Linux Network Servers 24 Seven [Paperback]

Craig Hunt (Author)

Book Description

Series: 24x7 (Sybex) | Publication Date: September 15, 1999

This text shows how to achieve continuous availability of services - the goal of every network and systems administrator. It covers: selecting hardware and software that will help avoid installation and reliability problems; planning and executing Linux installation; understanding the Linux boot process, the configuration files and the key startup files; providing remote access to applications through TCP/IP and PPP to applications like rlogin and telnet; configuring BIND version 8 to provide DNS; creating a custom internet mail service with sendmail; implementing mailbox services with POP3 and IMAP; administering the DHCP and BootP servers to provide automatic TCP/IP configuration for clients; sharing files and printers through the Samba server, the NFS server, and the line printer daemon; using route, routed and gated to implement static and dynamic routing, and ipchains for address masquerading; securing Linux server with the system's built-in security features; planning and executing a Red Hat 6.0 Linux installation; upgrading the Linux 2.2 kernel and troubleshooting the Linux network; keeping systems and networks up and running 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year, with the 24seven series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Everyone seems eager to give Linux a shakedown, so publishers have saturated the marketplace with books about installing and initially configuring the operating system. Most of them, however, give only cursory coverage to the software you can run under Linux. Linux Network Servers: 24 Seven does an outstanding job of explaining how to turn a machine running Linux 2.2 (it doesn't pay much attention to the differences among distributions) into a reliable, high-performance provider of network services. You'll learn how to install most any service you could want, including the Web, FTP, e-mail, DNS, printer sharing, and file sharing.

Though this book deals with powerful software, it doesn't assume too much Linux expertise. If you've installed Linux, gotten it to work properly, and played with it a bit, you'll follow along comfortably. The standard approach is an explanation of what a particular service is and which pieces of software implement it, and then a walk through the configuration of one of them. You'll find out what goes into the various configuration files (listing options, where appropriate) and about the behavior of key administration commands. This book will help you build a fire-and-forget network server on the Linux platform. --David Wall

Topics covered: Installing and maintaining reliable, high-performance network servers under the Linux 2.2 operating system. Servers include pppd for PPP service, Apache for Web operations, Berkeley Internet Name Domain 8 (BIND 8) for Domain Name System (DNS) service, sendmail for mail routing, Samba for integration of heterogeneous machines on a network, and the miscellaneous services of the Internet daemon (inetd). There's coverage of Network File System (NFS) and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) servers too.

Product Details

• Paperback: 626 pages
• Publisher: Sybex Inc; 3rd edition (September 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0782125069
• ISBN-13: 978-0782125061
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,873,563 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant for aspirant Linux server builder, December 13, 1999

By 

Francois (South Africa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux Network Servers 24 Seven (Paperback)

For all of you out there like me who have read how to install Linux so many times, but are still confused about the step-by-step how (and why) processes for setting up a DNS server, or a mail server using sendmail, or a samba server, etc... this book is great. The author gives clear examples, and good advice. The book is easy to read, and should be one of your first buys if you are setting up a server. The author spends a lot of time on RedHat and Caldera, with many graphics illustrating the screens you would expect to see.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yes! I've found it, January 26, 2000

By 

TVNshack (Provence) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux Network Servers 24 Seven (Paperback)

Yes, this time I've found *the* good book on Linux. I'm a sysadmin. I know how to get the most of a Linux box. But I was always seeking for *the* book that will bring it all under my eyes. Check this: sendmail's rulesets explained in clear language. Conversion from BIND 4 to 8. Apache admin tricks. Netstat -a explained in clear. Configuring a POP/IMAP server. Lilo in detail. It'll help everybody: the newbie and the close-to-know-it-all. And it's not one of these fake RH6.1 updated books where only the cover tells about RH6.1 and the content never talks about what's to be known. Great concise book.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Number 1 for a Reason!, July 27, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Linux Network Servers 24 Seven (Paperback)

Finding a good Linux book ain't easy. When I saw the June issue of Sys Admin magazine call Linux Network Servers "an excellent guide", "a superb reference" and "an outstanding book", I thought I'd check it out. Researching the book I found that no less of an authority than Allan Cox, the guy that Linux Journal called "the Linux community's very own Mr. Wizard", said it was the system administration reference he would recommend. After all that, I had to give the book a try. I'm glad I did. This book has the details about everything I needed to get a Linux network server running. It covers configuration and management of all the network protocols: telnet, rlogin, ftp, DNS, sendmail, Apache, routing, DHCP, NFS, Samba, lpd, POP and IMAP. It covers all of the configuration files. Describes them in detail and shows how they can be directly maintained with an editor and indirectly maintained with Linux GUI tools. Unlike some know-it-alls who want to tell you there is only one way to do something, this book gives all the options and lets you choose which one is right for you. I like that. This book doesn't treat me like an idiot. It doesn't say simply "do it this way". Instead it says why things are done, describes the tools available to do it and let's me decide when and how to do the thing. A little bit of respect for a change!

Amazon customers aren't fools. They have made this the number 1 best selling book in the Linux network & system administration category. It is easy to see why. It is the best Linux system administration book out there.