executed if

command1 is completed with an
error.

The following illustrates using both || and &&:

geeko@da51:~> ls recipe || ls ~
/bin/ls: recipe: No such file or directory
bin Desktop Documents output public_html
geeko@da51:~> ls recipe && ls ~
/bin/ls: recipe: No such file or directory
geeko@da51:~>

test

The recipe file does not exist and the ls recipe command leads to an
error. Because of this the ls ~ command in the first line is executed
and in the fourth line not.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 6-4

Use Piping and Redirection

In this exercise, you practice piping the output of standard comands
into files and other commands.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

6-26

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Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Get to Know the Command Shells

The shell serves as an interface

between a user and an operating
system.
Linux uses the Bourne Again shell
(/bin/bash) as the default shell.
You can differ two types of shells:

Login Shells

Non-login Shells

The following files are read when

starting a login shell:

/etc/profile

~/.profile

/etc/bash.bashrc

/etc/bash.bashrc.local

~/.bashrc

The following file is read when

starting a non-login shell:

/etc/bash.bashrc

/etc/bash.bashrc.local

~/.bashrc

To read a changed configuration

file and to apply the changes to
the current session use the
internal shell command source or
its short form ..

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

2. Execute Commands at the

The bash shell stores commands

that have been entered so the
user has easy access to them. By
default, the commands are written
in the .bash_history file in the
user's home directory.

Command Line

The content of the file can be

displayed with the command
history.
Commands stored in the history
cache can be flipped through with
the arrow keys.
One or several letters and Page
Up or Page Down goes to the
preceding or next command in the
history beginning with the
specified letter.
If you enter part of the command,
Ctrl+r will retroactively search the
history for matching commands
To become root, you can enter
su command

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Objective

Summary

3. Get to Know Common Command

Two types of variables are used

with commands:

Line Tasks

Environment variables influence

the behavior of a program which
is started from a shell.

Shell variables control the

behavior of the shell itself.

The value of a variable can be

seen with the echo command.
Defining aliases lets you create
shortcuts for commands and their
options or to create commands
with entirely different names.
For each command specified,
type will tell you whether it is a
built-in shell command, a regular
command, a function, or an alias.
Most of the aliases used on a
system-wide basis are defined in
the /etc/bash.bashrc file.
Aliases are defined with the alias
command and can be removed
with the unalias command.
To make an alias persistent, you
need to store the definition in one
of the shell's configuration files.
On the SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server, the ~/.alias file is created
for personal aliases defined by
each user.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

4. Understand Command Syntax

Use the locale command to get a

list of the localization variables.

and Special Characters

To perform operations on a series

of files without having to name all
the files, you can use of various
search patterns:

?: stands for any character

(except /).

*: stands for 0 or more

characters (except . at the
beginning of a file name and /).

[a-z]: a character from the range

a-z.

[a-ek-s]: a character from the

ranges a-e and k-s.

[abcdefg]: any of these

characters.

[!abc]: none of these

characters.

To prevent the shell from

interpreting special characters in
the command line, these
characters must be masked:

6-30

\: The backslash protects

exactly one character.

"...": Double quotation marks

protect all special characters
except $, \, and ` (back
tick).

'...': Apart from regular

expressions, variables are also
protected single quotation
marks.

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Objective

Summary

5. Use Piping and Redirection

Linux has three standard data

channels:

0: Standard input (stdin)

1: Standard output (stdout)

2: Standard error (stderr)

Each channel can be redirected:

<: Redirects standard input.

>, 1> or >>: Redirects standard

output.

2>: Redirects standard error

output.

The contents of a file can be

displayed by entering the
command
cat filename
Using the pipe (|), the output
from one command can be used
as the input for another command.
The tee command can be used to
split the standard output.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

6-32

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Use Linux Text Editors

SECTION 7

Use Linux Text Editors

A text editor is one of the most important tools a Linux system

administrator uses. This section introduces a graphical text editor
and a command line editor.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Get to Know Linux Text Editors

2.

Use the Editor vi to Edit Files

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Get to Know Linux Text Editors

Because most of the services of a Linux computer are configured by
editing an ASCII file, you need a text editor. There are a lot of text
editors available in Linux, for example:

vi

emacs

xemacs

xedit

gedit

kwrite

Every text editor has advantages and disadvantages. There are two
kinds of editors:

Command line editors

Graphical editors

The main advantage of command line editors is that you do not need
a graphical user interface to use them.

7-2

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Use Linux Text Editors

Graphical editors are (normally) easy to use and do not need big
explanations. An example is the editor gedit that can be started from
the main menu (application group Tools).
Figure 7-1

We will only describe the editor vi in detail in this section because it

is the most important text editor on Linux systems.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 2

Use the Editor vi to Edit Files

The advantage of command line editors is that you can use them
without having a graphical desktop environment installed. A large
number of command line editors are available for Linux. The most
frequently used editors are:

vi

emacs

Although many factors can be involved when selecting an editor for

everyday use, the reason vi is used by most administrators is that it
is available on every Linux and UNIX system. Because of this, you
should be able to use vi.
In SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, vim (vi improved) by Bram
Moolenaar is the standard vi editor. When you enter vi, vim is
started via a link to it.
In this objective, you learn how to do the following:

7-4

Start vi

Use the Editor vi

Learn the Working Modes

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Use Linux Text Editors

Start vi
You can start vi by entering vi or vim, followed by various options,
and the name of a file to edit, as in the following example:
vi exercise
If a file does not yet exist, it is created. The text of the file appears
in an editor at the command line:
Figure 7-2

The sign ~ indicates lines that do not exist yet. The cursor is on
the first line.

Use the Editor vi

You can move the cursor with the k, j, h, and l keys (k one line up, j
one line down, h to the left, l to the right) or by using the arrow keys
(Up-arrow, Down-arrow, Left-arrow, Right-arrow).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Learn the Working Modes

In contrast to many other editors, vi is mode-oriented. When vi is
first started, it is in command mode. Anything you enter in this
mode is considered a command. You must switch to input mode
before you can type any text. This can be frustrating to users who
are unfamiliar with vi.
In addition to switching modes, you must learn which keys perform
which actions because you cannot use the mouse. However, the
number of commands needed for everyday work is fairly small, and
you can get used to them quickly.
To enter text, you must first switch the editor to input mode by
typing i (insert) or pressing the Insert key. At the bottom of the
screen, you see the message --INSERT--.
Press Esc once to take you back to the command mode. From
command mode you can switch to command-line mode by entering
:. The cursor jumps to the last line after : and waits for a
command entry.
A command will only be carried out in command-line mode after
you press Enter. Then you are automatically back in command
mode.
The following is a summary of the available modes:

7-6

Command mode: When vi starts, it is automatically in this

mode. In command mode, vi can be given commands. The i
command puts it into insert mode and the : command switches
it to command-line mode.

Insert mode: In this mode, vi accepts all input as text. Return

to command mode with Esc.

Command-line mode: In this mode, vi accepts commands

from the command line. Pressing Enter causes the command to
be executed and automatically returns to the command mode.

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Use Linux Text Editors

You can use the following commands in command mode:

Table 7-1

Command

Result

i or Insert

Switches vi to insert mode.

x or Delete

Deletes the character where the cursor is.

dd

Deletes the line in which the cursor is located and

copies it to the buffer.

Deletes the rest of the current line from the cursor

position.

yy

Copies the line in which the cursor is located to the

buffer.

p, P

Inserts the contents of the buffer after/before current

cursor position.

ZZ

Saves the current file and ends vi.

Undoes the last operation.

/pattern

Searches forward from the cursor position for

pattern.

?pattern

Searches backward from the cursor position for

pattern.

Repeats the search in the same direction.

Repeats the search in the opposite direction.

If you want to use a command for several units, place the

corresponding number in front of the command. For example, 3x
deletes three characters, 5dd deletes five lines, and 7yy copies seven
lines to the buffer.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

You can use the following commands in command-line mode:

Table 7-2

7-8

Command

Result

:q

Ends vi (if no changes were made).

:q!

Ends vi without saving changes in the file.

:wq or :x

Saves the current file and ends vi.

:w

Saves the current file.

:w file

Saves the current file under the name file. (Note: You
continue editing the original file, not the new file.)

If you want to configure vi, you have to edit the ~/.vimrc file. By default, this
file does not exist.

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Use Linux Text Editors

Exercise 7-1

Use vi to Edit Files in the Linux System

In this exercise, you create and edit a file with the text editor vi.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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7-9

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Get to Know Linux Text Editors

Most of the services of a Linux

computer are configured by
editing an ASCII file. For this
reason, you need a text editor.
There are two types of editors:

command line editors

graphical editors

A graphical editor is the editor

gedit that can be started from the
main menu.
2. Use the Editor vi to Edit Files

The vi command line editor is

available on every Linux and UNIX
system.
vi has the following modes:

Command mode: vi can be

given commands. The i
command puts it into insert
mode and the : command into
command-line mode.

Insert mode: vi accepts all

input as text. Return to
command mode with Esc.

Command-line mode: vi
accepts commands from the
command line. Enter causes
the command to be executed
and automatically switches back
to the command mode.

:q! ends vi without saving

changes in the file.

7-10

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

SECTION 8

Manage Users, Groups, and

Permissions

Linux is a multiuser system. In other words, several users can work

on the system at the same time. For this reason the system must be
able to uniquely identify all users. In this section, you learn how to
manage your user accounts and their permissions.

Objectives

Version 2

1.

Manage User and Group Accounts with YaST

2.

Describe Basic Linux User Security Features

3.

Manage User and Group Accounts from the Command Line

4.

Manage File Permissions and Ownership

5.

Ensure File System Security

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Manage User and Group Accounts with

YaST
With YaST, you can manage users and groups. To do this, you need
to understand the following:

Basics about Users and Groups

User and Group Administration with YaST

Basics about Users and Groups

One of the main characteristics of a Linux operating system is its
ability to handle several users at the same time (multiuser) and to
allow these users to perform several tasks on the same computer
simultaneously (multitasking).
For this reason the system must be able to uniquely identify all
users. To achieve this, every user must log in with the following:

A user name

A password

As the operating system can handle numbers much better than

strings, users are handled internally as numbers. The number which
a user receives is a UID (User ID).
Every Linux system has a privileged user, the user root. This user
always has the UID 0. This is the administrator of the system.
Users can be grouped together based on shared characteristics or
activities. For example:

8-2

Normal users are usually in the group users.

All users who intend to create web pages can be placed in the
group webedit.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Of course, file permissions for the directory in which the web pages
are located must be set so that the group webedit is able to write
(save files).
As with users, each group is also allocated a number internally
called the GID (Group ID), and can be one of the following types:

Normal groups

Groups used by the system

The root group (GID = 0)

User and Group Administration with YaST

You can access YaST user and group account administration in the
following ways:

User Administration
From the YaST Control Center, select Security and Users >
User Management, or from a terminal window, enter yast2
users.

Group Administration
From the YaST Control Center, select Security and Users >
Group Management, or from a terminal window, enter yast2
groups.

If you have selected LDAP for authentication during the installation

of the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, you are prompted for the
LDAP server administrator password.
You can switch back and forth between administering users and
administering groups by selecting the Users and Groups radio
buttons at the top of the module window.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

User Administration

The user account management window lists the existing user

accounts (as in the following):
Figure 8-1

A list of users (accounts on your server) appears with information

such as login name, full name, UID, and associated groups included
for each user.
Select Set Filter; then select one of the following to change the
users listed:

8-4

Local Users. User accounts you have created on your local

server for logging into the server.

System Users. User accounts created by the system for use

with services and applications.

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Custom. A customized view of users based on the settings

configured with Customize Filter.

Customize Filter. This option lets you combine listed user sets
(such as Local Users and System Users) to display a
customized view (with Custom) of the users list.

Additional sets of users (such as LDAP users) are added to the Set
Filter drop-down list as you configure and start services on your
server.
You can create a new user account or edit an existing account by
selecting Add or Edit.
The following appears:
Figure 8-2

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Enter or edit information in the following fields:

Users Full Name. Enter a real user name (such as Geeko

Chameleon)

Username. Enter a user name that is used to log in to the

system (such as geeko).

Password and Confirm Password. Enter and re-enter a

password for the user account.
When entering a password, distinguish between uppercase and
lowercase letters.
Valid password characters include letters, digits, blanks, and
#*,.;:._-+!$%&/|?{[()]}=.
The password should not contain any special characters (such as
accented characters), as you might find it difficult to type these
characters on a different keyboard layout when logging in from
another country.
With the current password encryption (Blowfish), the password
length should be between 5 and 72 characters.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

To set the properties of the user (such as the UID, the home
directory, the login shell, group affiliation, and additional user
account comments), select the Details tab. The following appears:
Figure 8-3

Enter or edit information in the following fields:

User ID (uid). For normal users, you should use a UID greater
than 999 because the lower UIDs are used by the system for
special purposes and pseudo logins.
If you change the UID of an existing user, the permissions of
the files of this user owns must be changed. This is done
automatically for the files in the user's home directory, but not
for files located elsewhere.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

If this does not happen automatically, you can change the permissions
of the user files in the home directory (as root) by entering
chown -R username /home/username.

Home Directory. The home directory of the user. Normally

this is /home/username.
You can select an existing directory by selecting Browse.

Additional User Information. This field can contain up to 3

parts separated by commas. It is often used to enter office,work
phone,home phone.
This information is displayed when you use the finger
command on this user.

8-8

Login Shell. From the drop-down list select the default login
shell for this user from the shells installed on your system.

Default Group. This is the group to which the user belongs.

Select a group from the list of all groups configured on your
system.

Groups. Select all additional memberships you want to assign

to the user from the list.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

To set various password parameters (such as duration of a

password), select the Password Settings tab. The following
appears:
Figure 8-4

Enter or edit information in the following fields:

Days before Password Expiration to Issue Warning. Enter

the number of days before password expiration that a warning is
issued to users.
Enter -1 to disable the warning.

Days after Password Expires with Usable Login. Enter the

number of days after the password expires that users can
continue to log in.
Enter -1 for unlimited access.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Maximum number of days for the same password. Enter the

number of days a user can use the same password before it
expires.

Minimum number of days for the same password. Enter the

minimum age of a password before a user can change it.

Expiration date. Enter the date when the account expires. The
date must be in the format YYYY-MM-DD.
Leave the field empty if the account never expires.

Save the settings for the new or edited user by selecting Accept.
A new user appears in the list.
Configure your server with the new settings by selecting Finish.

8-10

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Group Administration

You can administer groups from the following window:

Figure 8-5

A list of groups appears with information such as group name,

Group ID (GID), and group members.
Select Set Filter; then select one of the following to change the
groups listed:

Version 2

Local Groups. Groups created on your local server to provide

permissions for members assigned to the group.

System Groups. Groups created by the system for use with

services and applications.

Custom. A customized view of groups based on the settings

configured with Customize Filter.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Customize Filter. This option lets you combine listed group

sets (such as Local Groups and System Groups) to display a
customized view (with Custom) of the groups list

Additional sets of groups are added to the Set Filter drop-down list
(such as LDAP) as you configure and start services on your server.
You can create a new group or edit an existing group by selecting
Add or Edit. The following appears when you select Edit:
Figure 8-6

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Enter or edit information in the following fields:

Group Name. The name of the group. Avoid long names.

Normal name lengths are between two and eight characters.

Group ID (gid). The GID number assigned to the group. The

number must be a value between 0 and 60000. GIDs to 99
represent system groups. GIDs beyond 99 can be used for
normal users. YaST warns you if you try to use a GID that is
already in use.

Password (optional). Require the members of the group to

identify themselves while switching to this group (see man
newgrp). To do this, assign a password.
For security reasons, the password is represented by asterisks
(*).

Confirm Password. Enter the password a second time to avoid

typing errors.

Group Members. Select which users should be members of

this group.
A second list appears (when you select Edit) that shows users
for which this group is the default group. This list cannot be
edited from YaST.

When you finish entering or editing the group information, select

Next. You are returned to the Group Administration dialog. Save the
configuration settings by selecting Finish.
The information you enter when creating or editing users and
groups with YaST is saved to the following user administration files:

Version 2

/etc/passwd

/etc/shadow

/etc/group

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise 8-1

Manage User Accounts with YaST

In this exercise, you create and remove an user account with the
YaST User Management module.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

8-14

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Objective 2

Describe Basic Linux User Security

Features
One of the main characteristics of a Linux operating system is its
ability to handle several users at the same time (multiuser) and to
allow these users to perform several tasks on the same computer
simultaneously (multitasking).
To maintain an environment where data and applications are secure,
you need to understand the following:

File System Security Components

Users and Groups

File System Security Components

As with other operating systems, you control access to files in a
Linux file system by implementing the following types of
components:

Version 2

Users. Users are individual accounts on the Linux system.

Groups. Groups are collections of users. Users are assigned to

a group when they are created. Only root or the owner of a file
can change the group to which the file or directory is assigned.
Every user must belong to at least one group.

Ownership. The user who creates a file or directory is

automatically assigned as its owner. Ownership can only be
changed manually by root.

Permissions. Permissions determine user access to a file or

directory.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Users and Groups

Because Linux is a multiuser system, several users can work on the
system at the same time. For this reason the system uniquely
identifies all users through user accounts that require a user name
and password to log in to the system.
In addition, Linux provides groups that let you associate users
together that require the same type of access privileges to data and
applications.
To manage users and groups, you need to know the following:

User and Group ID Numbers

Regular vs. System Users

User Accounts and Home Directories

User and Group Configuration Files

User and Group ID Numbers

Because an operating system can handle numbers much better than

strings, users and groups are administered as numbers on a Linux
system.
The number which a user receives is called a User ID (UID). Every
Linux system has a privileged user, the user root. root is the
administrator of the system. This user always has a UID of 0. UID
numbering for normal users starts (by default) at 1000 for SUSE
Linux.
As with users, groups are also allocated a number called the Group
ID (GID). Normal users are usually included in the group users.
Other groups also exist (and can be created) for special roles or
tasks.

8-16

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

For example, all users who intend to create web pages can be placed
in the group webedit. Of course, file permissions for the directory in
which the web pages are located must be set so that members of the
group webedit are able to write and read files.
You can use the id command to display information about a users
UID and which groups she is assigned to. For example, entering id
geeko provides information about the user geeko:
geeko@da51:~> id
uid=1000(geeko) gid=100(users)
groups=16(dialout),33(video),100(users)
geeko@da51:~>

This information includes the following:

User ID: uid=1000(geeko)

Current default (effective) group: gid=100(users)

All groups of which geeko is a member: groups=16(dialout),

33(video), 100(users).

If you want information on the groups in which you are a member,

enter groups. You can specify a particular user by entering groups
user.
geeko@da51:~> groups geeko
geeko : users dialout video
geeko@da51:~>

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

You can display additional information about local users by entering

finger user, as illustrated in the following:
geeko@da51:~> finger geeko
Login: geeko
Name: Geeko Chameleon
Directory: /home/geeko
Shell: /bin/bash
On since Fri Feb 10 12:50 (MST) on :0 (messages off)
On since Fri Feb 10 13:38 (MST) on pts/0 from :0.0
No Mail.
No Plan.
geeko@da51:~>

Regular vs. System Users

In a Linux operating system, there are two basic kinds of user

accounts:

Regular (normal) users. These are user accounts you create

that allow to log in to the Linux environment. This type of login
gives people a secure environment for accessing data and
applications.
These user accounts are managed by the system administrator.

System users. These are user accounts created during

installation that are used by services, utilities, and other
applications to run effectively on the server.
These users do not need any maintenance.

All users are stored in the /etc/passwd and /etc/shadow files.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

User Accounts and Home Directories

Each user has a user account identified by a login name and a

personal password for logging in to the system.
By having user accounts, you are able to protect a users personal
data from being modified, viewed, or tampered with by other users.
Each user can set up her own working environment and always find
it unchanged when she logs back in.
As part of these security measures, each user in the system has her
own directory in the /home directory.
The exception to this rule is the account root. It has its own home
directory in /root.
Home directories allow personal data and desktop settings to be
secured for user access only.

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You should avoid using the root account when performing day-to-day tasks
that do not involve system management.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

User and Group Configuration Files

The Linux system stores all user and group configuration data in the
following files:

/etc/passwd

/etc/shadow

/etc/group

Whenever possible, you should not modify these files with an editor. Instead
use the Security and Users modules provided in YaST or the command line
tools described in Manage User and Group Accounts from the Command
Line on 8-28.

Modifying these files with an editor can lead to errors (especially in

/etc/shadow), such as a userincluding the user rootno longer
being able to log in.

/etc/passwd

The /etc/passwd file stores information for each user such as the
user name, the UID, the home directory, and the login shell.
In the past, /etc/passwd also contained the encrypted password.
However, because the file needs to be readable by all (e.g., to show
user and group names when using ls -l), the encrypted password is
now stored in /etc/shadow, which is only readable by root and
members of the group shadow.

8-20

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The following is a sample /etc/passwd file:

at:x:25:25:Batch jobs daemon:/var/spool/atjobs:/bin/bash
bin:x:1:1:bin:/bin:/bin/bash
daemon:x:2:2:Daemon:/sbin:/bin/bash
ftp:x:40:49:FTP account:/srv/ftp:/bin/bash
games:x:12:100:Games account:/var/games:/bin/bash
gdm:x:50:15:Gnome Display Manager
daemon:/var/lib/gdm:/bin/bash
haldaemon:x:101:102:User for
haldaemon:/var/run/hal:/bin/false
lp:x:4:7:Printing daemon:/var/spool/lpd:/bin/bash
mail:x:8:12:Mailer
daemon:/var/spool/clientmqueue:/bin/false
man:x:13:62:Manual pages viewer:/var/cache/man:/bin/bash
mdnsd:x:78:65534:mDNSResponder runtime
user:/var/lib/mdnsd:/bin/false
messagebus:x:100:101:User for
D-BUS:/var/run/dbus:/bin/false
news:x:9:13:News system:/etc/news:/bin/bash
nobody:x:65534:65533:nobody:/var/lib/nobody:/bin/bash
ntp:x:74:103:NTP daemon:/var/lib/ntp:/bin/false
postfix:x:51:51:Postfix
Daemon:/var/spool/postfix:/bin/false
root:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bash
sshd:x:71:65:SSH daemon:/var/lib/sshd:/bin/false
uucp:x:10:14:Unix-to-Unix CoPy system:/etc/uucp:/bin/bash
wwwrun:x:30:8:WWW daemon apache:/var/lib/wwwrun:/bin/false
geeko:x:1000:100:Geeko Chameleon:/home/geeko:/bin/bash

Each line in the /etc/password file represents one user, and contains
the following information (separated by colons):
Figure 8-7

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Note the following about the fields in each line:

User name. This is the name a user enters to log in to the

system (login name).

Password. The x in this field means that the password is stored

in the /etc/shadow file.

UID. In compliance with the Linux standards, there are three

number ranges which are reserved:

099 for the system itself

100499 for special system users (such as services and

programs)

Normal users start from UID 1000.

GID. Number of the group. In compliance with the Linux

standards, there are two number ranges which are reserved:

0-99 for special system groups (such as services and

programs)

Normal groups start from GID 100.

Comments field. Normally, the full name of the user is stored

here. Information such as a room number or telephone number
can also be stored here.

Home directory. The personal directory of a user is normally

in the /home directory and has the same name as the user
(login) name.

Login shell. This is the shell that is started for a user after he or
she has successfully logged in. In Linux this is normally
/bin/bash (Bourne Again Shell).
The shell must be listed in the /etc/shells file.

b
8-22

For additional information on this file, enter man 5 passwd.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

/etc/shadow

The /etc/shadow file stores encrypted user passwords and password

expiration information. Most Linux systems use shadow passwords.
The file can only be changed by the user root and read by the user
root and members of the group shadow. The following is a sample
/etc/shadow file:
at:!:13181:0:99999:7:::
bin:*:13181::::::
daemon:*:13181::::::
ftp:*:13181::::::
games:*:13181::::::
gdm:!:13181:0:99999:7:::
lp:*:13181::::::
mail:*:13181::::::
man:*:13181::::::
mdnsd:!:13181:0:99999:7:::
news:*:13181::::::
nobody:*:13181::::::
ntp:!:13181:0:99999:7:::
postfix:!:13181:0:99999:7:::
root:$2a$05$05LcLXlHgqDecUZJG1uRpuAcq.NUMVRDrmpm4NcYXeoqe8
xay0u3.:13181::::::
sshd:!:13181:0:99999:7:::
uucp:*:13181::::::
wwwrun:*:13181::::::
geeko:$2a$05$QJMXzcvOm0HNErjGvcGHROPw5Kp9faXxRE4Bsg3B4D1RL
tPGpUlBa:13181:0:99999:7:-1::

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Each line in the /etc/shadow file belongs to one user and contains
the following fields:
Figure 8-8

The above illustration shows the entry for the user geeko with an
encrypted password. The plain text password is novell.
The encrypted password is coded with the Blowfish function. The
encrypted word consists of letters, digits, and some special
characters. If an invalid character occurs in the password field (such
as * or !), that user has an invalid password.
Many users, such as wwwrun (Apache Web server) or bin have an
asterisk (*) in the password field. This means that these users can
not log in to the system, but are needed for special applications.
If the password field is empty, then the user can log in to the system
without entering a password. A password should always be set in a
Linux system.
The information at the end of each line determines some limits:

8-24

Last Change. Date of last password change. The number

represents the number of days since January 1st, 1970.

Next Possible Change. Minimum age of a password before a

user can change it.

Next Obligatory Change. Number of days a user can use the

same password before it expires.

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Warning. Number of days before password expiration that a

warning is issued to users.
Enter -1 to disable the warning.

Limit. Number of days after the password expires that the user
can continue to log in.
Enter -1 for unlimited access. (This does not make sense, of
course.)

Lock. Date when the account expires. The date must be in the
format YYYY-MM-DD.
Leave the field empty if the account never expires.

/etc/group

The /etc/group file stores group information. The following is a

sample /etc/group file:
at:!:25:
audio:x:17:
bin:x:1:daemon
cdrom:x:20:
console:x:21:
...
video:x:33:geeko
wheel:x:10:
www:x:8:
xok:x:41:
users:x:100:

Each line in the file represents a single group record, and contains
the group name, the GID (group ID), and the members of the group.
For example
video:x:33:geeko

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

This is the entry for the group video in /etc/group and has a GID of
33. The user geeko is member of this group. The second field (x) is
the password field.
The /etc/groups file shows secondary group memberships, but does
not identify the primary group for a user.

8-26

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Exercise 8-2

Check User and Group Information on Your Server

In this exercise, you write down the GIDs of some groups and the
UIDs of some users. You also switch to user root with the su
command.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 3

Manage User and Group Accounts from

the Command Line
You can use commands to perform the same user and group
management tasks available with YaST. In this objective you will
learn:

Manage User Accounts from the Command Line

Manage Groups from the Command Line

Create Text Login Messages

Manage User Accounts from the Command Line

The user root can use the following commands to perform the same
user management tasks available with YaST (and some tasks not
available with YaST):

useradd. You can create a new user account with the useradd
command. If no option is specified, the useradd command
creates a user without a home directory and without a valid
password.
The following are the most important options of the useradd
command:

-m. This option automatically generates the home directory

for the user. Without further arguments, the directory is
created under /home/.
In addition, several files and directories are copied to this
directory. The /etc/skel/ directory (from skeleton) is used as
a template for the user home directory.

8-28

-c. When creating a new user, you can enter text for the
comment field by using the option -c (comment).

-u. This option specifies the UID of the new account. If this
option is not given, the next free UID is used (at maximum
60000).

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-g. This option defines the primary group of the user. You
can specify either the GID or the name of the group.

-p. This option lets you create a password for a new user.
The following is an example:
useradd -m -p "ghvkuzfFGW6cw" geeko

The encrypted password must be given here, not the plain text
password. The program mkpasswd can be used to generate
encrypted passwords. The program is located in the package whois.

-e. The option -e (expire date) lets you set an expiration

date for the user account, in the form of YYYY-MM-DD,
as in the following:
useradd -m -e 2002-03-21 geeko

You can display a description of additional options by entering

man 8 useradd.
After adding a new user, you need to assign a password:
da51:~ # useradd -m -c "Geeko Chameleon" geeko
da51:~ # passwd geeko
New password:
Re-enter new password:
Password changed

With useradd, the user is created and with passwd the password
is assigned.
When creating a user account, the necessary standard
configuration information (effective group, location of the home
directory, default shell, etc.) is derived from the
/etc/default/useradd and /etc/login.defs files.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following is an example of the /etc/default/useradd file:

GROUP=100
HOME=/home
INACTIVE=-1
EXPIRE=
SHELL=/bin/bash
SKEL=/etc/skel
GROUPS=video,dialout
CREATE_MAIL_SPOOL=no

The variables mean:

GROUP. The primary group the user belongs to.

HOME. Path where the home directories are stored.

INACTIVE. Number of days of inactivity after a password

has expired before the account is locked. (-1 disables this
feature)

EXPIRE. Date (days since January 1st, 1970) when a

account will expire.

SHELL. Path of the login shell.

SKEL. Path of the home directory skeleton.

GROUPS. Further groups the user belongs to.

CREATE_MAIL_SPOOL. Specifies whether a mail spool

directory is created automatically.

userdel. This command lets you delete an existing user

account. It provides a single option -r, which deletes the users
home directory and the users account.
Before using userdel -r, it is important that you determine the
users UID (id user). The UID enables you to locate files
outside the users home directory that are assigned to the user
(such as /var/mail/$USER).
To delete these files, enter
find / -uid user_ID -exec rm {} \;

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usermod. This command lets you modify settings (such as

UID, standard shell, home directory, and primary group) for an
existing user account.
The usermod options are basically the same as those for the
useradd command.
The following are examples:

Change the home directory:

usermod -d /data/geeko -m geeko

Change the UID:

usermod -u 1001 geeko

passwd. You can change a user's password with the passwd

command. If a user enters passwd without a username as an
argument, the user can change her own password.
Besides being able to change a user password, the passwd
command provides the following features:

Locking a user account: With the option -l (lock), a user

can be locked out, and with the option -u (unlock), he can
be reactivated:

da51:~ # grep geeko /etc/shadow

geeko:$2a$05$QuFt5yTH2BhVxMxZ3lc9YejHGt7XefIFMQ58QHspu8WDB
FWx7BhPK:13284:0:99999:7:-1::
da51:~ # passwd -l geeko
Password changed.
da51:~ # grep geeko /etc/shadow
geeko:!$2a$05$QuFt5yTH2BhVxMxZ3lc9YejHGt7XefIFMQ58QHspu8WD
BFWx7BhPK:13284:0:99999:7:::
da51:~ #

An account is locked, when the password begins with a

exclamation mark !.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Status of a user account: The option -S lists the status of a

user account:

da51:~ # passwd -S geeko

geeko PS 02/02/2006 0 99999 7 -1
da51:~ #

The status follows directly after the username. In the above

example, LK (locked) means that the user is unable to log
in. Other options are NP (no password) or PS (valid
password).
These are followed by the date of the last password change,
the minimum length of validity, the maximum length of
validity, and the warning periods and inactivity periods
when a password expires.

Table 8-1

8-32

Changing password times: You can change the various

password times by using the following options:
Option

Description

-i number

Disable an account after the password has

been expired for number of days.

-n number

Sets the minimum number of days before a

password can be changed.

-w number

Warns the user that in number of days his

password will expire.

-x number

Sets the maximum number of days a

password remains valid. After number of
days the password must be changed.

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The following is an example:

passwd -x 30 -w 5 geeko
In this example, the password of the user geeko remains
valid for 30 days. After this time, the password is required
to be changed by geeko. Geeko receives a warning 5 days
before password expiration.
When the passwd command is used to establish or change the
password of a user account, the /etc/default/passwd file is
checked for the encryption method to be used:
# This file contains some information for
# the passwd (1) command and other tools
# creating or modifying passwords.
Define default crypt hash
# CRYPT={des,md5,blowfish}
CRYPT=des

# We can override the default for a special service

# by appending the service name (FILES, YP, NISPLUS, LDAP)
# for local files, use a more secure hash. We
# don't need to be portable here:
CRYPT_FILES=blowfish
...

The encryption method is set in the variable CRYPT. By default

it is set to DES. For local files (such as /etc/shadow) the method
is changed to blowfish later in the /etc/default/passwd file using
the variable CRYPT_FILES. Another possible encryption
method is MD5. YaST also uses the /etc/default/passwd file.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Manage Groups from the Command Line

You can use the following commands to perform the same group
management tasks available with YaST (and some tasks not
available with YaST):

You need to be logged in as root (or switch to root by entering su -) to use

these commands.

groupadd. You can create a new group by entering groupadd

group_name. In this case, the next free GID is used.
Using the option -g (such as groupadd -g 200 sports) lets you
specify a GID.
Using the option -p lets you specify an encrypted password.
You can use the mkpasswd command to create the encrypted
password.

groupdel. You can delete a group by entering groupdel

group_name. There are no options for this command.
You can only delete a group if no user has this group assigned
as a primary group.

groupmod. You can modify the settings (such as GID, group

name, and users) for an existing group.
The following are examples:

Change the GID:

groupmod -g 201 sports

Change the group name from sports to water:

groupmod -n water sports

Add the user geeko to the group:

groupmod -A geeko water

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

gpasswd. Change passwords for group accounts. Only the

administrator may change the password for any group. With
option -r the group password can be removed.

You can learn more about these commands by referring to the online manual
pages (such as man groupadd) or online help page (such as groupadd
--help).

The newgrp command allows to change the effective group of the

executing user.
geeko@da51:~> id
uid=1000(geeko) gid=100(users)
groups=16(dialout),33(video),100(users)
geeko@da51:~> newgrp video
geeko@da51:~> id
uid=1000(geeko) gid=33(video)
groups=16(dialout),33(video),100(users)
geeko@da51:~> exit
geeko@da51:~> id
uid=1000(geeko) gid=100(users)
groups=16(dialout),33(video),100(users)
geeko@da51:~>

In this example you can see that the current group (users) is
replaced with a new group (video).
A password is requested if the group has a password and the user is
not listed in the group file as being a member of that group.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Create Text Login Messages

You can create text login messages that are useful for displaying
information when a user logs in from a terminal window, a virtual
terminal, or remotely (such as an ssh login).
You can modify the following files to provide these messages:

/etc/issue. Edit this file to configure an initial message for users

logging into the system.
The following is an example of an edited /etc/issue file:

Welcome to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 (i586) Kernel \r

(\l).
=========================================================
The SUSE Linux Web Server
=========================================================

/etc/issue.net. Edit this file to configure an initial message for

users logging from the network the system.

/etc/motd. Edit this file to configure an initial message of the

day.

Make sure you add one or two empty lines at the end of the
messages, or it will run into the command line prompt.

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Exercise 8-3

Create and Manage Users and Groups from the Command

Line
In this exercise, you add and remove an user from the command
line.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Objective 4

Manage File Permissions and Ownership

You can change the current values associated with ownership and
permissions by knowing how to do the following:

Understand File Permissions

Change File Permissions with chmod

Change File Ownership with chown and chgrp

Modify Default Access Permissions

Configure Special File Permissions

Understand File Permissions

You can use the ls -l command to display the contents of the current
directory with the assigned permissions for each file or subdirectory.
For example, entering ls -l displays the following permissions for
my_file:
geeko@da51:~> ls -l my_file
-rw-r--r-- 1 geeko users 0 2006-02-07 19:10 my_file
geeko@da51:~>

Have a look at the first ten characters of the output (-rw-r--r--).

The first character (-) is not of interest here, because it indicates
the type of the file:

-. Normal file

d. Directory

l. Link

The remaining nine characters show the file permissions.

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You can assign the following three permissions to a file or directory:

Read (r). This permission allows the file to be read or the

contents of a directory to be listed.

Write (w). This permission allows a file to be modified. It

allows files to be created or deleted within a directory.

Execute (x). This permission allows a file to be executed. It

allows to change into a directory.

If a permission is set, the character is shown. Otherwise a -

appears.
The permission characters are grouped (rwx rwx rwx):

Character 1 to 3. Represent the permissions of the file owner.

Character 4 to 6. Represent the permissions of the owning

group.

Character 7 to 9. Represent the permissions of all other users.

Each file (and directory) can belong to only one user and one group.
The name of the file owner is shown in the ls output next to the file
permissions (geeko). The name of the owning group is shown next
to the file owner (users).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

You can also view permissions, owner, and group from Nautilus file
manager. Right-click the icon of the file you want to look at, select
Properties from the pop-up menu, and select the Permissons tab.
Figure 8-9

From this dialog, you can change the Read and Write permissions
for Owner, Group, and Others by selecting the appropriate option.
If you have the appropriate permissions, you can also modify the
user and group ownership of the file or directory by entering an user
or group in the appropriate field.
Modify the permissions and ownership as desired.

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Change File Permissions with chmod

You can use the chmod command to add (+) or remove (-)
permissions. Both the owner of a file and root can use this
command.
There are options to change the permissions for the owner (u),
group (g), other (o) or all (a).
The following are examples of using the chmod command:
Table 8-2

Example

Result

chmod u+x

The owner is given permission to execute

the file.

chmod g=rw

All group members can read and write.

chmod u=rwx

The owner receives all permissions.

chmod u=rwx,g=rw,o=r

All permissions for the owner, read and

write for the group, read for all other users.

chmod +x

All users (owner, group, others) receive

executable permission (depending on
umask).

chmod a+x

All users (owner, group, others) receive

executable permission (a for all).

In the following example, the user geeko allows the other members
of the group users to write to the hello.txt file by using chmod:
geeko@da51:~
-rw-r--r-- 1
geeko@da51:~
geeko@da51:~
-rw-rw-r-- 1

Version 2

> ls -la hello.txt

geeko users 0 2006-04-06 12:40 hello.txt
> chmod g+w hello.txt
> ls -la hello.txt
geeko users 0 2006-04-06 12:40 hello.txt

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

With the option -R (recursive) and a specified directory, you can

change the access permissions of all files and subdirectories under
the specified directory.
Besides using letters (rwx), you can also use the octal way of
representing the permission letters with groups of numbers.
Every file and directory in a Linux system has a numerical
permission value assigned to it. This value has three digits.
The first digit represents the permissions assigned to the file or
directory owner. The second digit represents the permissions
assigned to the group associated with the file or directory. The third
digit represents the permissions assigned to others.
Each digit is the sum of the following three values assigned to it:

Read: 4

Write: 2

Execute: 1

For example, suppose a file named myfile.txt has 754 permissions

assigned to it.
This means the owner of the file has read, write, and execute
permissions (4+2+1), the group associated with the file has read and
execute permissions (4+1), and others have read permissions (4).
By using number equivalents, you can add the numbers together, as
in the following:
Table 8-3

8-42

Owner

Group

Others

rwx

r-x

r--

421 (4+2+1=7)

4-1 (4+1=5)

4-- (4)

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The following are examples of using numbers instead of letters:

Table 8-4

Example

Result

chmod 754 hello.txt

All permissions for the owner, read and

execute for the group, read for all other
users (rwx r-x r--).

chmod 777 hello.txt

All users (user, group, others) receive all

permissions (rwx rwx rwx).

Change File Ownership with chown and chgrp

The user root can use the chown command to change the user and
group affiliation of a file by using the following syntax:
chown new_user.new_group file
To change only the owner, not the group, you can use the following
command syntax:
chown new_user file
To change only the group, not the user, you can use the following
command syntax:
chown .new_group file
As root, you can also change the group affiliation of a file with the
chgrp command using the following syntax:
chgrp new_group file
A normal user can use the chown command to allocate a file that he
owns to a new group by using the following syntax:
chown .new_group file

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The user can also do the same with chgrp using the following
syntax:
chgrp new_group file
The user can only change the group affiliation of the file that he
owns if he is a member of the new group.
In the following example, root changes the ownership of the file
hello.txt from geeko to the user tux by using chown:
da51:/tmp # ls -la hello.txt
-rw-r--r-- 1 geeko users 0 2006-04-06 12:43 hello.txt
da51:/tmp # chown tux.users hello.txt
da51:/tmp # ls -la hello.txt
-rw-r--r-- 1 tux users 0 2006-04-06 12:43 hello.txt
da51:/tmp #

In the following example, chown is used to limit access to the file

list.txt to members of the group advanced:
da51:/tmp # ls -la list.txt
-rw-r----- 1 geeko users 0 2006-04-06 12:43 list.txt
da51:/tmp # chown .advanced list.txt
da51:/tmp # ls -la list.txt
-rw-r----- 1 geeko advanced 0 2006-04-06 12:43 list.txt
da51:/tmp #

Of course, root and the file owner continue to have rights to access
the file.
Although the group has changed, the owner permissions remain the
same.

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Exercise 8-4

Manage File Permissions and Ownership

In this exercise, you create directories with different permissions.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Modify Default Access Permissions

If the default settings are not changed, files are created with the
access mode 666 and directories with 777.
To modify (restrict) these default access mode settings, you can use
the umask command. You use this command with a 3-digit
numerical value such as 022.
The permissions set in the umask are removed from the default
permissions.
For example, entering umask 022 has the following result:
Table 8-5

Directories
Default Permissions

umask

Result

8-46

Files

rwx

rwx

rwx

rw-

rw-

rw-

---

-w-

-w-

---

-w-

-w-

rwx

r-x

r-x

rw-

r--

r--

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The following listing shows in an example the effect of different

umasks.
da51:~ # touch example1
da51:~ # mkdir exampledir1
da51:~ # umask 000
da51:~ # touch example2
da51:~ # mkdir exampledir2
da51:~ # umask 022
da51:~ # touch example3
da51:~ # mkdir exampledir3
da51:~ # ls -l
total 629
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root
0 May 16
-rw-rw-rw- 1 root root
0 May 16
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root
0 May 16
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root
48 May 16
drwxrwxrwx 2 root root
48 May 16
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root
48 May 16
da51:~ #

11:18
11:18
11:18
11:18
11:18
11:18

example1
example2
example3
exampledir1
exampledir2
exampledir3

By entering umask 077 you restrict access to the owner and root
only; the group and others do not have any access permissions.
umask without any parameter shows the current value of the umask.
da51:~ # umask
0022
da51:~ #

The leading zero can be used to set special file permissions as

described in the following. But for security reasons we strongly
recommend not to do this.
To make the umask setting permanent, you can change the value of
umask in the system-wide configuration file /etc/profile.local. If you
want the setting to be user-specific, enter the value of umask in the
.bashrc file in the home directory of the respective user.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Configure Special File Permissions

The following three attributes are used for special circumstances:
Table 8-6

Letter

Number

Name

Files

Directories

Sticky bit

not applicable

Users can only

delete files when
they are the
owner, or when
they are root or
owner of the
directory.
This is usually
applied to the
/tmp/ directory.

SGID (set
GroupID)

When a program
is run, this sets
the group ID of
the process to
that of the group
of the file.

Files created in
this directory
belong to the
group to which
the directory
belongs and not
to the primary
group of the user.
New directories
created in this
directory inherit
the SGID bit.

8-48

SUID (set
UserID)

Sets the user ID

of the process to
that of the owner
of the file when
the program is
run.

Not applicable

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You set the sticky bit with chmod, either via the permissions of
others (such as chmod o+t /tmp) or numerically (such as
chmod 1777 /tmp).

The sticky bit on older UNIX systems enabled the storing of an executable
program in memory after it had been terminated, so it could be quickly
restarted. However, with modern UNIX and Linux systems, this only affects
directories.

The sticky bit is listed in the permissions for Others (t), as in the
following:
geeko@da51:~ > ls -ld /tmp
drwxrwxrwt 15 root root 608 2006-04-06 12:45 /tmp
geeko@da51:~ >

The following is an example for SUID:

geeko@da51:~ > ls -l /usr/bin/passwd
-rwsr-xr-x 1 root shadow 79765 2006-03-24 12:19
/usr/bin/passwd
geeko@da51:~ >

Each user is allowed to change his password, but to write it into the
/etc/shadow file root permissions are needed.
The following is an example for SGID:
geeko@da51:~ > ls -l /usr/bin/wall
-rwxr-sr-x 1 root tty 10192 2006-03-22 05:24 /usr/bin/wall
geeko@da51:~ >

With wall, you can send messages to all virtual terminals. If you use
wall, this command is executed with the permissions of the group
tty.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

If the attributes SUID or SGID are set, the programs are carried out
with the privileges the owner (in the example for SUID above: root)
or the group (in the example for SGID above: tty) have.
If root is the owner of the program, the program is carried out with
the permissions of root. Unfortunately, there is a security risk in
doing this.
For example, it could be possible for a user to take advantage of an
error in the program, retaining root privileges after the process has
been ended.

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Objective 5

Ensure File System Security

After a user has logged in to the system, what he is allowed to do
and what he is not allowed to do is mainly determined by the
security settings of the file system.
In Linux, file system security is especially important as every
resource available on the system is represented as a file.
For example, when a user tries to access the sound card to play back
audio data, the access rights of the sound card are determined by the
permission settings of the corresponding device file in the /dev
directory.
To ensure a basic file system security, you need to know the
following:

The Basic Rules for User Write Access

The Basic Rules for User Read Access

How Special File Permissions Affect the Security of the System

The Basic Rules for User Write Access

The file systems used in Linux are structurally UNIX file systems.
They support the typical file access permissions (read, write,
execute, sticky bit, SUID, SGID, etc.).
Apart from additional standard functionalities, such as various time
stamps, the access permissions can be administered separately for
file owners, user groups, and the rest of the world (user, group,
others).
As a general rule, a normal user should only have write access in the
following directories:

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The home directory of the user

The /tmp directory to store temporary files

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Depending on the purpose of a computer other directories can be

writable by users. For example, if you install a Samba file server, a
writable share needs a directory that is also writable for the Linux
user the connection is mapped to.
Some device files (such as those for sound cards) might also be
writable for users since applications need to send data to the
corresponding devices.

The Basic Rules for User Read Access

Some files in the system should be protected from user read access.
This is important for files that store passwords.
No normal user account should be able to read the content of such
files. Even when the passwords in a file are encrypted, the files must
be protected from any unauthorized access.
The following lists some files containing passwords on a Linux
system.

x
8-52

/etc/shadow. This file contains user passwords in an encrypted

form. Even when LDAP is used for user authentication, this file
contains at least the root password.

/etc/samba/smbpasswd. This file contains the passwords for

Samba users. By default the file permissions are set to 600.

Files with Apache passwords. The location of these files

depend on your configuration. They contain passwords for the
authorized access to the web server.

/etc/openldap/slapd.conf. This file contains the root password

for the openLDAP server.
After installing the openldap2 package, the permissions for this file are
set to 644.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

/boot/grub/menu.lst. This file can contain the password for the

GRUB boot loader. By default the file permissions are set to
600.

This list is not complete. There can be more password files on your system,
depending on your system configuration and your software selection.

Some password files can be readable for a nonroot account. This is

normally the account under which user ID a service daemon is
running.
For example, the Apache web server runs under the user id of the
user wwwrun. For this reason, the password files must be readable
for the user wwwrun.
In this case you have to make sure that only this daemon account is
allowed to read the file and no other user.

How Special File Permissions Affect the Security of the

System
There are three file system permissions that influence the security in
a special way:

The SUID bit. If the SUID bit is set for an executable, the
program is started under the user ID of the owner of the file. In
most cases, this is used to allow normal users to run
applications with the rights of the root users.
This bit should only be set for applications that are well tested
and in cases where no other way can be used to grant access to
a specific task.
An attacker could get access to the root account by exploiting
an application that runs under the UID of root.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The SGID bit. If this bit is set, it lets a program run under the
GID of the group the executable file belongs to. It should be
used as carefully as the SUID bit.

The sticky bit. The sticky bit can influence the security of a
system in a positive way. In a globally writable directory, it
prevents users from deleting each others files that are stored in
these directories.
Typical application areas for the sticky bit include directories
for temporary storage (such as /tmp and /var/tmp). Such a
directory must be writable by all users of a system.
However, the write permissions for a directory not only include
the permission to create files and subdirectories, but also the
permission to delete these, regardless of whether the user has
access to these files and subdirectories.
If the sticky bit is set for such a writable directory, deleting or
renaming files in this directory is only possible if one of the
following conditions is fulfilled:

8-54

The effective UID of the deleting or renaming process is

that of the file owner.

The effective UID of the deleting or renaming process is

that of the owner of the writable directory marked with the
sticky bit.

The superuser root is allowed to do anything.

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Manage User and Group

Linux is a multiuser system. For

this reason, the system must be
able to uniquely identify all users.
This is done by assigning each
user account a unique internal
number: the UID (UserID).

Accounts with YaST

Every Linux system has a

privileged user, the user root. This
user always has the UID 0.
As with users, the groups are also
allocated a number internally: the
GID (GroupID).
You can administer user accounts
from the YaST Control Center by
selecting Security and Users >
User Management.
You can administer groups from
the YaST Control Center by
selecting Security and Users >
Group Management.
The entered information is saved
by YaST to the following
configuration files:

Version 2

/etc/passwd

/etc/shadow

/etc/group

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

2. Describe Basic Linux User

One of the main characteristics of

a Linux operating system is its
ability to handle several users at
the same time (multiuser) and to
allow these users to perform
several tasks on the same
computer simultaneously
(multitasking).

Security Features

To maintain an environment
where data and applications are
secure, you learned about the
following:

8-56

File System Security

Components

Users and Groups

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Objective

Summary

3. Manage User and Group

To manage Linux user accounts

and groups from your SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server, you learned
how to do the following:

Accounts from the Command Line

Manage User Accounts from the

Command Line

Manage Groups from the

Command Line

Create Text Login Messages

The most important commands to

manage user and groups are:

Version 2

useradd

userdel

usermod

passwd

groupadd

groupdel

groupmod

newgrp

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

4. Manage File Permissions and

To manage file permissions and

file ownership on your SUSE
Linux Enterprise Server, you
learned how to do the following:

Ownership

Understand File Permissions

Change File Permissions with

chmod

Change File Ownership with

chown and chgrp

Modify Default Access

Permissions

Configure Special File

Permissions

The most important commands to

do this are:

8-58

chmod

chown

chgrp

umask

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Manage Users, Groups, and Permissions

Objective

Summary

5. Ensure File System Security

The permission settings in the file

system have an important
meaning to the overall system
security.
You should always follow some
basic rules about file system
security.

Version 2

A user should only have write

access in the home and the
/tmp directory.

Users should never have read

access to configuration files that
contain passwords.

The following special file

permissions affect the security
of a system:

The SUID bit

The SGID bit

The sticky bit

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

APPENDIX A

Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Another very common graphical desktop environment is KDE. This

desktop environment is not installed by default during the
installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. You can install it
manually.
The following explains how to use KDE on SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server:

Version 2

Install the KDE Desktop Environment

Log in

Log out and Shut down

Identify KDE Desktop Components

Manage Icons in the KDE Environment

Use the Konqueror File Manager

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Install the KDE Desktop Environment

KDE is available on the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Product
DVD as well as GNOME. You can install KDE in two ways:

Install KDE during Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise

Server

Install KDE after Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

Install KDE during Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise

Server
To install KDE during the installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10, select in the Software section of the Installation Settings
dialog. The following dialog appears:
Figure A-1

A-2

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Select KDE Desktop Environment. It is also possible (but not

necessary) to deselect GNOME Desktop Environment here.

Install KDE after Installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise

Server
To install KDE after the installation of SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10, select Software Management in the YaST Control
Center.
Using the Patterns filter, you can select the KDE Desktop
Environment to install KDE.
Figure A-2

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise A-1

Install the KDE Desktop Environment

In this exercise, you install the KDE desktop environment parallel to
GNOME. You also log out from the GNOME environment.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

A-4

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Objective 2

Log in
If you installed only KDE and uninstalled GNOME, the KDE login
dialog appears.

Figure A-3

You can enter your username and password or select the user icon at
the left and enter your password. Press Enter to login or select the
small arrow botton next to the Password textbox.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

If you installed KDE next to GNOME, the GNOME login dialog

appears and you can start the KDE desktop environment by
selecting Session at the login manager. A window appears.
Figure A-4

Here select KDE and OK. Then you can enter your username and
your password.
Before KDE starts, the login manager wants to know whether KDE
should be the new default or you want to start it just for this session.
Figure A-5

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Now the following KDE desktop environment appears:

Figure A-6

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 3

Log out and Shut down

When you are ready to log out of the system, open the KDE menu
by selecting the first (left) icon in the bottom panel:

Figure A-7

At the bottom of the KDE menu, select the Log Out entry. You can
also right-click on the window background and select the same
option from the popup menu.
After selecting Logout, a confirmation dialog appears.
Figure A-8

A-8

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Here you can select one of the following options:

Version 2

End Current Session. You are logged out and the login screen
re-appears, allowing you or another person to log in.

Turn Off Computer. The computer shuts down.

Restart Computer. The computer reboots.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 4

Identify KDE Desktop Components

After you log in, your system will by default start the KDE desktop
environment. It is composed of

The Desktop

The KDE Control Panel (Kicker)

The KDE Menu

Virtual Desktops

The Desktop
On the desktop you will see only a few icons. You can start the
applications associated with these icons by selecting them once with
your left mouse button.
You can move the icons by dragging them with the mouse.

The KDE Control Panel (Kicker)

The KDE desktop is operated by using the mouse on the KDE
control panel (called the Kicker) located at the bottom of the
desktop:
Figure A-9

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

The following are the most commonly used icons and their
functions (from left to right):

Version 2

Green button. Menu of all configured programs and functions

(not of all programs and functions installed on the machine).
This menu is called the KDE menu.

House. Konqueror, the preferred KDE file manager.

Monitor. A terminal window in which to type commands

directly. The KDE terminal emulation is called Konsole.

Lifesaver with a chameleon head. The SUSE Help Center.

Globe with gear wheel teeth. Konqueror, the preferred KDE

Web browser.

Globe with letter and calendar sheet. The Kontact personal

information manager.

The white and grey box. Virtual desktops.

The empty area right of the virtual desktops. Task Manager

area.

Globe. Searches for new updates.

Clipboard with k. Clipboard.

Clock. Current time.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The KDE Menu

Programs are normally started from the KDE menu. You can select
the KDE menu button to open the KDE menu:
Figure A-10

This menu consists of the following three sections:

A-12

Most Used Applications. (not shown if no applications was

started yet) As indicated by the name, this section lists the five
most frequently used applications. Accordingly, the listed
entries can change from time to time.

All Applications. This section features an overview of various

applications sorted by subjects (such as Multimedia).

Actions. This section provides a command line interface, an

overview of the bookmarks, an option for locking the screen,
and the option for logging out.

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

A submenu in the KDE menu is marked by a small black arrow in

the right-hand corner. To open a submenu, move the mouse cursor
over the menu entry. To start a program, select the corresponding
entry once with the left mouse button.

Virtual Desktops
If you are working with several programs concurrently, the screen
can quickly become cluttered with open windows. In Linux, you can
bring order to this chaos by changing to another (virtual) desktop.
You can switch between the various desktops via the control panel.
Figure A-11

By default, two virtual desktops are configured. In the KDE control

center (KDE menu > Personal Settings > Desktop > Multiple
Desktops), you can increase the number of usable virtual desktops
up to sixteen. Every virtual desktop can host a virtually unlimited
number of applications. Using these virtual desktops, you can easily
organize your work.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 5

Manage Icons in the KDE Environment

You can find icons in your KDE environment in three areas:

Desktop

Kicker

KDE Menu

Desktop
You can create a new icon on your desktop in different ways. For
simplicity, we will describe only one method.
To create an icon for an application on your desktop, select the item
in your KDE menu. Hold down the left mouse button, move the
mouse pointer to free space on your desktop and release the mouse
button. In the menu that appears, select Copy Here.

Kicker
You can add new icons or applets to the control panel by
right-clicking on a free area of the panel, and then selecting Add
Application to Panel or Add Applet to Panel.
You can remove a program from the control panel by right-clicking
its icon in the control panel and then selecting Remove program
Button.
You can move icons in the panel by holding down the middle mouse
button or by choosing Move program Button from the context
menu.

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

KDE Menu
To make changes in your KDE menu, start the KDE Menu Editor by
selecting the KDE menu icon with the right mouse button and
selecting Menu Editor. The following appears:
Figure A-12

Version 2

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 6

Use the Konqueror File Manager

Nearly all work on the file system can be carried out with the KDE
Konqueror program. To start Konqueror, select the house icon in
Kicker. The following appears:

Figure A-13

The left frame is called Navigation Panel, which serves primarily

for navigation and orientation. You can control the contents of the
navigation panel by the buttons at its left.
Use the navigation panel for quicker navigation through the file
system tree. Once you select a directory in the left frame, the
directory contents (file view) are displayed in the right window.
You can use several methods to navigate in the file system. The
three arrows on the left side of the toolbar represent the simplest
way. The current position can be seen in the text window of the
URL panel (in the above example, /home/geeko/).

A-16

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

If you select the arrow pointing upwards, you will move from the
current directory to the next highest directory (from /home/tux/ to
/home/). The arrow pointing to the left returns you to the previously
visited location. You can move forward again with the right arrow.
You can open a directory and view its contents by selecting the
directory in the file view. If you select a normal file, KDE tries to
open it or starts a program to open it.
Selecting the house symbol in the toolbar takes you directly to your
own home directory (for example, /home/geeko/).
The second method of navigating is provided by the navigation area.
If you select a directory in the navigation area, its contents are
displayed in the file view.
You can double-click the directory in the navigation area to open it
and view all subdirectories in it. Double-click the directory again to
close it.

Version 2

If you prefer a detailed list that displays information about each file in the
tree, activate the tree view by selecting the second icon from the right in the
toolbar.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Exercise A-2

Explore Your KDE Desktop

In this exercise, you explore your KDE desktop.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

A-18

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Use the KDE Desktop Environment

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Install the KDE

You can install KDE in two ways:

Desktop
Environment

Install KDE during Installation of SUSE Linux

Enterprise Server

Install KDE after Installation of SUSE Linux

Enterprise Server

It is not necessary to remove the GNOME

packages to install KDE.
2. Log in

To start the KDE desktop environment, select

Session at the login manager.
Before KDE starts, the login manager wants to
know whether KDE should be the new default or
you want to start is just for this session.

3. Log out and Shut

down

At the bottom of the KDE menu, select the Log

Out entry.
You can also right-click on the window
background and select the same option from
the popup menu.

4. Identify KDE
Desktop
Components

Version 2

The KDE desktop environment is composed of:

The Desktop

The KDE Control Panel (Kicker)

The KDE Menu

Virtual Desktops

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective

Summary

5. Manage Icons in

Use drag and drop to create new icons on your

desktop.

the KDE
Environment

You can manage icons in the control panel by

right-clicking on a free area of the panel.
To make changes in your KDE menu, start the
KDE Menu Editor by selecting the KDE menu
icon with the right mouse button and selecting
Menu Editor.
6. Use the Konqueror
File Manager

Nearly all work on the file system can be carried

out with the KDE Konqueror program.
The left frame of the Konqueror window is called
Navigation Panel, which serves primarily for
navigation and orientation. You can control the
content of the navigation panel by the buttons at
its left.

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Network Components and Architecture

APPENDIX B

Network Components and

Architecture

One of the essential characteristics of human beings is their highly

developed capacity for communication. Communication is
dependent on and part of social interaction.
If you imagine the people involved in a conversation as points and
their social interactions as lines, the result is a simple kind of
network.
A computer network can be defined as a number of hosts connected
to each other that exchange information across a connection (such
as a cable or wireless medium).
A host does not need to be a computer. It can also be a
network-capable printer or a terminal. In most networks, hosts are
separated into clients and servers.
A server is a host providing a specific network service. A client is a
host that requests the use of a network service. It is not always
possible to strictly distinguish between both, because a server also
often acts as a client (or vice versa).
However, hosts and network connections alone are not enough to
guarantee successful communication. Hosts must also use the same
network protocol (such as TCP/IP) to transmit data. In other words,
hosts must speak a common language.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Before connecting your SUSE Linux Enterprise Server as a host to a

network, you need to understand the following networking basics:

Network Types

Client/Server and Peer-to-Peer Computing

Network Topology

Elements of a Network

TCP/IP Layer Model

Network Types
On the basis of the geographical area covered, a network can be
classified into the following types:

B-2

Local Area Network (LAN)

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

Wide Area Network (WAN)

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Network Components and Architecture

Local Area Network (LAN)

A LAN is the simplest form of a network in which computers in a

single location are connected using cables or a wireless medium.
The following shows a LAN:
Figure B-1

A LAN connects computers located in a relatively small area. You

can create a LAN within a single building or cover a group of
buildings.
For example, suppose the employees of the Sales division of Digital
Airlines need to frequently access information related to sales. This
data is stored on different computers within the same building.
To enable easy access to the stored information, you can use a LAN
to connect the computers.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

A MAN is an extended version of a LAN. It covers a group of

nearby buildings.
The following shows a MAN connecting two organizations located
in different buildings:
Figure B-2

Organization A

Organization B

For example, suppose the Marketing division of Digital Airlines is

located in another building of the same city.
You can create a MAN to enable the Marketing employees to access
data from the computers in the Sales division.

Wide Area Network (WAN)

A WAN connects multiple LANs and spans a large geographical

area by using fiber optic cables and wireless. On a WAN, networks
are connected normally through specialists such Internet Service
Providers (ISPs).

B-4

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Network Components and Architecture

The following shows two divisions of an organization connected

through a satellite:
Figure B-3

Sales
Division

Internet

Marketing
Division

For example, suppose Digital Airlines has decided to open

marketing departments in different parts of the world. The
employees in these departments require the information stored on
the computers of the Sales division.
To enable the employees to access the required information, a WAN
is created by connecting the LANs of the marketing departments to
the network of the Sales division.
The technologies used to link WANs are provided by a WAN
service provider.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

There are two types of WANs:

Enterprise. This connects the LANs of an organization that has

divisions and departments in various cities of the world. For
example, an organization can have an enterprise WAN for
connecting its Sales offices in various cities.

Global. This spans the earth and includes the networks of

several organizations. An example of a global WAN is the
Internet.

Client/Server and Peer-to-Peer Computing

The following are the common implementations of the computing
models used to create networks:

Client/Server Network

Peer-to-Peer Network

Client/Server Network

A client/server network combines the processing and storage

features of both the centralized and distributed computing models.
In this model, several computers (known as clients) are connected to
a server.
On a network, a computer requests services. The computer that
provides the requested services to the client is called a server.
On a client/server network, you can to run programs such as
spreadsheet or word-processing applications on a client and save
data on a server.
The client/server network uses network operating systems (NOSs),
such as SUSE Linux, Novell NetWare, or Windows NT/2000.

B-6

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Network Components and Architecture

The classification of clients and servers introduces the concept of

the server-centric network. On this type of network, a server is
assigned the role of a service provider. The client performs the role
of a service requester.
This type of network also allows for backup services and reduces
network traffic.

Peer-to-Peer Network

A peer-to-peer network consists of peerscomputers that can act

both as service providers and requesters.
On a peer-to-peer network, any computer can request and provide
network resources. Software used in peer-to-peer networks is
designed in a way that peers can perform similar functions for each
other.
A negative aspect of a peer-to-peer network is that there is no need
for server-level security.
You can create a peer-to-peer network using operating systems such
as SUSE Linux, Novell NetWare, Windows XP, and Windows 2000
Professional.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Network Topology
A topology is a pictorial representation of the layout of a network.
Selecting an appropriate network topology enables you to create an
efficient, reliable, and cost-effective network.
The following are the types of network topologies:

Bus

Ring

Star

Mesh

Wireless

Bus

In a bus topology, all devices are connected to a central cable. This

central cable is called the bus or the backbone. This topology is
mainly used for small networks.
The following shows the arrangement of computers in the bus
topology:
Figure B-4

Terminator

Coaxial Cable

Terminator

You implement this topology using coaxial cables.

B-8

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Network Components and Architecture

When a computer in the bus topology wants to transmit a signal, the

computer checks whether the bus is free for transmission.
If the bus is free and no other computer is transmitting a signal, the
signal is sent to each computer on the network.
These signals carry information about the destination address with
them. When all computers on the same bus receive the signal, the
computers check the destination address against their own
addresses.
When a workstation receives a signal with a different destination
address than its own, the signal is dropped.
This topology is easy and relatively inexpensive to implement. In
addition, networks using the bus topology can be easily extended.
A disadvantage of using this topology is that the strength of signals
is reduced considerably as they travel the cable. This limits the
number of devices that can be attached to a bus to 30.
If the cable or bus is damaged, the network stops functioning.
Therefore, networks based on the bus topology are difficult to
troubleshoot. In addition, heavy traffic deteriorates the performance
of the network.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Ring

In a ring topology, all computers are connected to one another in the

shape of a closed loop. This creates a ring in which each computer
is connected directly to two other computers, one on either side.
Ring topology was designed by IBM, and is illustrated in the
following:
Figure B-5

It is not practical to have pure ring topology implementations

because a network based on a ring topology cannot be easily
reconfigured. To add or remove computers from a network using the
ring topology, you have to break the ring.
A network based on the ring topology uses a method called token
passing to transmit data. In this method, an empty token is passed
around the ring. Tokens travel around a 600-meter ring about
477,000 times per second.
The device that wants to transmit data signals acquires the token.
Data signals pass through each device on the ring and reach the
destination computer. When the destination device receives the data,
it sends back a signal acknowledging receipt of data to the source
device.

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Network Components and Architecture

The signal is called as an acknowledgement signal. After receiving

an acknowledgement signal, the token is emptied and passed to
another device on the network that wants to start data transmission.
A network based on the ring topology uses unshielded twisted pair
and fiber optic cables. The cost of a network based on this topology
varies depending upon the type of cable used. This topology is not
used widely because it requires expensive and specialized
equipment.
Data transmission on this type of network is fast. The network does
not weaken the strength of the signal and enables data to travel large
distances. Therefore, a large number of devices can be attached to
the network.
However, the failure of a computer or a cable segment can cause the
entire network to stop functioning. Therefore, a network based on a
ring topology is not easy to troubleshoot.

Star

In a star topology, all computers are connected to a switch, and all

data passes through the switch before reaching its destination.
Although a switch is involved, the underlying topology is still a bus
or a ring.
A star topology is the most popular technology used to network
computers. Networks using the star topology are easy to install and
manage.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following shows the arrangement of computers in a star

topology:
Figure B-6

A network using the star topology is implemented using twisted pair

cables with the switch.
In a network based on the star topology, the signals are amplified
using switches. This eliminates the problem of weak signals.
You can increase the number of devices used by adding more
switches to the network. This enables you to expand the network
easily.
When compared with the bus topology, the star topology is easier to
troubleshoot. If one computer on the network fails and is
disconnected, the network is not affected.
A disadvantage is that all data on the network must pass through the
switch. If the central switch fails, all devices attached to the switch
are disconnected from the network.

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Network Components and Architecture

Mesh

In a mesh topology, all devices are connected through many

redundant interconnections between network nodes. Every node has
a connection to every other node on the network.
A mesh topology is a theoretical concept. Its practical
implementation is limited to a few devices. The interconnection
between each device makes the physical design of the network too
complex and difficult to troubleshoot.
The Internet is an example of a mesh network. Various routers on
the Internet interface with different networks.
The mesh topology is classified into the following two types:

Full mesh. In a full mesh topology, every computer on the

network is connected to every other computer or device. This
creates dedicated connections between all the computers.
Mesh networks are interconnected using WAN or MAN links.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following shows the arrangement of computers in a full

mesh topology:
Figure B-7

Router A

Router B

Router D
Internet

Router C

If any two computers on the network are unable to

communicate, the cable connecting the two computers would
develop a fault.
The full mesh topology offers alternative paths for transmitting
data when one of the devices on the network fails. The data can
be sent through any other device attached to the active device.
However, full mesh topology is impractical and can be
expensive to implement.

B-14

Partial mesh. In a partial mesh topology, each computer is not

connected to all other computers or devices. A few devices are
connected using the full mesh topology, and the others are
connected to one or two devices on the network.

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Network Components and Architecture

The following shows the arrangement of computers in a partial

mesh topology:
Figure B-8

The partial mesh topology is less expensive than the full mesh
topology.

Wireless

In a wireless topology, all devices are connected to each other

through an access point without a physical cable.
In the wireless topology, geographic areas are divided into cells.
Each cell represents the area of the network where a specific
connection operates.
Devices within a cell communicate with a switch. Switches, in turn,
are interconnected to route data across the network.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following shows the cells in a wireless topology:

Figure B-9

This topology does not depend on the interconnection of cables. It

depends on the location of the wireless switches.
A device can roam from one cell to another and still maintain a
network connection.
On a network based on the wireless topology, complex and
expensive devices are required to ensure communication.
The failure of any access point affects the network. However, you
can easily troubleshoot the network because there is no physical
interconnection between devices.
In addition, you can easily reconfigure the network because it
supports mobile devices.

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Network Components and Architecture

Elements of a Network
The following are the elements of a network:

Network Nodes

Transmission Media

Network Protocols

Network Connections (Sockets)

Network Services

Network Nodes

Network nodes are processing locations on a network. A node can

be a computer or a device, such as a printer. Every node on a
network has a unique address, distinguishing it from other nodes.

Transmission Media

Transmission media are the paths used by network components to

access data or resources. Transmission media provide a transmission
path for data.
Transmission media include bounded and unbounded technologies.
Bounded technologies use cables for transmission purposes;
unbounded technologies use radio waves for transmission.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following shows how transmission media provide a path for

data on a network:
Figure B-10
Unbounded
Transmission
Medium

Microwave

Ring

Bounded
Transmission
Medium

Star

Bus

The following are commonly used transmission media:

B-18

Copper wire cabling (bounded)

Radio waves or microwave (unbounded)

Fiber optic cable (bounded)

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Network Protocols

Network protocols enable network elements to communicate with

each other.
To understand the basics of protocols, consider this example.
Suppose two people are trying to communicate with each other
without knowing each others language. They would require an
interpreter to facilitate communication.
Similarly, protocols ensure communication between different
network nodes. Protocols are sets of rules that enable different
network nodes to communicate.
Protocols can have different capabilities, depending on the purpose
for which they are designed, and can be classified into the following
types:

Routable protocols. These enable communication between

networks connected to each other through a device known as a
router.
Routable protocols are like phone services that allow you to
make local and long-distance phone calls. Routable protocols
can communicate across routers.

Nonroutable protocols. These are limited to networks

composed of a small number of computers.
Nonroutable protocols are like phone services that allow you to
make only local phone calls. Nonroutable protocols cannot
communicate across routers.

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For details on routable and nonroutable protocols, see Internet Layer on

B-25.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Protocols can be further classified as follows:

Connection-oriented. These inform the sender that the delivery

of data was successfully delivered by sending an
acknowledgment when data is received at the destination.
Connection-oriented protocols act like courier services that
send packages. When you send a package by a courier service,
you receive a delivery receipt after the package is delivered.
Consider an example of using a connection-oriented protocol.
During an online stock transaction, it is important to have all
the data packets required for a complete transaction. If any data
packet is lost, the stock transaction does not occur.
In this example, you can use a connection-oriented protocol to
make sure all data packets reach the destination.

Connectionless. These send data across networks but do not

provide feedback about the successful data delivery.
Connectionless protocols function like a postal service. When
you mail a letter at the post office, you do not get feedback
about its arrival at the destination.
For example, connectionless protocols are used when sending
streaming video files. Even if a packet is lost during
transmission, the loss creates only a small blip in the video
image. The video image can still be viewed and understood.
Connectionless protocols involve smaller overhead and are
faster than connection-oriented protocols.

B-20

For details on connection and connectionless protocols, see Internet Layer

on B-25 and Transport Layer on B-35.

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Network Components and Architecture

Network Connections (Sockets)

In UNIX and some other operating systems, a software object that

connects an application to a network protocol is called a socket.
This enables two-way communication between programs on a
network.
For example, a program can send and receive TCP/IP messages by
opening a socket and reading data from and writing data to the
socket.
This simplifies program development because the programmer only
needs to worry about working with the socket and can rely on the
operating system to actually transport messages across the network
correctly.
Each socket gets bound to a given port, which lets the transport
layer protocol (such as TCP or UDP) identify which application to
send data to.
For TCP and UDP protocols, a socket on a host is defined as the
combination of an IP address and a port number (such as
http://192.168.1.1:5801).

x
b

Version 2

Another type of socket used by POSIX compliant systems (called POSIX

Local IPC Sockets or simply IPC sockets) facilitates interprocess
communication. These connections are from the local computer to itself, and
not a connection over a physical network.

For details on TCP and UDP protocols see Transmission Control Protocol
(TCP) on B-36 and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) on B-40.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Network Services

Network services are programs that let users share network

resources. On a network, nodes use network services to
communicate using transmission media, such as cables.
Network services require resources and processing capabilities to
accomplish a task, such as data processing.
Some examples of network services are CUPS (Common Unix
Printing System), DNS (for name resolution), and NFS (for network
file services).

TCP/IP Layer Model

Over the years, the functions of networks have grown in complexity
due to different types of networks needing to be connected and the
increasing number and requirements of applications.
Because of this increasing complexity, an attempt has been made to
combine individual tasks within a network into groups and
implement these as packages.
In the network environment, these packages are organized as layers
stacked on top of each other. The overall model is referred to as the
layer model.
One of the best-know layer models is the OSI (Open Systems
Interconnection) reference model for open systems. In this model, a
communication system is divided into 7 layers.

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Network Components and Architecture

However, as shown in the following comparison, another

well-known model, the TCP/IP layer model, has only 4 layers:
Figure B-11

ISO/OSI
Reference Model

TCP/IP
Reference Model

Application Layer

Presentation Layer

Application Layer

Session Layer

Transport Layer

Transport Layer

Network Layer

Internet Layer

Data Link Layer

Network Access Layer
Physical Layer

With the TCP/IP model, the 3 upper layers of the OSI model are
combined into the application layer and the two lower layers into
the network access layer.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The following describe the layers in the TCP/IP model:

Network Access Layer

Internet Layer

Transport Layer

Application Layer

Network Access Layer

In the TCP/IP layer model, the physical layer and the data link layer
of the OSI model are combined into the network access layer:
Figure B-12
Network Access Layer:
ethernet, FDDI,
token ring, token bus,
serial line (PPP, SLP)

Application Layer

Transport Layer

Internet Layer

Network Access Layer

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One reason TCP/IP is so popular is that it runs on the different

network architectures for WANs and LANs, such as the following:

Ethernet

Token bus

Token ring

ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode)

FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface)

It also provides the following solutions via telephone for IP:

PPP (Point to Point Protocol)

SLIP (Serial Line Interface Protocol)

Internet Layer

The Internet layer of the TCP/IP model ensures the connection

between individual hosts in the network beyond the limits of
individual networks in the Internet:
Figure B-13

Internet Layer:
Ensures connection between individual
hosts in the network beyond the limits
of individual networks in the internet.
Main tasks:
Providing an address space
for the internet, and
data transfer between hosts
routing.

Application Layer

Transport Layer

Internet Layer

Protocols of the internet layer:

ARP, IP, ICMP
Network Access Layer
routing

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

The main tasks of the Internet layer are providing an address space
for the Internet, routing, and data transfer between end systems
(host computers).
The following are protocols of the Internet layer (with IP as the
most popular):

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

Internet Protocol (IP)

Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) (RFC 826) resolves IP

addresses to hardware addresses (MAC addresses, Medium Access
Control).
The MAC address is always composed of 6 bytes (in hexadecimal
notation). The first 3 bytes indicate the manufacturer, and the last 3
bytes are the serial number of the network card.
If there are two network cards present, both with the same serial
number, you can specify (under Linux) which MAC address the
network card should use to reply.

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Network Components and Architecture

As illustrated in the following, a special MAC address (all bits to 1:

ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff) is used for the ARP broadcast:
Figure B-14

Host A

Host B

Host C

ping C

ARP-Request (Host A):

Who of you (ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff) is host C?
ARP-Reply (Host C):
My hardware address is 00:50:34:BO:CF:07

The following describes the process:

1.

Host A issues a query to all computers through an ARP broadcast

request via ping C: Who is host C?

2.

Host C replies (ARP reply): My hardware address is

00:50:34:B0:CF:07.

3.

The communication is established.

Host A memorizes the reply to its query in a cache. You can view
this cache with the arp command (/sbin/arp\). The command also
provides options for editing the cache, such as deleting an invalid
assignment of a MAC address to an IP address (arp -d hostname).

b
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For details on the arp command, enter man arp.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

You can use the arpwatch program (/usr/sbin/arpwatch) to monitor

ARP requests and replies. By doing this, you can locate errors in the
ARP traffic.
Internet Protocol (IP)

IP provides the underlying services for transferring data between

end systems in TCP/IP networks and is specified in RFC 791.
Data is transported through the network in packet form (also called
datagrams). The main characteristics of this protocol are that it is
connectionless and unreliable.
The fact that IP is a connectionless protocol means that no
end-to-end connection of communication partners is set up for data
transfer.
In addition, IP is an unreliable protocol because it has no
mechanisms for error detection or error correction. In other words,
unreliable means that IP cannot guarantee delivery of data.
However, if data arrives at the destination host, the data is correct.
This is guaranteed by the Network Access layer.
The following are the basic tasks performed by IP:

B-28

Specifies datagrams that form the basic units for transferring

data in the Internet

Defines the addressing scheme

Routes, exchanges, and transfers datagrams through the

network

Fragments and assembles of datagrams

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Network Components and Architecture

Every packet or datagram transmitted over the TCP/IP network has

an IP header. The following shows how the header of an IP
datagram is constructed:
Figure B-15

Bits
0

Version

8
IHL

12

20

TOS

Identification
TTL

16

24

28

32

Total Length
Flags

Protocol

Fragment Offset
Header Checksum

Source Address

IP-Header

Destination Address
Options

Padding
Data

The following describes the elements of the IP header:

Version 2

Version (4 bits). Specifies the format of the IP packet header.

IHL (Internet Header Length, 4 bits). Specifies the length of

the IP packet header.

TOS (Type of Services, 8 bits). Specifies the parameters for

the type of service requested, such as priority, reliability, and
monetary cost.

Total length (16 bits). Contains the length of the datagram.

Identification (16 bits). Identifies the fragments of one

datagram from those of another.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Flags (3 bits). Include the following:

R (Reserved, 1 bit)

DF (Dont Fragment, 1 bit). Controls the fragmentation of

the datagram.

MF (More Fragments, 1 bit). Indicates if the datagram

contains additional fragments.

Fragment Offset (13 bits). Used to direct the reassembly of a

fragmented datagram.

TTL (Time To Live, 8 bits). Used to track the lifetime of the

datagram.
When traversing a router, the TTL of a datagram is reduced by
1. If the TTL is 0, it will be discarded by a router.

B-30

Protocol (8 Bits). Specifies the next encapsulated protocol

(such as ICMP, TCP, UDP).

Header Checksum (16 bits). Specifies the checksum of the IP

header and IP options.

Source Address (32 bits). Specifies the IP address of the

sender.

Destination Address (32 Bits). Specifies the IP address of the

intended receiver.

Options. Of variable length.

Padding (variable length). Used as a filter to guarantee that

the data starts at the 32 bit boundary.

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Network Components and Architecture

The following are additional TCP/IP topics you should be familiar

with:

Routing. The main characteristic of IP is its connectionless data

transfer (packet exchange) between two computers. This means
that for each packet a new path through the network is sought.
The advantage of this approach lies in its robustness. If a cable
fails for any reason, packets can take a different route (if there
is one).
The task of routing is to find a path through the Internet for
each packet to send from machine A to machine B. To do this,
routing protocols and algorithms are used.

IP addresses. In IP-based networks, each computer (or each

network interface of a computer) has a unique, 32-bit IP
address.
For the sake of readability, these 32 bits are not shown as a
sequence of 32 zeros and ones, but are divided into 4 bytes.
These four bytes, called octets, are separated by dots
(32-bit/4-byte dot notation, or dotted quad notation) and are
recorded either as decimal or binary numbers.
For example, 32 bits in sequence from the machines point of
view looks like the following:
11000000 10000001 00110010 00000001

Readable IP representation in decimal format looks like the

following:
192.129.50.1

An IP address consists of the network prefix (the front part of

the IP address) and a host number (the end part of the IP
address).
The network prefix helps to determine the network class in
which the host is located. By means of the IP address, data is
delivered to the required host in the destination network.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

IPv6. The principle reason for changing the IP protocol is the

limited address space, which could cause a shortage of
addresses in the near future.
Because of these demands and the problems with IPv4, the
IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) began working on a
new version of IP in 1990: Internet Protocol Version 6IPv6
(IP Next Generation).
The basic aims of the project are:

B-32

Support of billions of hosts, even if address space is used

inefficiently

Reduction in size of Internet routing tables

Simplification of the protocol to allow packets to be

processed by a router more quickly

Higher security (authentication and data security) than

todays IP

More emphasis on types of service, especially for real-time

applications

Support for multicasting

Openness of the protocol for future developments

For details on IPv6, see www.ipv6.org/.

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Network Components and Architecture

Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)

Internet Protocol (IP) was not designed for the purpose of ensuring
faultless data transmission.
In the event of a communication problem during the transmission of
an IP datagram, the sender of the datagram receives a corresponding
error report through ICMP.
However, this error report can only be transmitted to the sender of
the IP datagram if a gateway or the recipient of the IP datagram can
analyze the error that occurred.
Because of this, ICMP (as defined in RFC 792) is a protocol that is
usually used for transmitting error reports to the senders of IP
datagrams.
For example, an IP datagram should be sent to a specific destination
network through a specific router. However, the router in question is
not able to reach the destination, so a destination unreachable
message is sent.
Or, if the router notices that the received packet can reach the
destination quicker if another path (another gateway), a redirect
message is sent.
The analysis tool ping also uses the ICMP protocol for transmitting
ping control messages (echo request and echo reply).
In turn, ICMP uses IP for transmitting the control messages, and
packs the control messages into the data section of the IP header.
ICMP places the type ID of the control message in the first octet of
the data section in the IP header. The type IP classifies the control
message and defines which and how much data is contained in the
subsequent bytes of the datagram.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

ICMP uses the following message types:

Table B-1

Type

Name

Description

Echo Reply

Answers the request (Type 8).

Destination
Unreachable

A destination (host/network/protocol/port)
cannot be reached.

Source Quench

The destination or a gateway currently is

not able to process the IP datagrams (for
example, due to overload).

Redirect
Message

A gateway informs the sender of an IP

datagram about a shorter route to the
destination.

Echo Request

Sends a request for a response (Type 0:

Echo Reply).

11

Time Exceeded

The TTL (Time-To-Live) of an IP datagram

has reached the value 0. The datagram
was discarded.

12

Parameter
Problem

An IP datagram was discarded due to

invalid parameters.

13

Timestamp
Request

Sends a request for a response, including

the time in milliseconds since 0:00 UT.

14

Timestamp
Reply

Replies to the request (type 13) and sends

its own time in milliseconds since 0:00 UT.

The following shows how an ICMP packet header is constructed:

Figure B-16

Bits
0

4
Type

12

16

20

Code

24

28

32

Checksum

ICMP Message

B-34

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ICMP-Header

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Network Components and Architecture

The following describes each component of the header:

Type (8 bits). Specifies the format of the ICMP message, such

as Type 0 (echo reply) or Type 8 (echo request).

Code (8 bits). Further qualifies the ICMP message.

Checksum (16 bits). Of the ICMP message.

ICMP Message (variable length). Contains the data specific to

the message type indicated by the Type and Code fields.

Transport Layer

The third layer in the TCP/IP architecture is the transport layer, as

illustrated in the following:
Figure B-17

Transport Layer:
Enables communication between
source and destination host.

Application Layer

Protocols: TCP, UDP

Transport Layer

Internet Layer

Network Access Layer

The transport layer enables communication between source and

destination hosts, and uses the following end-to-end protocols:

Version 2

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)

User Datagram Protocol (UDP)

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

In addition, you need to know about the following:

Ports and Port Numbers

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)

The Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) is a reliable,

connection-oriented, bytestream protocol.
The protocol was originally defined in RFC 793. Over the course of
time, these definitions were improved by removing errors and
inconsistencies (RFC 1122) and expanded with a number of
requirements (RFC 1323).
The main task of TCP is to provide secure transport of data through
the network.
TCP provides reliability of the data transfer with a mechanism
referred to as Positive Acknowledgement with Retransmission
(PAR).
The sending system repeats the transfer of data until it receives
positive confirmation from the receiver that the data has been
received.
The data units exchanged between the sending and receiving TCP
units are called packets. A TCP packet consists of a protocol header,
at least 20 bytes in size, and the data to transmit.
Each of these packets includes a checksum by means of which the
receiver can check to see if the data is error-free.
In the case of an error-free transmission, the receiver sends a
confirmation of receipt to the sender. Otherwise, the packet is
discarded and no confirmation of receipt is sent.
If, after a specific length of time (timeout period) no receipt has
arrived, the sender resends the packet in question.

B-36

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Network Components and Architecture

The following shows how a TCP packet header is constructed:

Figure B-18

Bits
0

12

16

Source Port

20

24

28

32

Destination Port
Sequence Number

Acknowledgement Number
Data
Offset

Reserved

Control Bit

Checksum

TCP-Header

Window
Urgent Pointer

Options

Padding
Data

The following describes the components of a TCP packet header:

Source Port (16 bits). Specifies the port of the sender.

Destination Port (16 bits). Specifies the port of the receiver.

Sequence Number (32 bits). Sequence number of the first data

byte in this segment.
If the SYN bit is set, the sequence number is the initial
sequence number and the first data byte is the initial sequence
number +1.

Acknowledgement Number (32 bits). If the ACK bit is set,

this field contains the value of the next sequence number the
sender of the segment is expecting to receive.
Once a connection is established, this is always sent.

Version 2

Data Offset (4 bits). Indicates where the data begins. The

length of the TCP header is always a multiple of 32 bits.

Reserved (4 bits). Must be set to zero.

Control Bit (6 bits). For example, it can be ACK, SYN, FIN.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Window (16 bits). The number of data bytes, beginning with

the one indicated in the acknowledgement field, that the sender
of this segment is willing to accept.

Checksum (16 bits). The complement sum of a pseudoheader

of information from the IP header, TCP header, and the data,
padded as needed with 0 bytes at the end to make a multiple of
2 bytes.
The pseudoheader contains the source address, destination
address, IP protocol, and total length.

Urgent Pointer (16 bits). If the URG bit is set, this field points
to the sequence number of the last byte in a sequence of urgent
data.

Options (044 bytes). Occupies space at the end of the TCP

header. All options are included in the checksum.

Padding. The TCP header must be padded with zeros to make

the header length a multiple of 32 bits.

Because TCP is a connection-oriented byte-stream protocol, a

client-server dialog connection is required before data can be
transmitted.

B-38

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Version 2

Network Components and Architecture

The process of setting up this connection is referred to as the TCP

handshake or three-way handshake, as shown in the following:
Figure B-19

Client

Request

Server

SYN (400)

SYNchronize Flag
Sequence No. 400

SYNchronize Flag
Confirm the
Request

SYN (600)

Sequence No. 400

ACK (401)

ACKnowledgement Flag
Sequence No. 400 + 1

Data

ACK (601)

ACKnowledgement Flag
Sequence No. 600 + 1

The following describes the TCP handshake process:

1.

The client sends a TCP packet to the server with the SYN flag set.
This tells the server that the client wants to synchronize a
connection. The SYN flag is used to synchronize the
connection.

Version 2

2.

If the opposite side accepts the connection, the server receives

the packet and takes out the sequence number (400).

3.

The server sends a TCP packet to the client with a SYN flag set
(with sequence number 600) and an ACK flag with sequence
number 401 (Client SYN +1).

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

With this, the server acknowledges the receipt of the client

packet and tells the client that it wants to synchronize the
connection.
4.

The client receives the packet and knows that the server is ready
for the data transmission.
It starts the transmission of the first data packet in which the
ACK flag is set with the sequence number 601 (Server-SYN
+1), acknowledging the receipt of the last TCP packet from the
server.

5.

All additional packets are exchanged in this way between client

and server, increasing the sequence number by 1 each time.

If the client or the server closes the connection, an additional TCP

handshake takes place.
During the transmission of the last 3 packets, the FIN flag will be
set instead of the SYN flag, signaling the end of the transmission.
User Datagram Protocol (UDP)

The User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is an unreliable, connectionless

datagram protocol. The main task of UDP is to make available a
simple and fast transport of data available through the network.
In this case, unreliable means that UDP has no mechanism to
guarantee the delivery of a datagram. Applications that use UDP
must implement their own routines on the application layer for
guaranteeing the correct transmission of data.
Connectionless means that no computer-to-computer connection
is established for transmitting UDP datagrams. Instead, UDP
datagrams are sent by the sender without the destination machine
making any further checks.

B-40

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Network Components and Architecture

The following shows how a UDP packet header is constructed (RFC

0768):
Figure B-20

Bits
0

12

16

20

24

28

Source Port

Destination Port

Length

Checksum

32
UDP-Header

Data

The following describes the components of a UDP packet header:

Source Port (16 bits). Port of the sender. This is an optional

field.

Destination Port (16 bits). Port of the receiver.

Length (16 bits) (In Bytes). Length of the UDP header and the
encapsulated data. The minimum value is 8.

Checksum (16 bits). Consists of the complement sum of a

pseudoheader of information from the IP header, UDP header,
and the data.
The checksum is padded as needed with 0 bytes at the end to
make a multiple of 2 bytes.

Individual units sent by UDP are called datagrams. UDP is mainly

used where a rapid and efficient protocol is needed to transfer data.
In certain cases, it is not worth the trouble involved when sending
packets by TCP, as the transmission is considerably less economical
due to the larger size of the TCP header.

Version 2

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B-41

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Ports and Port Numbers

To enable specific services to be addressed, communication on the

transport layer is carried out through ports. Because port numbers
are 16 bits in length, there is a maximum of 65536 different ports.
To simplify communication and to avoid collisions, fixed port
numbers (well-known ports) are assigned by the Internet Assigned
Numbers Authority (IANA) for widely-used services.
All important network services run on privileged ports (ports from 0
to 1023). They are referred to as privileged because the associated
services must be started with root permissions.
The upper ports (from 1024 to 65535) are nonprivileged ports.
The following lists some well-known ports registered with IANA:

FTP. Ports 20, 21

SSH. Port 22

Telnet. Port 23

SMTP. Port 25

DNS. Port 53

HTTP. Port 80

POP3. Port 110

NNTP. Port 119

NETBIOS-SSN. Port 139

IMAP. Port 143

SNMP. Port 161

For TCP and UDP, the port numbers are assigned separately. For
example, port 4912 for UDP can specify a different service from the
same port number for TCP.

B-42

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Version 2

Network Components and Architecture

Almost all Internet services are constructed according to the

client-server principleeach service has a server, which provides
the service, and one or more clients, which access it.
On a Linux computer, there are normally a variety of daemons
running simultaneously, which are all waiting for incoming
connections on the various ports and form the server part of the
client-server structure.

For a table listing the port numbers of frequently used services, see the file
/etc/services.

Application Layer

The application layer combines all the higher-level protocols of the

TCP/IP model (protocols based on the TCP/IP protocols), as shown
in the following:
Figure B-21

Application Layer:
Combines all higher-level protocols
of the TCP/IP model.

Application Layer

Protocols are:
Telnet, FTP, SMTP, DNS, HTTP, etc.
Transport Layer

Internet Layer

Network Access Layer

Version 2

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Experience has shown that it was a wise decision to combine the 3

application-related layers from the OSI model into 1, as layers 5 and
6 from that model are seldom used.
Protocols used in the application layer include the following:

B-44

FTP (file transfer)

SMTP (for sending email)

DNS (Domain Name System)

HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)

SMB (Server Message Block)

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Index

Index

Symbols
5-2
.alias 6-12, 6-29
.bash_history 5-14, 6-6
.bashrc 5-14, 6-4, 6-12
.profile 5-14, 6-4
/ 5-16
/dev/null 5-10, 6-22
/etc/bash.bashrc 6-4, 6-11
/etc/group 8-13
/etc/passwd 1-281-29, 8-13, 8-18, 8-208-21
/etc/profile 6-4
/etc/shadow 8-13, 8-18, 8-228-23
/etc/sysconfig/ 3-7, 5-16
| 6-23
~ 5-14, 7-5

A
absolute path 5-4, 5-68
acceleration 1-14
ACPI 1-14, 1-36
address B-27, B-30
administrator 1-23, 2-6, 5-16, 6-7
alias 6-4, 6-106-11, 6-29
AppAmor 5-17
application browser 2-14
ASCII 4-134-14
Assembler 1-3

Version 2

asynchronous B-25
authentication 1-281-29
auto login 1-30
Autoyast 1-33

B
backslash 5-2, 5-56
backup 1-19
bash 5-14, 6-1, 6-3, 6-56-6
binary 5-7, 5-16, 5-59, B-31
Blowfish 8-6, 8-33
boot 5-25
boot loader 1-20, 5-8
boot menu 1-14
boot option 1-14
booting 1-13, 1-17, 1-20, 2-7, 5-8
bottom panel 2-9, 2-182-19
bound B-21
Bourne again shell 6-2
Bourne shell 6-2
bracket 5-56
branch 5-4
BSD 1-35
BSD UNIX 1-3

C
C 1-3
C shell 6-2

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Index-1

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

CA 1-27
cable B-1, B-8B-9, B-11, B-14B-15, B-18,
B-31
cache 6-6
cat 5-21, 5-34
CD 5-9
cd 5-29, 5-69
CD-ROM 5-115-12, 5-24
Certificate Authority 1-27
channel 5-9, 6-21
character 6-17, 7-7
class B-31
client B-1
clock 1-18, 2-12
color 5-13, 6-4
command 6-11
command line 5-1
command mode 7-10
command-line mode 7-6, 7-8, 7-10
compatibility 1-12
completion 6-5
component B-17, B-35, B-37, B-41
configuration 3-1
connection B-1
content 5-21
cp 5-39, 5-70
create B-3B-4, B-6B-8
CUPS 5-13

demilitatized zone 3-17

device 2-17, 5-9, 5-19, 5-22, 5-25
device file 5-9
DHCP 1-24, 1-27, 3-123-14
dir 6-10
directory 5-6, 5-20
DMA 5-22
DNS 1-27, 3-133-14, B-22, B-42, B-44
document 4-19
documentation 4-14, 5-18
domain 1-22, 3-143-15
domain name 3-14
download 1-26
driver 2-3, 5-9, 5-22
DSL 1-24

E
echo 6-9, 6-25
editor 7-2, 7-47-6, 7-10
egrep 5-64, 5-73
emacs 7-2, 7-4
emblem 2-22
ep 5-63
error 1-14, 2-2, 5-23, 6-216-22, 6-25, 8-13
ethernet 3-11, 3-18
exit 6-3, 6-7
expiration 8-98-10
external zone 3-17

D
data channels 6-21
database 5-57
date 2-12, 8-10
day 8-9
default gateway 3-16

Index-2

F
FHS 5-2, 5-6, 5-8, 5-12, 5-18, 5-68
FIFO 5-68
file manager 2-21
file name 5-56

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Version 2

Index

file system 5-1, 5-165-17, 5-225-23, 5-61,

5-68
file system types 1-12
file type 5-27
Filesystem Hierarchy Standard 5-68
filter 8-48-5, 8-118-12
find 5-52, 5-54, 5-565-57, 5-72
finger 8-18
firewall 1-25, 3-17, 5-17
floppy disk 5-10
folder 2-16
FQDN 3-143-15
frame 2-4
FTP 5-17, B-44

G
gateway 3-16
GID 5-55, 8-3, 8-11, 8-13, 8-16, 8-22
global B-6
GNOME 2-4, 2-6, 2-8, 2-10, 2-12, 2-15, 2-25,
3-3, 4-16, 5-15
Google 4-17
GPL 1-6
graphical user interface 2-12-3, 2-17, 6-6
graphics card 1-32
grep 5-56, 5-63, 5-73
group 5-13, 8-28-4, 8-78-8, 8-11, 8-13,
8-158-16, 8-22
Group ID 5-55, 8-3, 8-11, 8-16
groups 8-17
GRUB 1-20, 5-8
GUI 2-2, 4-16
guidelines 1-11

Version 2

H
hard disk 1-19
hard disk acceleration 1-14
hard drive 5-115-12, 5-23
hardware 1-201-21, 1-32, 5-9, B-26B-27
hardware clock 1-18
hardware information 1-19
head 5-35, 5-70
header B-29B-30, B-33B-38, B-41
help 4-164-17
hexadecimal B-26
hierarchy 5-2, 5-4, 5-6, 5-18
History 1-2
history 6-6, 6-28
HOME 6-9
home directory 2-21, 5-14, 5-16, 5-25, 6-6,
6-9, 8-78-8, 8-19, 8-22
host 3-15
host name 1-22, 3-15
hostname 3-133-14
hotplug 3-18
howto 4-14, 4-20
HP-UX 1-3
HTML 4-134-14, 4-20
HTTP B-44

I
I/O port 5-22
icon 2-152-19, 2-22
id 6-7, 8-17
IDE 5-9, 5-11
ifup 3-9
info 4-19
init 5-12, 5-205-21
inode 5-475-48

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Index-3

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

input 6-216-23
insert mode 7-67-7, 7-10
installation 1-11, 1-131-15, 1-201-22,
1-261-27, 1-31, 1-33, 1-36,
4-124-13, 5-8
interface 3-9, 3-11, 3-173-18
internal zone 3-17
Internet
protocol B-28, B-32B-33
internet 1-26
interrupt 5-22
intrusion 5-17
IP
address B-27
ip 3-18
IP address 3-123-13, 3-15, 5-13
IPv4 3-12
ISDN 1-24

K
KDE 2-4, 2-10, 5-15
kernel 1-51-6, 5-6, 5-85-9, 5-175-18,
5-225-23, 6-2
kernel module 3-103-11, 5-12, 5-15
keyboard 1-19, 2-32-4, 2-24, 3-3, 5-2
Korn shell 6-2

L
LAN B-3B-4
LANG 6-146-15, 6-17
language 1-141-15, 1-20, 2-10
launcher 2-17
LDAP 1-271-29, 8-3, 8-5, 8-12
less 4-19, 5-34, 5-69
Library 5-25

Index-4

library 5-15, 5-185-19

license 1-6, 1-16
life cycle 1-7
Link 5-68
link 2-17, 4-19, 5-475-49, 5-71
ln 5-47
local authentication 1-28
locale 6-14, 6-30
locate 5-57, 5-72
log file 5-19
log in 5-135-14, 8-9
login 2-8, 2-24
login dialog 2-7
login name 6-9, 8-22
login shell 6-36-4, 6-27, 8-8
login string 2-6
logout 2-24
loopback 3-19
ls 5-135-14, 5-30, 5-69, 6-106-11
LS_OPTIONS 6-11
LVM 1-12

M
MAC OS 1-8
mail 1-27, 1-30
major device 5-9
man 4-19, 5-585-59, 5-65
man page 5-18
manual 4-13
mask 6-18, 6-30
MBR 5-8
md 6-10
media 5-15
memory test 1-14
meta characters 5-645-65

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Version 2

Index

Metacity 2-4
minor device 5-9
MIT 2-3
mkdir 5-42, 5-70
mknod 5-10
mode 7-6
modem 1-24
monitor 2-24, B-28
mount 5-15, 5-225-24
mount point 5-8
mouse 2-32-4, 5-9
MTU 3-18
MULTICS 1-2
multiprocessor system 1-9
multitasking 1-81-9, 1-36, 8-2, 8-15
multitasking, preemptive 1-8
multithreading 1-9, 1-36
multiuser 1-8, 2-6, 2-24, 8-18-2, 8-158-16
mv 5-38, 5-70

N
name 1-30
name server 3-13, 3-15
Nautilus 2-21, 5-71
ncurses 3-23-3
network 1-241-25, 1-27, 2-3, 3-9, 3-12,
3-14, 3-16, 3-18, B-3B-4
network card 3-103-11, 3-17
network device 1-24
network interface 1-24, 3-9
network mask 3-13
NetworkManager 1-25, 3-9
NFS B-22
NIS 1-28
node B-13, B-17, B-19, B-22

Version 2

non-login shell 6-36-4, 6-27

Novell Customer Center Intro-6, 1-26

O
online help 4-16
OpenLDAP 1-27
operating system 1-81-9, 1-13, 1-20, 1-36,
2-52-6, 5-17, 6-2, 8-2
operating systems 1-8
options B-38
output 6-216-23
owner 8-15

P
package 1-12, 4-13, 4-20
packages 1-21
panel 2-9, 2-12, 2-182-19
parallel port 5-10
partition 1-12, 1-191-21, 5-6, 5-85-9,
5-115-12, 5-14, 5-16, 5-225-24
partitioning table 1-19
password 1-221-24, 1-30, 2-6, 2-8, 2-24,
3-2, 3-4, 5-13, 8-2, 8-6, 8-9, 8-13,
8-16, 8-198-20, 8-24
patch 1-26
PATH 5-60, 5-72, 6-9
path 5-4, 5-54, B-33
pattern 5-55, 5-63, 6-18
PCI 5-22
PDF 4-13, 4-20
performance 2-2
permission 5-47, 8-1, 8-15
physical B-13, B-15B-16, B-21, B-24
pipe 6-23, 6-31
port 1-25, B-21, B-34, B-37, B-41B-43

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Index-5

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

port number B-21

POSIX 6-156-17
PostScript 4-14
power management 1-14, 2-10, 2-12
printer 1-32, 5-9, B-1, B-17
process 1-81-10, 1-36, 5-205-21, 6-23
processor 5-22
processor time 1-8
prompt 6-4
protocol 2-4, B-1, B-19B-21, B-26, B-28,
B-30B-31, B-33, B-35B-36, B-40,
B-43B-44
pseudo login 8-7
pwd 5-31, 5-69

Q
QT 3-2
queue 5-19
quote 6-18

R
RAID 1-12
RAM 1-14
reboot 1-22, 2-10
redirection 6-22
reference 5-47, 5-71
regular expression 5-635-64, 6-19
Reiser 1-12
relative path 5-4, 5-68
Release Notes 4-12
release notes 1-26, 1-31, 4-13, 4-20
repair 1-14, 1-17
requirements 1-111-12, B-36
rescue system 1-14
resource 5-17

Index-6

resource conflict 1-9

restore 5-44
return value 6-25
Ritchie 1-3
rm 5-44, 5-70
rmdir 5-44, 5-70
root 1-23, 2-19, 3-2, 3-18, 5-4, 5-16, 5-21,
5-24, 6-7, 6-15, 6-28, 8-2, 8-8, 8-15,
8-19, 8-23
root directory 5-55-6, 5-8
root password 1-22
route 3-15
router 3-13
routing 3-153-16
RPM 3-7
runlevel 1-20

SCSI 5-9, 5-11, 5-22

search 4-16, 5-55, 5-57, 5-63, 5-72, 6-6, 6-18,
7-7
sections 4-19
security 1-30, 5-17, B-7, B-32
semicolon 5-56
serial port 5-10
server B-1B-2, B-6B-7, B-38B-40,
B-43B-44
service 5-12, 5-17
services 1-27
session 2-10
set B-39
shell 5-7, 6-16-3, 6-12, 8-22
shell built 5-61
shortcut 6-10
shut down 5-17
shutdown 2-92-10

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Version 2

Index

Side Panel 2-22

slash 5-45-5
sleep 5-21
SMTP B-42, B-44
SNMP B-42
socket 5-68
software 1-12, 1-201-21, B-7, B-21
sound card 1-32
source 6-5
source code 5-59
source files 5-18
SSH 1-25
stability 2-2
start B-11
stderr 6-21, 6-31
stdin 6-21, 6-31
stdout 6-21, 6-31
storage B-6
su 6-7
subdomain 5-17
subnet mask 3-13
subshell 6-24
subshells 6-12
SUSE Linux 1-7
SuSEconfig 3-5, 3-7
system B-21B-22, B-36, B-44
System V 1-3, 1-35

T
tail 5-35, 5-70
task manager 2-12
TC shell 6-2
TCP/IP 2-4
tcsh 6-3
teletype 2-24

Version 2

temporary files 5-17

terminal 2-3, 2-17, 2-242-25, 3-3, 5-10
Thompson 1-2
time 2-12, 5-33, B-30, B-32, B-34, B-36,
B-40
time stamp 5-33
time zone 1-18, 1-20
TLDP 4-14
Torvalds 1-4, 1-6, 1-35
touch 5-33, 5-69
transaction B-20
transfer B-31
transmission B-9, B-11, B-17B-18, B-20,
B-22, B-33, B-36, B-40B-41
tree 5-4, 5-22, 5-68
twm 2-4
type 5-61, 5-72, B-35

U
UCS 6-15
UID 5-21, 5-55, 8-2, 8-4, 8-7, 8-168-17,
8-22
umlauts 5-2
umount 5-235-24
unalias 6-11
Unicode 6-15
UNIX 1-3, 1-8, 1-28, 1-35, 5-2, 5-27, 6-2,
7-4, 7-10
unmount 5-24
update 1-17, 1-26, 2-12, A-11
updatedb 5-57, 5-72
USER 6-9
user 1-28, 1-301-31, 2-19, 2-21, 3-18,
5-125-14, 5-165-17, 5-20, 6-4,
6-6, 6-9, 6-27, 8-18-2, 8-48-10,
8-13, 8-158-19, 8-22, 8-24
User ID 5-55, 8-2, 8-16

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Index-7

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

user name 8-2, 8-6

username 1-30, 2-6
UTF-8 6-156-16

Y
YaST 1-15, 1-191-20, 1-22, 1-24, 1-26,
1-301-32, 3-13-5, 3-7, 3-93-11,
3-13, 3-18, 8-28-3, 8-13

V
variable 5-60, 5-72, 6-96-10, 6-19, 6-29
version B-29
vi 7-2, 7-47-7, 7-10
vim 7-47-5
virtual desktop 2-4
virtual file system 5-20
virtual terminal 2-242-25
virus 5-17
volume control 2-12

Z
zone 3-17

W
web server 5-17
welcome message 5-13
whereis 5-72
which 5-60, 5-72
whoami 6-7
wild card 6-18
window manager 2-4, 2-10
Windows 1-19, 1-281-29, 2-2

X
X client 2-32-4
X server 2-32-5
X Window System 2-32-4, 5-13, 5-18
X11 2-3
XFree86 2-3
XOrg 2-3

Index-8

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Version 2