Practical TCP/IP: Designing, Using, and Troubleshooting TCP/IP Networks on Linux(R) and Windows(R) [Paperback]

Niall Mansfield (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 30, 2003

An accessible and practical 'why and how-to' of Lan and Internet networking for Linux and Windows. *Tells you how to build a working network of any size, from just two computers joined together, to a large company network. *Explains how TCP/IP networks work, and how all the important protocols and applications operate - e-mail, Web, FTP etc. *Shows how to diagnose problems and how to fix them, offering a unique and practical troubleshooting 'methodology.' *Useful to everyone - network managers, system administrators, other computing professionals, students and users with home networks. *Copiously illustrated with screenshots and/or diagrams on almost every page.Audience: The primary audience for this book includes those who use TCP/IP networks every day, those who manage or build networks, and those responsible for an organizations applications and systems as a whole. User Level: Intermediate Author Biography: Niall Mansfield is Technical Director at UIT Cambridge. Niall specializes in firewalls, e-mail and internet security. One of Niall's recent projects included setting up the Internet and Web Systems for a world-wide financial newspaper.He is the author of two critically acclaimed books from Addison Wesley: "The Joy of X, an overview of the X window system "and "The X Window System, a user's guide. "

Editorial Reviews

Review

This book has been touted as the 21st-century upgrade to the classic TCP/IP Illustrated (by Richard W. Stevens), a series which has held a prominent place on the shelves of many a network administrator for the last decade. These are big boots to fill, but Practical TCP/IP does an impressive job. In over 800 pages of well-organized and well-illustrated text, there is no fat, but rather a lean and -- yes -- practical treatment of every major TCP/IP networking concept.A" You won't find a better TCP/IP book!A" Covers TCP/IP and networking in general tremendously. The beginning of each chapter can be read by a newbie/undergraduate very easily, and by the ends of chapters you are treated to rocket science. Just stop reading when you can't take any more in. And the second time you read it further develop your knowledge.A" Accuracy is superb - written by someone obviously knowledgable in the subject, and able to communicate this knowledge extremely effectively.A" It cannot be emphasized enough that this is a hands-on book, not just a paper tiger. The key difference between it and TCP/IP Illustrated is that Practical TCP/IP walks the reader through detailed exercises at every step of the way. It shows real tools in use, making it easy for the beginner and even the experienced reader to learn new techniques quickly and interactively.A" This book is an excellent book for taking your computer networking career from mediocre to top notch. Excellent advice on designing, using and troubleshooting TCP/IP networks.A" --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Back Cover

Practical TCP/IP is the only book you need to ensure that your networks work. With this book you learn by doing as well as reading. Split into 4 Parts, this book has a unique modular approach that facilitates in-depth and easy learning. The detailed appendices make this a desktop book you cannot be without.

Based on years of practical experience this hands-on book explains the principles of networking, and the TCP/IP protocols in depth. Covering both Linux and Windows, Practical TCP/IP is applicable to just about any network.

Skills you will learn

• Tells you how to build a network
• Starts with a simple two-machine network and goes onto a full network connected to the Internet with a firewall and internal routers, and DNS and e-mail servers.
• Explains the software tools you need to diagnose problems and to understand how your network is operating
• Explains why you would want to do things as well as how to do them
• Includes practical troubleshooting and diagnostic techniques that you can apply just about everywhere so you can solve problems in your own network and in systems configured by others
• Assumes that things may go wrong rather than work first time. So error messages are explained and solutions to problems found.
• Ties together the various networking components so that the network is viewed as a whole not just disjointed pieces.

After reading this book you end up with a working network, you understand what is happening at a detailed level, the ability to diagnose and fix problems, and to identify bugs in the software you are using.

This book appeals to both beginners and experienced TCP/IP practitioners.

0201750783B08062002

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Product Details

• Paperback: 880 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional (January 30, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201750783
• ISBN-13: 978-0201750782
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.4 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,311,267 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical and comprehensive - a must-have, May 18, 2003

By 

Johannes Faustus - See all my reviews

This review is from: Practical TCP/IP: Designing, Using, and Troubleshooting TCP/IP Networks on Linux(R) and Windows(R) (Paperback)

This book has been touted as the 21st-century upgrade to the classic TCP/IP Illustrated (by Richard W. Stevens), a series which has held a prominent place on the shelves of many a network administrator for the last decade. These are big boots to fill, but Practical TCP/IP does an impressive job. In over 800 pages of well-organized and well-illustrated text, there is no fat, but rather a lean and -- yes -- practical treatment of every major TCP/IP networking concept.

It cannot be emphasized enough that this is a hands-on book, not just a paper tiger. The key difference between it and TCP/IP Illustrated is that Practical TCP/IP walks the reader through detailed exercises at every step of the way. It shows real tools in use, making it easy for the beginner and even the experienced reader to learn new techniques quickly and interactively.

Topics are presented in a building-block fashion, so that sequential progress through the book guarantees the reader will understand each new concept as it is introduced. Those who choose to browse, however, are not left hanging. The author should be commended on an excellent standard of references within each section, pointing ahead, back, or even outside the text to supporting information. It is possible to drop into an advanced topic and still find all the supporting material needed to make sense of it.

Because the book speaks both Windows and Linux fluently, it is hard to conceive a network environment that could not benefit from having it on hand. It's an ideal book for beginners, probably the only one needed for the first and second semesters of a university networking course. Its exercises start with the simplest networking concepts and work up to some of the most complex of the mainstream network topics.

But it is not a book just for beginners. In a straw poll of our network colleagues, everyone found clear treatment of information they had not yet mastered. This is true in particular for the Windows networkers, because much of Windows networking is hidden by simplified user interfaces in the Microsoft tools. These tools work well when everything operates as expected, but when the network is broken, Windows network troubleshooting is daunting. Even the UNIX / Linux professionals found a trove of useful information, particularly in the use of common (free) tools to pick apart network activity and identify problems both glaring and obscure.

Practical TCP/IP can be unreservedly recommended for anyone planning, operating, or debugging a TCP/IP network. It is a major work and easily lives up to its billing as the next TCP/IP Illustrated.

(Note: one Amazon reviewer mentioned a printing error that duplicated some pages and dropped others. We have not experienced this, but you may want to check your copy before buying.)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Missing Link to TCP/IP, August 21, 2005

By 

Kevin M. Counts - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Practical TCP/IP: Designing, Using, and Troubleshooting TCP/IP Networks on Linux(R) and Windows(R) (Paperback)

I believe this is the book that fills in the gap between
the classic texts by W. Richard Stevens and UNIX System
Administration Texts such as USAH and Essential UNIX Administration. I am a Senior UNIX Administrator and I really
enjoyed reading through this book cover to cover reviewing
my previous knowledge of TCP/IP and picking up new ideas
along the way. Way to go Niall!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Plain & Simple but VERY POWERFUL, June 29, 2003

By 

J. Powell (Mid-Atlantic, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Practical TCP/IP: Designing, Using, and Troubleshooting TCP/IP Networks on Linux(R) and Windows(R) (Paperback)

This book provides a great base knowledge, in the practical understanding of TCP/IP structure. It quickly builds on basic IP addressing concepts, and ties in Subnets, and DNS information very, very well. Thank you for a GREAT book and lifetime reference. One of the books core points that 90 to 95% of networking issues are caused by IP problems, will allow you to solve many of your issues, through focusing on this book.