The Complete FreeBSD: Documentation from the Source [Paperback]

Greg Lehey (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0596005164 | ISBN-13: 978-0596005160 | Publication Date: May 6, 2003 | Edition: 4th

FreeBSD is by far the most popular version of BSD®, the legendary operating system that has contributed a great deal to every version of Unix® in use today (including Mac OS® X). Originally a community effort by the University of California at Berkeley, FreeBSD was aimed at making Unix a little friendlier and easier to use. By the time other free operating systems came along, BSD was firmly established and very reliable. And it continues to be today.

For seven years, the FreeBSD community has relied on Greg Lehey's classic, The Complete FreeBSD, to guide them through its configuration and administration. The 4th edition, covering version 5 of FreeBSD, is now available through O'Reilly Community Press.

The Complete FreeBSD is an eminently practical guidebook that explains not only how to get a computer up and running with the FreeBSD operating system, but also how to turn it into a highly functional and secure server that can host large numbers of users and disks, support remote access, and provide web service, mail service, and other key parts of the Internet infrastructure. The book provides in-depth information on installation and updates, back-ups, printers, RAID, various Internet services, firewalls, the graphical X Window system, and much more. Author Greg Lehey is a member of the FreeBSD core team and has been developing, documenting, and advocating for FreeBSD for nearly ten years. Whether you're an experienced Unix user or just interested in learning more about this free operating system and how you can put it to work for you, this do-it-yourself BSD documentation will provide the information you need.

The Complete FreeBSD is the second release in the O'Reilly Community Press Series. Unlike classic O'Reilly animal books, which are created to fill an information void, the Community Press titles provide convenient printed copies of documentation that is already available online. O'Reilly's role in the series is limited to providing manufacturing and distribution services rather than editorial development, so that each Community Press title reflects the editorial voice and organization of the community that has created it.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Naturally, such a long-standing and mature OS requires an equally long-standing and mature book to cover its workings, and FreeBSD fans are blessed to have The Complete FreeBSD, by Greg Lehey." - Paul Hudson, Linux Format, October 2003

About the Author

Greg Lehey is an independent computer consultant specializing in UNIX. Born in Australia, he was educated in Malaysia and England before studying chemistry in Germany and chemical engineering in England. He has spent his professional career in Germany, where he worked for computer manufacturers such as Univac and Tandem, the German space research agency, nameless software houses, and a large user before deciding to work for himself. In the course of over 20 years in the industry he has performed most jobs you can think of, ranging from kernel support to product marketing, systems programming to operating, processing satellite data to programming gasoline pumps. About the only thing he hasn't done is write commercial software. He is currently engaged in the production of CD-ROMs of ported free software, and this book is one result of his experience in this area. He is available for short-term contracts and can be reached by mail at [e-mail].

Product Details

• Paperback: 720 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 4th edition (May 6, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596005164
• ISBN-13: 978-0596005160
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 10.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #467,734 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #11 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > BSD

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book, November 19, 2003

By 

"alexethan1" (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete FreeBSD: Documentation from the Source (Paperback)

The book is well-written and easy to understand. If you wish to learn the FreeBSD Operating System and start a server, it is well worth the money. You should be up and running in no time. Apart from this, read on.

It is very complete, albeit at a minor cost... some topics are given a few sentences and then glossed over. Now, don't get me wrong. This book is to explain FreeBSD, not those little topics generously thrown in. Therefore, it shouldn't hurt the book's review. Just be aware that you will not learn Unix, X Windows or any of the other addons that can be found in Unix through this book. Obviously, it's not the book's purpose. Its purpose is to teach FreeBSD.

It would have earned five stars, but Chapter 31, Keeping Up To Date (CVS) is uneven and jumpy. This chapter came as a shock when compared to the rest of the book. I think another reviewer shared a similar complaint about it.

On a side note, a reviewer amused me by complimenting the book (giving it five stars) just because of who the author is. I'd rather buy a well-written book by a no-name author than a poorly-written book by a renowned author. It's people like this that trap other people into buying books that aren't helpful. I hope this review helped you. :)

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is *the* book to have on FreeBSD., June 14, 2003

By 

Tim Greer "Mr. Tim" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Complete FreeBSD: Documentation from the Source (Paperback)

I've read a few FreeBSD books and coming from a background in *nix and *nix-type flavors, I've been let down before. Other books cover maybe a total of 20 commands and nothing you don't know the first day (and don't even have as much information as the man pages), but this one is different.

I wasn't on a *BSD system for a couple of years of mainly using Linux, and I wanted a refresher and for the book to cover new and familiar topics. Useful things, rather than just listing the popular software used on it and not the things you need to know about them, etc.

This book covers more than the others in regards to commands, common tasks, installs, configurations and so on. It actually covers the TOPIC (Being the FreeBSD OS). Not a quick and dirty run down of a few commands and a lot of fluff like other books. This gives you what you need to know, be it you have some experience or are new.

It doesn't skip around like the other books and only offer maybe a total of one decent chapter on the topic of the book (FreeBSD), it covers many chapters worth. I can't stand when a book only has some information about the title, as much as it does about some irrelevant third party software (and only talks about it as briefly at that).

I don't want or need information about anything other than what the book is about--and finally, a FreeBSD book that covers FreeBSD. I was impressed. It may not cover everything, but it sure gets close and is very professional, well structured and informative.

Between this book, man pages and online (and up to date) documentation, it's unlikely you will need (much) more information about how to install, configure and use FreeBSD, it's tools and programs and work in it daily and have the information you need. Trust me, this book is far better than the others (see my review on "Absolute BSD: The Ultimate Guide to FreeBSD" to see what I mean).

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive Documentation, February 15, 2000

By 

Robert Young (Currently in Mexico City.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete FreeBSD (Paperback)

IMHO FreeBSD is the best server Operating System available and this book covers all of the details for both beginners and experienced Unix Admins alike. If you are considering using FreeBSD I strongly urge you to buy this book. The bootable CDs that come with the book make installation a breeze.

One of the truly great features of this book are the man pages that make up about half of the book. The ability to sit on the couch and study a man page for some task or other is simply wonderful and saves the paper that would otherwise be used to print it.

The book covers in step by step fashion the setup of all normally used aspects of the system and covers them in great detail. The section on compiling a custom kernel is simply fantastic and an excellent guide for beginners. Building a custom kernel is a vital part of a fully functioning Unix system and this book makes it as simple as a cookbook.