Red Hat Enterprise Linux & Fedora Core 4 : The Complete Reference [Paperback]

Richard Petersen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 22, 2005 | ISBN-10: 0072261544 | ISBN-13: 978-0072261547 | Edition: 3

The new edition of this best-selling reference offers complete coverage of all aspects of the Red Hat Fedora and Enterprise Linux distribution. Full details on everything from installation and configuration to system administration and server management of Enterprise Linux--with specifics on the Linux Kernel 2.6--are included. The new IPv6 Protocol, including the network security features of IPSEC and Virtual Private Networks, are also covered. The DVD contains the entire Red Hat Fedora Core distribution--normally available on multiple CD-ROMs.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Fedora Core 4: The Complete Reference provides a comprehensive examination of all aspects of Fedora Core 4 Linux, including recent critical changes in administration such as device management, kernel configuration, and IPv6 support. In terms of coverage, The Complete Reference is currently the only true Fedora Core 4 book, providing coverage of key Fedora Core 4 and even Fedora Core 3 developments. Other books in this class either take a different more introductory approach, or simply fail to cover key Fedora Core 4 developments. Only in this book will you find in depth discussion of key administration changes such as automatic device generation with udev, the Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL), and kernel header management. It still remains the only text in its class that covers IPv6 topics ranging from network address auto-configuration to DNS records. In addition, there is special focus on security tools, providing dedicated chapters on SELinux, IPsec, and GPG encryption. The book remains the only text in its class to discuss Kerberos, as well as provide detailed examination of RAID and LVM file systems. The Complete Reference also covers the latest inclusions like the Global File System, detailing the various packages you need to implement the system, as well as upcoming solutions like using the latest securitylevel development version to enable Windows share browsing on Gnome. Though comprehensive in its handling of administration topics, The Complete Reference deals just as thoroughly with user topics, with beginning chapters providing introductory material, along with in depth chapters on Gnome, KDE, and shell usage and configuration. Office, Database, Multimedia, and Internet applications like Firefox, including Windows access and video support, are also covered. Dedicated chapters examine Internet services like Web servers, proxies, DNS, and FTP. Both the publisher and author have made a special effort to provide the most up-to-date and comprehensive information on Fedora Core 4 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux, keeping readers informed of all the latest developments.

From the Inside Flap

Fedora Core 4 provides several important features. It includes the latest 2.6 kernel. Following on Fedora Core 3, there is a major change in how devices are handled by the operating system. Device interfaces are generated only for devices attached to the system, with interfaces for removable devices dynamically created as needed. For the kernel, there are both x86 (32 bit) and x86_64 (64 bit) versions, as well as Apple computer versions (PPC). Fedora Core 4 features automatic detection of removable devices like USB printers, digital cameras, and card readers. CD/DVD discs are treated as removable devices, automatically displayed and accessed when inserted. GNOME now supports GUI access to all removable devices and shared directories on networked hosts, including Windows folders. Fedora Core 4 also provides full IPv6 network protocol support, including automatic addressing and renumbering. SELinux is now a integral component of Fedora Core 4, providing system-wide security. You can set different levels of control and create your own policies. A wide range of multimedia applications are included, such as a video player and TV viewer, along with compatible support from various multimedia applications and libraries available from freshrpms.net, such as DVD and DivX support. With the Network Monitor, you can automatically select wireless connections. Information about hotplugged devices is provided to applications with the Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) from freedesktop.org. This allows applications like GNOME to easily display and manage removable devices. All devices are now treated logically as removable, and automatically configured by udev. Fixed devices are simply ones that cannot be removed. This feature is meant to let Linux accommodate the wide variety of devices now becoming available, such as digital cameras, USB printers, and cell phones. Hard disk partitions can now be implemented with the Logical Volume Manager (LVM), letting you manage your storage more easily (default for Desktop andWorkstation installations). RAID interfaces with BIOS-level drivers (fake RAID) found on most PC motherboards are now detected and supported, though you can use Linux’s own software RAID to better effect. The Red Hat Update Agent can be used to automatically update your Fedora Core 4 system and all its installed applications, from the Yum Fedora online repositories. The Office.org office suite provides very effective and competitive office applications, featuring support for document storage standards. The Envice universal document viewer displays various formats. All IDE DVD/CD+-R/RW drives are now directly supported (SCSI emulation is no longer needed). Internet Security Protocol (IPsec) tools are now available. To configure the kernel, you can now use the qconf configuration tool (xconfig),which provides an effective GUI interface . Kernel headers, used for module source and application compilation and development, are now included with the kernel binaries. The full kernel source no longer needs to be installed. The Fedora Core kernel source SRPM packages are now extracted to the Red Hat Build directories in /usr/src/redhat. Original kernel sources in normal archives should be extracted in a user directory. The Xen Virtualization kernel is also provided, which allows the use of virtual machines on which you can run different operating systems adapted for use on Xen. You can also use the virtual machines to run different instances of the kernel. The Fedora Core continues to refine the desktop interface, providing versions for both GNOME and KDE. Gnome now uses the Clearlooks theme, based on Bluecurve.. Updated versions of all network servers are provided, including the Apache Web server, the vsftp FTP server, the BIND DNS server, and the Samba server. InfiniBand high-speed connections are now supported by the kernel. The Global File System (GFS) cluster file system with supporting kerne

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Product Details

• Paperback: 960 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media; 3 edition (August 22, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0072261544
• ISBN-13: 978-0072261547
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.4 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,020,509 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Reference Book, March 9, 2006

By 

Stephen E. French Sr. - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Red Hat Enterprise Linux & Fedora Core 4 : The Complete Reference (Paperback)

Very detailed explanation of the operations of Fedora Core 4. Was able to get services running that I have had trouble with. Recommended the book to a class of students to buy for a reference library.