Managing NFS and NIS [Paperback]

Mike Eisler (Author), Ricardo Labiaga (Author), Hal Stern (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 8, 2001

A modern computer system that's not part of a network is even more of an anomaly today than it was when we published the first edition of this book in 1991. But however widespread networks have become, managing a network and getting it to perform well can still be a problem. Managing NFS and NIS, in a new edition based on Solaris 8, is a guide to two tools that are absolutely essential to distributed computing environments: the Network Filesystem (NFS) and the Network Information System (formerly called the "yellow pages" or YP).

The Network Filesystem, developed by Sun Microsystems, is fundamental to most Unix networks. It lets systems ranging from PCs and Unix workstations to large mainframes access each other's files transparently, and is the standard method for sharing files between different computer systems.

As popular as NFS is, it's a "black box" for most users and administrators. Updated for NFS Version 3, Managing NFS and NIS offers detailed access to what's inside, including:

• How to plan, set up, and debug an NFS network
• Using the NFS automounter
• Diskless workstations
• PC/NFS
• A new transport protocol for NFS (TCP/IP)
• New security options (IPSec and Kerberos V5)
• Diagnostic tools and utilities
• NFS client and server tuning

NFS isn't really complete without its companion, NIS, a distributed database service for managing the most important administrative files, such as the passwd file and the hosts file. NIS centralizes administration of commonly replicated files, allowing a single change to the database rather than requiring changes on every system on the network.

If you are managing a network of Unix systems, or are thinking of setting up a Unix network, you can't afford to overlook this book.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Cross-platform file sharing under Network File System (NFS) is so reliable that in most organizations, it works pretty much unattended. Ditto for the directory services that Network Information System (NIS) provides. Managing NFS and NIS is for people who want to know more about how NFS and NIS do their vital work, and how to make them operate in unusual circumstances. Focused on the Solaris and Linux implementations of NFS and NIS, this book is ideal for the Unix system administrator who's familiar with TCP/IP networking and everyday system administration. The second edition of this book eliminates much of the programming material that appeared in its predecessor and replaces it with information on NFS 3, its support of IPsec and Kerberos security, and its operation under Solaris 8.

This is a blue O'Reilly book, packed to the gunwales with information of interest to people in a hurry to optimize their systems and resolve difficulties. It's easy to locate the passage you need via the index or through the table of contents, and most entries provide a great mix of how-to material (in the form of input-and-output listings) and explanatory text (expert commentary, often with notes on applicable variations). If there's a command, option, or configuration parameter associated with NIS or NFS, you'll find documentation of it here. --David Wall

Topics covered: Network File System (NFS) and Network Information System (NIS) for Unix machines, especially Solaris (through version 8) and Linux (through version 2.2). Auto mounting, security, diskless workstations, and performance tuning are among the many details the authors address.

Review

"If you administrate a collection of Unix systems of any flavour then buy this book. There will always be something of interest that will make your Unix network easier to use and manage - guaranteed. If your network involves NT interconnectivity then still buy it but read the opinion on PCNFS verses SAMBA with an open mind." - Jon Wilks, Cvu, June 2002

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; Second Edition edition (July 8, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565925106
• ISBN-13: 978-1565925106
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #858,666 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #23 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > Unix > Administration

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A note from one of the co-authors, March 2, 2004

By 

Michael R. Eisler (Colorado Springs, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Managing NFS and NIS (Paperback)

Hello, My name is Mike Eisler, and I am one of the
co-authors of Managing NFS and NIS, Second Edition.
I'm writing this note to offer additional information
to potential readers.

At the time I submitted this note, most of the
customer reviews for this book referred to the first edition.
One of the reviews states that the book is focused on NFS
version 2 over UDP and the old style automounter.
Actually, you'll find the second edition of our book
is more modern. New topics in the second edition
include NFS version 3, NFS over TCP, modern autofs-based
automounters, Kerberos V5 authentication for NFS, NFS Access
Control Lists (ACLs), and client side fail over.

Another difference is that first edition of this book
used SunOS 4.x as a reference for examples. The second
edition uses Solaris 8.

The second edition provides information you won't find
in NFS product documentation, such as using tools like ethereal
to debug NFS problems. This book will give you the benefit of
insights from people who probably wrote some of the code for
your clients and servers. You may find (and I hope) that
it will save you the trouble reporting a problem to
your vendor's customer support line.

Thank you for considering our book.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent! Helps both beginners and experienced, February 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Managing NFS and NIS (Nutshell Handbooks) (Paperback)

Does not leave out essential information. Gives useful examples where needed. Though not a beginner to Unix, I was not very familiar with NIS and NFS. I was very pleased to find a Unix book that gave me all I wanted to know in an understandable format. This is not always the case with the O'reilly books.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable tool for UNIX systems administrators, August 5, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Managing NFS and NIS (Nutshell Handbooks) (Paperback)

I was formerly the UNIX Systems Administrator of large company where we had several variants of the UNIX operating system employed.

We had a very robust NIS and NFS environment with hundreds of NFS mount points and a dozen or more NIS maps.

The text and examples of this book enabled me to better maintain and update our environment. The practical guidelines for NIS map and application building provided concise information that was easily implemented.

In the area of NFS administration, the book provided valuable performance and tuning information, as well as diagnostic information to determine where problems could lie.

Additionally, I enjoyed the sections on Networking Fundamentals and NFS Design and operation. These were a nice refresher for knowledge previously attained.

While no one book can give all the answers to real world problems, this one at least shows practical application whereby a professional can apply the fundamentals to solve their own problems.

Overall, as a UNIX systems administrator, I found this book to be a "MUST HAVE" item for the professionals' bookshelf.