Pro OpenSolaris (Paperback)

~ (Author), Christine Tran (Author)
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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

OpenSolaris is a rapidly evolving operating system with roots in Solaris 10, suitable for deployment on laptops, desktop workstations, storage appliances, and data center servers from the smallest single–purpose systems to the largest enterprise–class systems. The growing OpenSolaris community now has hundreds of thousands of participants and users in government agencies, commercial businesses, and universities, with more than 100 user groups around the world contributing to the use and advancement of OpenSolaris. New releases of OpenSolaris become available every six months, with contributions from both Sun engineers and OpenSolaris community members; this book covers the OpenSolaris 2008.11 release.

Pro OpenSolaris was written to demonstrate that you can host your open source applications and solutions on OpenSolaris, taking advantage of its advanced features such as containers and other forms of virtualization, the ZFS file system, and DTrace. It's assumed that you are already fairly knowledgeable about developing on Linux systems, so the authors give an overview of the similarities and differences between Linux and OpenSolaris, and then present details on how to use the Service Management Facility (SMF), ZFS, zones, and even a bit of DTrace. They also provide pointers to the many project communities associated with new OpenSolaris features. Special focus is given to web development using familiar applications such as Apache, Tomcat, and MySQL, along with the NetBeans IDE, and showing you how to exploit some of OpenSolaris's unique technologies.

What you’ll learn

• Discover the secrets of the ZFS, the most powerful file system ever conceived
• Explore OpenSolaris AMP (Apache, MySQL, PHP) and GlassFish in the context of Web 2.0 and Linux/Solaris, respectively
• Familiarize yourself with the new security administration features of OpenSolaris, including changes in DTrace

Who is this book for?

Linux system administrators and programmers who would like to know what they have missed since Solaris became an open source operating system.

About the Apress Pro Series

The Apress Pro series books are practical, professional tutorials to keep you on and moving up the professional ladder.

You have gotten the job, now you need to hone your skills in these tough competitive times. The Apress Pro series expands your skills and expertise in exactly the areas you need. Master the content of a Pro book, and you will always be able to get the job done in a professional development project. Written by experts in their field, Pro series books from Apress give you the hard–won solutions to problems you will face in your professional programming career.

About the Author

Harry Foxwell is a system engineer for Sun Microsystems Federal, Inc., specializing in operating system support (Solaris, OpenSolaris, and Linux). He is also an adjunct professor of computer science at George Mason University, where he has taught, among other classes, operating system courses based on OpenSolaris. He has also written several book reviews for ACM’s Computing Reviews.

A biography for this author is not available.

Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Apress; 1 edition (April 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1430218916
• ISBN-13: 978-1430218913
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #181,074 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Author's Comment, April 21, 2009

By	Harry J. Foxwell, PhD "Eclectic Reader" (Fairfax, VA USA) - See all my reviews

Apress' Pro OpenSolaris is the second English language book to be
published specifically about Sun Microsystems' OpenSolaris open
source operating system. The first was the comprehensive,1000-page,
OpenSolaris Bible published by Wiley in March 2009. That book
purposely covered all aspects of OpenSolaris for those with only
basic familiarity with Solaris and UNIX as well as for those with
greater administration and developer experience; it reviewed desktop
tools, networking, shell programming, and system administration
along with the unique features of OpenSolaris.

Pro OpenSolaris, published in April 2009 and based on the OpenSolaris
2008.11 release, assumes the reader is already comfortable with the
user and development environments of GNOME and Linux; it focuses
primarily on the key OpenSolaris features that should be learned
and exploited for Web development. It includes an extensive chapter
detailing a sample Web stack project based on the zones, ZFS,
security, and SMF topics introduced in the preceding chapters. The
book also highlights relevant online references and resources for
further learning. Although all of the information about OpenSolaris
is available on myriad Web sites, books such as Pro OpenSolaris
give you a roadmap and recommended sequence of what to learn first.
It also strongly emphasizes that open source solutions can be
effectively hosted on OpenSolaris as well as on Linux.

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll want to start using OpenSolaris now!, June 17, 2009

By	Alan Formy-Duval "Senior Systems Engineer" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Pro OpenSolaris is an excellent primer to Sun's new operating system - OpenSolaris! The book provides a great introduction to OpenSolaris for anyone not accustomed to a UNIX environment and a great transition guide for anyone looking to transition from older UNIX or Linux platforms. Administrators familiar with earlier Solaris versions will find Pro OpenSolaris a benefit in transitioning to the latest technologies such as the Zetabyte File System (ZFS) and the various ways to employ virtualization. The fluid discussions and excellent screenshots allow the user to quickly learn the ins and outs of the system. This book has shown how easy it is to get an OpenSolaris system up and running and all the fun that can be had for both legacy Solaris users and Linux users alike!

5.0 out of 5 stars A personal favorite I recommend to all, May 16, 2009

By	Bob Gourley (Manassas, VA) - See all my reviews

For a combination of personal and professional reasons, Pro OpenSolaris is the perfect book at the perfect time for this period in my life.

As a CTO with enterprise-grade experience I know Open Source Software and its many benefits. And as a security professional I have long known of the powerful security features of Open Source in general and Solaris specifically. As a computer scientist I have also been a long time personal user of Solaris (as well as Linux, Mac OS X, XP, and Vista). But things have been moving fast in the open source community and some of the most dramatic changes have been in OpenSolaris, so it has been hard for me to keep up. This book provides a great update of those changes and puts them in a context I needed for continual learning.

But let me tell you why I really liked this book. It presents information on a subject I believe all software developers, programmers, project managers and CTOs really need to know, and it presents it in a way that is fast, fun reading. Harry Foxwell and Christine Tran have mastered the art of expression, and that is a rare gift for technical people to do.

But here is why you really need to read this book: Although you can find loads of information on the Internet covering technical details of Open Source Software and especially Solaris, it can be very hard to find a comprehensive update on the new innovations in OpenSolaris. Things like a massively scalable new data storage approach called ZFS and the significantly enhanced security over the already very secure Solaris. Virtualization is also a key topic, as is the metrics and monitoring ability of Open Solaris (DTrace). And, of importance to Linux and Solaris developers alike, a great overview and context of the OpenSolaris open-source based development environment is provided.

This book gives you everything you need to take a computer from its current state to one that is running OpenSolaris, either alone or as part of a virtualized system. It then provides great context and suggestions for tailoring the environment to be just the way you want it to be.

On a personal note: I've known Harry for about five years. I first met him when I was CTO at DIA. I found him to be one of the most pleasant, easy to interact with professionals in the business. He also has the gift of being able to explain and teach, which is something I have always appreciated. Those gifts come through in this book.

Let me close with another great reason to buy the book: it will give you a great, no-nonsense understanding of what is really coming out of the Open Source software community. All technology professionals need a better understanding of that. Please order you copy of Pro OpenSolaris.