Overview

Master All the Techniques You Need to Succeed with Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Set up key Internet servers, step by step, including Samba, Apache, sendmail, DNS, FTP, and other Internet servers Automate and streamline administration with this edition's outstanding new chapter on Perl scripting Master GUI-based admin tools and the powerful Linux command line (CLI) In this book, one of the world's leading Linux experts brings together all the knowledge you'll need to succeed with Fedora or Red Hat Enterprise Linux in any real-world environment. Best-selling author Mark Sobell explains Linux clearly and effectively, focusing on skills you'll actually use as an administrator, user, or programmer. Sobell assumes no prior Linux knowledge. He starts at the beginning and walks you through every topic and task that matters, using easy-to-understand examples. Step by step, you'll learn how to install and configure Linux from the accompanying DVD, navigate its graphical user interfaces, provide file/print sharing and Internet services, make sure Linux desktops and networks are as secure as possible, work with the powerful command line, administer Linux efficiently, and even automate administration with Perl scripts. Mark Sobell has taught hundreds of thousands of Linux and UNIX professionals. He knows every Linux nook and cranny-and he never forgets what it's like to be new to Linux. Whatever you'll want to do with Linux-now or in the future-this book gives you everything you'll need. Compared with the other Linux books out there, A Practical Guide to Fedora (TM) and Red Hat (R) Enterprise Linux (R), Fifth Edition, delivers Complete, up-to-the-minute coverage of Fedora 12 and RHEL 5 Deeper coverage of the command line and the newest GUIs, including desktop customization More practical coverage of file sharing using Samba, NFS, and FTP More and better coverage of automating administration with Perl More usable, realistic coverage of Internet server configuration, including Apache, sendmail, NFS, DNS/BIND, and LDAP More state-of-the-art security techniques, including SELinux (Security Enhanced Linux), ACLs (Access Control Lists), firewall setup using both the Red Hat GUI and iptables, and a full chapter on OpenSSH More and better coverage of system/network administration tasks, including new coverage of network monitoring with Cacti Complete instructions on keeping Linux systems up-to-date using yum And much more, including a 500+ term glossary and a comprehensive index Includes DVD! Get the full version of the Fedora 12 release!

Full Product Details

Author:   Mark G. Sobell
Publisher:   Pearson Education (US)
Imprint:   Prentice Hall
Edition:   5th edition
Dimensions:   Width: 23.00cm , Height: 5.20cm , Length: 18.70cm
Weight:   1.940kg
ISBN:  

9780137060887

ISBN 10:   0137060882
Pages:   1224
Publication Date:   18 February 2010
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Replaced By:   9780132757270
Format:   Mixed media product
Publisher's Status:   Out of Print
Availability:   In Print  
Limited stock is available. It will be ordered for you and shipped pending supplier's limited stock.

Table of Contents

Preface xxxvii Chapter 1: Welcome to Linux 1 The GNU-Linux Connection 2 The Linux 2.6 Kernel 5 The Heritage of Linux: UNIX 5 What Is So Good About Linux? 6 Overview of Linux 10 Additional Features of Linux 14 Conventions Used in This Book 16 Chapter Summary 19 Exercises 19 Part I: Installing Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 21 Chapter 2: Installation Overview 23 The Desktop Live CD and the Install DVD 24 Planning the Installation 24 The Installation Process 39 The Medium: Where Is the Source Data? 40 Downloading a CD/DVD (FEDORA) 41 Checking and Burning the CD/DVD 45 Rescue Selection of the Install DVD 46 Gathering Information About the System 46 Finding the Installation Manual 47 More Information 48 Chapter Summary 48 Exercises 49 Advanced Exercises 49 Chapter 3: Step-by-Step Installation 51 Running a Fedora Live Session 52 Installing Fedora/RHEL 55 Installation Tasks 68 The X Window System 84 Chapter Summary 85 Exercises 85 Advanced Exercises 86 Part II: Getting Started with Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 87 Chapter 4: Introduction to Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 89 Curbing Your Power (Superuser/root Privileges) 90 A Tour of the Fedora/RHEL Desktop 90 Getting the Most Out of the Desktop 109 Updating, Installing, and Removing Software Packages 122 Where to Find Documentation 124 More About Logging In 132 Working from the Command Line 138 Controlling Windows: Advanced Operations 141 Chapter Summary 143 Exercises 144 Advanced Exercises 145 Chapter 5: The Linux Utilities 147 Special Characters 148 Basic Utilities 149 Working with Files 151 | (Pipe): Communicates Between Processes 158 Four More Utilities 159 Compressing and Archiving Files 161 Locating Commands 166 Obtaining User and System Information 168 Communicating with Other Users 172 Email 174 Tutorial: Creating and Editing a File Using vim 174 Chapter Summary 181 Exercises 184 Advanced Exercises 185 Chapter 6: The Linux Filesystem 187 The Hierarchical Filesystem 188 Directory Files and Ordinary Files 188 Pathnames 193 Directory Commands 195 Working with Directories 200 Access Permissions 202 ACLs: Access Control Lists 207 Links 212 Chapter Summary 218 Exercises 220 Advanced Exercises 222 Chapter 7: The Shell 223 The Command Line 224 Standard Input and Standard Output 230 Running a Program in the Background 241 Filename Generation/Pathname Expansion 243 Builtins 247 Chapter Summary 248 Utilities and Builtins Introduced in This Chapter 249 Exercises 249 Advanced Exercises 251 Part III: Digging into Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 253 Chapter 8: Linux GUIs: X and GNOME 255 X Window System 256 The Nautilus File Browser Window 264 The Nautilus Spatial View 270 GNOME Utilities 272 Chapter Summary 276 Exercises 277 Advanced Exercises 277 Chapter 9: The Bourne Again Shell 279 Background 280 Shell Basics 281 Parameters and Variables 299 Special Characters 313 Processes 314 History 316 Aliases 332 Functions 335 Controlling bash Features and Options 338 Processing the Command Line 342 Chapter Summary 351 Exercises 353 Advanced Exercises 355 Chapter 10: Networking and the Internet 357 Types of Networks and How They Work 359 Communicate Over a Network 374 Network Utilities 376 Distributed Computing 383 Usenet 392 WWW: World Wide Web 395 Chapter Summary 397 Exercises 398 Advanced Exercises 399 Part IV: System Administration 401 Chapter 11: System Administration: Core Concepts 403 System Administrator and Superuser 405 Rescue Mode 411 SELinux 414 The Upstart Event-Based init Daemon (FEDORA) 417 System Operation 424 System Administration Utilities 436 Setting Up a Server 441 nsswitch.conf: Which Service to Look at First 455 PAM 458 Chapter Summary 464 Exercises 464 Advanced Exercises 465 Chapter 12: Files, Directories, and Filesystems 467 Important Files and Directories 468 File Types 480 Filesystems 485 Chapter Summary 495 Exercises 495 Advanced Exercises 496 Chapter 13: Downloading and Installing Software 497 yum: Keeps the System Up-to-Date 498 Adding and Removing Software Packages 505 BitTorrent 507 rpm: Red Hat Package Manager 510 Installing Non-rpm Software 513 Keeping Software Up-to-Date 515 wget: Downloads Files Noninteractively 517 Chapter Summary 518 Exercises 518 Advanced Exercises 518 Chapter 14: Printing with CUPS 519 Introduction 520 JumpStart I: Configuring a Local Printer 521 system-config-printer: Configuring a Printer 522 JumpStart II: Setting Up a Local or Remote Printer Using the CUPS Web Interface 527 Traditional UNIX Printing 530 Configuring Printers 532 Printing from Windows 538 Printing to Windows 540 Chapter Summary 540 Exercises 541 Advanced Exercises 541 Chapter 15: Rebuilding the Linux Kernel 543 Preparing the Source Code 544 Read the Documentation 546 Configuring and Compiling the Linux Kernel 547 Installing the Kernel and Associated Files 550 Rebooting the System 550 Boot Loader 551 dmesg: Displays Kernel Messages 553 Chapter Summary 553 Exercises 554 Advanced Exercises 554 Chapter 16: Administration Tasks 555 Configuring User and Group Accounts 556 Backing Up Files 558 Scheduling Tasks 565 System Reports 566 parted: Reports on and Partitions a Hard Disk 568 Keeping Users Informed 572 Creating Problems 572 Solving Problems 574 MySQL 584 Chapter Summary 592 Exercises 593 Advanced Exercises 593 Chapter 17: Configuring and Monitoring a LAN 595 Setting Up the Hardware 596 Configuring the Systems 598 NetworkManager: Configures Network Connections 599 The Network Configuration Window (system-config-network) 601 iwconfig: Configures a Wireless NIC 605 Setting Up Servers 606 Introduction to Cacti 607 More Information 617 Chapter Summary 617 Exercises 618 Advanced Exercises 618 Part V: Using Clients and Setting Up Servers 619 Chapter 18: OpenSSH: Secure Network Communication 621 Introduction 622 About OpenSSH 622 OpenSSH Clients 625 sshd: OpenSSH Server 633 Troubleshooting 637 Tunneling/Port Forwarding 638 Chapter Summary 641 Exercises 641 Advanced Exercises 642 Chapter 19: FTP: Transferring Files Across a Network 643 Introduction 644 More Information 645 FTP Client 645 FTP Server (vsftpd) 654 Chapter Summary 666 Exercises 667 Advanced Exercises 667 Chapter 20: sendmail: Setting Up Mail Clients, Servers, and More 669 Introduction 670 JumpStart I: Configuring sendmail on a Client 672 JumpStart II: Configuring sendmail on a Server 673 How sendmail Works 674 Configuring sendmail 677 Additional Email Tools 682 Authenticated Relaying 689 Alternatives to sendmail 691 Chapter Summary 692 Exercises 692 Advanced Exercises 693 Chapter 21: NIS and LDAP 695 Introduction to NIS 696 How NIS Works 696 Setting Up an NIS Client 699 Setting Up an NIS Server 703 LDAP 710 Setting Up an LDAP Server 713 Chapter Summary 723 Exercises 724 Advanced Exercises 724 Chapter 22: NFS: Sharing Filesystems 727 Introduction 728 More Information 730 Setting Up an NFS Client 730 Setting Up an NFS Server 736 automount: Automatically Mounts Directory Hierarchies 744 Chapter Summary 746 Exercises 746 Advanced Exercises 747 Chapter 23: Samba: Integrating Linux and Windows 749 Introduction 750 About Samba 751 JumpStart: Configuring a Samba Server Using system-config-samba 753 swat: Configures a Samba Server 755 Manually Configuring a Samba Server 759 Accessing Linux Shares from Windows 765 Accessing Windows Shares from Linux 766 Troubleshooting 768 Chapter Summary 770 Exercises 771 Advanced Exercises 771 Chapter 24: DNS/BIND: Tracking Domain Names and Addresses 773 Introduction to DNS 774 About DNS 785 JumpStart I: Setting Up a DNS Cache 787 JumpStart II: Setting Up a Domain Using system-config-bind 789 Setting Up BIND 793 Troubleshooting 805 A Full-Functioned Nameserver 807 A Slave Server 810 A Split Horizon Server 811 Chapter Summary 816 Exercises 816 Advanced Exercises 817 Chapter 25: iptables: Setting Up a Firewall 819 How iptables Works 820 About iptables 822 JumpStart: Building a Firewall Using system-config-firewall 824 Anatomy of an iptables Command 825 Building a Set of Rules 826 system-config-firewall: Generates a Set of Rules 833 Sharing an Internet Connection Using NAT 835 Chapter Summary 839 Exercises 839 Advanced Exercises 839 Chapter 26: Apache (httpd): Setting Up a Web Server 841 Introduction 842 About Apache 842 JumpStart I: Getting Apache Up and Running 844 JumpStart II: Setting Up Apache Using system-config-httpd 846 Filesystem Layout 848 Configuration Directives 850 The Fedora/RHEL httpd.conf File 870 Redirects 873 Multiviews 874 Server-Generated Directory Listings (Indexing) 874 Virtual Hosts 874 Troubleshooting 875 Modules 876 webalizer: Analyzes Web Traffic 881 MRTG: Monitors Traffic Loads 882 Error Codes 882 Chapter Summary 883 Exercises 884 Advanced Exercises 884 Part VI: Programming Tools 885 Chapter 27: Programming the Bourne Again Shell 887 Control Structures 888 File Descriptors 921 Parameters and Variables 924 Builtin Commands 936 Expressions 950 Shell Programs 958 Chapter Summary 968 Exercises 970 Advanced Exercises 972 Chapter 28: The Perl Scripting Language 975 Introduction to Perl 976 Variables 983 Control Structures 991 Working with Files 1000 Sort 1003 Subroutines 1005 Regular Expressions 1007 CPAN Modules 1013 Examples 1015 Chapter Summary 1019 Exercises 1019 Advanced Exercises 1020 Part VII: Appendixes 1021 Appendix A: Regular Expressions 1023 Characters 1024 Delimiters 1024 Simple Strings 1024 Special Characters 1024 Rules 1027 Bracketing Expressions 1028 The Replacement String 1028 Extended Regular Expressions 1029 Appendix Summary 1031 Appendix B: Help 1033 Solving a Problem 1034 Finding Linux-Related Information 1035 Specifying a Terminal 1040 Appendix C: Security 1043 Encryption 1044 File Security 1049 Email Security 1049 Network Security 1050 Host Security 1053 Security Resources 1058 Appendix Summary 1061 Appendix D: The Free Software Definition 1063 Glossary 1067 Index 1117

Reviews

I have found this book to be a very useful classroom text, as well as a great Linux resource. It teaches Linux using a ground-up approach that gives students the chance to progress with their skills and grow into the Linux world. I have often pointed to this book when asked to recommend a solid Linux reference. -- Eric Hartwell, Chair, School of Information Technology, ITT Technical Institute Praise for Previous Editions of A Practical Guide to Fedora(t) and Red Hat(R) Enterprise Linux(R) Since I'm in an educational environment, I found the content of Sobell's book to be right on target and very helpful for anyone managing Linux in the enterprise. His style of writing is very clear. He builds up to the chapter exercises, which I find to be relevant to real-world scenarios a user or admin would encounter. An IT/IS student would find this book a valuable complement to their education. The vast amount of information is extremely well balanced and Sobell manages to present the content without complicated asides and meandering prose. This is a 'must have' for anyone managing Linux systems in a networked environment or anyone running a Linux server. I would also highly recommend it to an experienced computer user who is moving to the Linux platform. --Mary Norbury, IT Director, Barbara Davis Center, University of Colorado at Denver, from a review posted on slashdot.org I had the chance to use your UNIX books when I when was in college years ago at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA. I have to say that your books are among the best! They're quality books that teach the theoretical aspects and applications of the operating system. --Benton Chan, IS Engineer The book has more than lived up to my expectations from the many reviews I read, even though it targets FC2. I have found something very rare with your book: It doesn't read like the standard technical text, it reads more like a story. It's a pleasure to read and hard to put down. Did I say that?! :-) --David Hopkins, Business Process Architect Thanks for your work and for the book you wrote. There are really few books that can help people to become more efficient administrators of different workstations. We hope (in Russia) that you will continue bringing us a new level of understanding of Linux/UNIX systems. --Anton Petukhov Mark Sobell has written a book as approachable as it is authoritative. --Jeffrey Bianchine, Advocate, Author, Journalist Excellent reference book, well suited for the sysadmin of a Linux cluster, or the owner of a PC contemplating installing a recent stable Linux. Don't be put off by the daunting heft of the book. Sobell has striven to be as inclusive as possible, in trying to anticipate your system administration needs. --Wes Boudville, Inventor A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) is a brilliant book. Thank you, Mark Sobell. --C. Pozrikidis, University of California at San Diego This book presents the best overview of the Linux operating system that I have found... [It] should be very helpful and understandable no matter what the reader's background: traditional UNIX user, new Linux devotee, or even Windows user. Each topic is presented in a clear, complete fashion and very few assumptions are made about what the reader knows... The book is extremely useful as a reference, as it contains a 70-page glossary of terms and is very well indexed. It is organized in such a way that the reader can focus on simple tasks without having to wade through more advanced topics until they are ready. --Cam Marshall, Marshall Information Service LLC, Member of Front Range UNIX, Users Group [FRUUG], Boulder, Colorado Conclusively, this is THE book to get if you are a new Linux user and you just got into RH/Fedora world. There's no other book that discusses so many different topics and in such depth. --Eugenia Loli-Queru, Editor in Chief, OSNews.com Praise for Other Books by Mark G. Sobell This book is a very useful tool for anyone who wants to 'look under the hood' so to speak, and really start putting the power of Linux to work. What I find particularly frustrating about man pages is that they never include examples. Sobell, on the other hand, outlines very clearly what the command does and then gives several common, easy-tounderstand examples that make it a breeze to start shell programming on one's own. As with Sobell's other works, this is simple, straightforward, and easy to read. It's a great book and will stay on the shelf at easy arm's reach for a long time. --Ray Bartlett, Travel Writer Overall I found this book to be quite excellent, and it has earned a spot on the very front of my bookshelf. It covers the real 'guts' of Linux--the command line and its utilities--and does so very well. Its strongest points are the outstanding use of examples, and the Command Reference section. Highly recommended for Linux users of all skill levels. Well done to Mark Sobell and Prentice Hall for this outstanding book! --Dan Clough, Electronics Engineer and Slackware Linux User Totally unlike most Linux books, this book avoids discussing everything via GUI and jumps right into making the power of the command line your friend. --Bjorn Tipling, Software Engineer, ask.com This book is the best distro-agnostic, foundational Linux reference I've ever seen, out of dozens of Linux-related books I've read. Finding this book was a real stroke of luck. If you want to really understand how to get things done at the command line, where the power and flexibility of free UNIX-like OSes really live, this book is among the best tools you'll find toward that end. --Chad Perrin, Writer, TechRepublic I currently own one of your books, A Practical Guide to Linux(R). I believe this book is one of the most comprehensive and, as the title says, practical guides to Linux I have ever read. I consider myself a novice and I come back to this book over and over again. --Albert J. Nguyen Thank you for writing a book to help me get away from Windows XP and to never touch Windows Vista. The book is great; I am learning a lot of new concepts and commands. Linux is definitely getting easier to use. --James Moritz I am so impressed by how Mark Sobell can approach a complex topic in such an understandable manner. His command examples are especially useful in providing a novice (or even an advanced) administrator with a cookbook on how to accomplish real-world tasks on Linux. He is truly an inspired technical writer! --George Vish II, Senior Education Consultant, Hewlett-Packard Company Overall, I think it's a great, comprehensive Ubuntu book that'll be a valuable resource for people of all technical levels. --John Dong, Ubuntu Forum Council Member, Backports Team Leader The JumpStart sections really offer a quick way to get things up and running, allowing you to dig into the details of the book later. --Scott Mann, Aztek Networks I would so love to be able to use this book to teach a class about not just Ubuntu or Linux but about computers in general. It is thorough and well written with good illustrations that explain important concepts for computer usage. --Nathan Eckenrode, New York Local Community Team Ubuntu is gaining popularity at the rate alcohol did during Prohibition, and it's great to see a well-known author write a book on the latest and greatest version. Not only does it contain Ubuntu-specific information, but it also touches on general computer-related topics, which will help the average computer user to better understand what's going on in the background. Great work, Mark! --Daniel R. Arfsten, Pro/ENGINEER Drafter/Designer I read a lot of Linux technical information every day, but I'm rarely impressed by tech books. I usually prefer online information sources instead. Mark Sobell's books are a notable exception. They're clearly written, technically accurate, comprehensive, and actually enjoyable to read. --Matthew Miller, Senior Systems Analyst/Administrator, BU Linux Project, Boston University Office, of Information Technology This is well written, clear, comprehensive information for the Linux user of any type, whether trying Ubuntu on for the first time and wanting to know a little about it, or using the book as a very good reference when doing something more complicated like setting up a server. This book's value goes well beyond its purchase price and it'll make a great addition to the Linux section of your bookshelf. --Linc Fessenden, Host of The LinuxLink TechShow, tllts.org The author has done a very good job at clarifying such a detail-oriented operating system. I have extensive Unix and Windows experience and this text does an excellent job at bridging the gaps between Linux, Windows, and Unix. I highly recommend this book to both 'newbs' and experienced users. Great job! --Mark Polczynski, Information Technology Consultant When I first started working with Linux just a short 10 years or so ago, it was a little more difficult than now to get going... Now, someone new to the community has a vast array of resources available on the web, or if they are inclined to begin with Ubuntu, they can literally find almost every single thing they will need in the single volume of Mark Sobell's A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux(R). I'm sure this sounds a bit like hyperbole. Everything a person would need to know? Obviously not everything, but this book, weighing in at just under 1200 pages, covers so much so thoroughly that there won't be much left out. From install to admin, networking, security, shell scripting, package management, and a host of other topics, it is all there. GUI and command line tools are covered. There is not really any wasted space or fluff, just a huge amount of information. There are screen shots when appropriate but they do not take up an inordinate amount of space. This book is information-dense. --JR Peck, Editor, GeekBook.org I have been wanting to make the jump to Linux but did not have the guts to do so--until I saw your familiarly titled A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) at the bookstore. I picked up a copy and am eagerly looking forward to regaining my freedom. --Carmine Stoffo, Machine and Process Designer, to pharmaceutical industry I am currently reading A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) and am finally understanding the true power of the command line. I am new to Linux and your book is a treasure. --Juan Gonzalez Overall, A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux(R) by Mark G. Sobell provides all of the information a beginner to intermediate user of Linux would need to be productive. The inclusion of the Live DVD of the Gutsy Gibbon release of Ubuntu makes it easy for the user to test-drive Linux without affecting his installed OS. I have no doubts that you will consider this book money well spent. --Ray Lodato, Slashdot contributor, www.slashdot.org

I have found this book to be a very useful classroom text, as well as a great Linux resource. It teaches Linux using a ground-up approach that gives students the chance to progress with their skills and grow into the Linux world. I have often pointed to this book when asked to recommend a solid Linux reference. -- Eric Hartwell, Chair, School of Information Technology, ITT Technical Institute Praise for Previous Editions of A Practical Guide to Fedoraa and Red Hat(R) Enterprise Linux(R) Since I'm in an educational environment, I found the content of Sobell's book to be right on target and very helpful for anyone managing Linux in the enterprise. His style of writing is very clear. He builds up to the chapter exercises, which I find to be relevant to real-world scenarios a user or admin would encounter. An IT/IS student would find this book a valuable complement to their education. The vast amount of information is extremely well balanced and Sobell manages to present the content without complicated asides and meandering prose. This is a 'must have' for anyone managing Linux systems in a networked environment or anyone running a Linux server. I would also highly recommend it to an experienced computer user who is moving to the Linux platform. --Mary Norbury, IT Director, Barbara Davis Center, University of Colorado at Denver, from a review posted on slashdot.org I had the chance to use your UNIX books when I when was in college years ago at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA. I have to say that your books are among the best! They're quality books that teach the theoretical aspects and applications of the operating system. --Benton Chan, IS Engineer The book has more than lived up to my expectations from the many reviews I read, even though it targets FC2. I have found something very rare with your book: It doesn't read like the standard technical text, it reads more like a story. It's a pleasure to read and hard to put down. Did I say that?! :-) --David Hopkins, Business Process Architect Thanks for your work and for the book you wrote. There are really few books that can help people to become more efficient administrators of different workstations. We hope (in Russia) that you will continue bringing us a new level of understanding of Linux/UNIX systems. --Anton Petukhov Mark Sobell has written a book as approachable as it is authoritative. --Jeffrey Bianchine, Advocate, Author, Journalist Excellent reference book, well suited for the sysadmin of a Linux cluster, or the owner of a PC contemplating installing a recent stable Linux. Don't be put off by the daunting heft of the book. Sobell has striven to be as inclusive as possible, in trying to anticipate your system administration needs. --Wes Boudville, Inventor A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) is a brilliant book. Thank you, Mark Sobell. --C. Pozrikidis, University of California at San Diego This book presents the best overview of the Linux operating system that I have found... [It] should be very helpful and understandable no matter what the reader's background: traditional UNIX user, new Linux devotee, or even Windows user. Each topic is presented in a clear, complete fashion and very few assumptions are made about what the reader knows... The book is extremely useful as a reference, as it contains a 70-page glossary of terms and is very well indexed. It is organized in such a way that the reader can focus on simple tasks without having to wade through more advanced topics until they are ready. --Cam Marshall, Marshall Information Service LLC, Member of Front Range UNIX, Users Group [FRUUG], Boulder, Colorado Conclusively, this is THE book to get if you are a new Linux user and you just got into RH/Fedora world. There's no other book that discusses so many different topics and in such depth. --Eugenia Loli-Queru, Editor in Chief, OSNews.com Praise for Other Books by Mark G. Sobell This book is a very useful tool for anyone who wants to 'look under the hood' so to speak, and really start putting the power of Linux to work. What I find particularly frustrating about man pages is that they never include examples. Sobell, on the other hand, outlines very clearly what the command does and then gives several common, easy-tounderstand examples that make it a breeze to start shell programming on one's own. As with Sobell's other works, this is simple, straightforward, and easy to read. It's a great book and will stay on the shelf at easy arm's reach for a long time. --Ray Bartlett, Travel Writer Overall I found this book to be quite excellent, and it has earned a spot on the very front of my bookshelf. It covers the real 'guts' of Linux--the command line and its utilities--and does so very well. Its strongest points are the outstanding use of examples, and the Command Reference section. Highly recommended for Linux users of all skill levels. Well done to Mark Sobell and Prentice Hall for this outstanding book! --Dan Clough, Electronics Engineer and Slackware Linux User Totally unlike most Linux books, this book avoids discussing everything via GUI and jumps right into making the power of the command line your friend. --Bjorn Tipling, Software Engineer, ask.com This book is the best distro-agnostic, foundational Linux reference I've ever seen, out of dozens of Linux-related books I've read. Finding this book was a real stroke of luck. If you want to really understand how to get things done at the command line, where the power and flexibility of free UNIX-like OSes really live, this book is among the best tools you'll find toward that end. --Chad Perrin, Writer, TechRepublic I currently own one of your books, A Practical Guide to Linux(R). I believe this book is one of the most comprehensive and, as the title says, practical guides to Linux I have ever read. I consider myself a novice and I come back to this book over and over again. --Albert J. Nguyen Thank you for writing a book to help me get away from Windows XP and to never touch Windows Vista. The book is great; I am learning a lot of new concepts and commands. Linux is definitely getting easier to use. --James Moritz I am so impressed by how Mark Sobell can approach a complex topic in such an understandable manner. His command examples are especially useful in providing a novice (or even an advanced) administrator with a cookbook on how to accomplish real-world tasks on Linux. He is truly an inspired technical writer! --George Vish II, Senior Education Consultant, Hewlett-Packard Company Overall, I think it's a great, comprehensive Ubuntu book that'll be a valuable resource for people of all technical levels. --John Dong, Ubuntu Forum Council Member, Backports Team Leader The JumpStart sections really offer a quick way to get things up and running, allowing you to dig into the details of the book later. --Scott Mann, Aztek Networks I would so love to be able to use this book to teach a class about not just Ubuntu or Linux but about computers in general. It is thorough and well written with good illustrations that explain important concepts for computer usage. --Nathan Eckenrode, New York Local Community Team Ubuntu is gaining popularity at the rate alcohol did during Prohibition, and it's great to see a well-known author write a book on the latest and greatest version. Not only does it contain Ubuntu-specific information, but it also touches on general computer-related topics, which will help the average computer user to better understand what's going on in the background. Great work, Mark! --Daniel R. Arfsten, Pro/ENGINEER Drafter/Designer I read a lot of Linux technical information every day, but I'm rarely impressed by tech books. I usually prefer online information sources instead. Mark Sobell's books are a notable exception. They're clearly written, technically accurate, comprehensive, and actually enjoyable to read. --Matthew Miller, Senior Systems Analyst/Administrator, BU Linux Project, Boston University Office, of Information Technology This is well written, clear, comprehensive information for the Linux user of any type, whether trying Ubuntu on for the first time and wanting to know a little about it, or using the book as a very good reference when doing something more complicated like setting up a server. This book's value goes well beyond its purchase price and it'll make a great addition to the Linux section of your bookshelf. --Linc Fessenden, Host of The LinuxLink TechShow, tllts.org The author has done a very good job at clarifying such a detail-oriented operating system. I have extensive Unix and Windows experience and this text does an excellent job at bridging the gaps between Linux, Windows, and Unix. I highly recommend this book to both 'newbs' and experienced users. Great job! --Mark Polczynski, Information Technology Consultant When I first started working with Linux just a short 10 years or so ago, it was a little more difficult than now to get going... Now, someone new to the community has a vast array of resources available on the web, or if they are inclined to begin with Ubuntu, they can literally find almost every single thing they will need in the single volume of Mark Sobell's A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux(R). I'm sure this sounds a bit like hyperbole. Everything a person would need to know? Obviously not everything, but this book, weighing in at just under 1200 pages, covers so much so thoroughly that there won't be much left out. From install to admin, networking, security, shell scripting, package management, and a host of other topics, it is all there. GUI and command line tools are covered. There is not really any wasted space or fluff, just a huge amount of information. There are screen shots when appropriate but they do not take up an inordinate amount of space. This book is information-dense. --JR Peck, Editor, GeekBook.org I have been wanting to make the jump to Linux but did not have the guts to do so--until I saw your familiarly titled A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) at the bookstore. I picked up a copy and am eagerly looking forward to regaining my freedom. --Carmine Stoffo, Machine and Process Designer, to pharmaceutical industry I am currently reading A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) and am finally understanding the true power of the command line. I am new to Linux and your book is a treasure. --Juan Gonzalez Overall, A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux(R) by Mark G. Sobell provides all of the information a beginner to intermediate user of Linux would need to be productive. The inclusion of the Live DVD of the Gutsy Gibbon release of Ubuntu makes it easy for the user to test-drive Linux without affecting his installed OS. I have no doubts that you will consider this book money well spent. --Ray Lodato, Slashdot contributor, www.slashdot.org

I have found this book to be a very useful classroom text, as well as a great Linux resource. It teaches Linux using a ground-up approach that gives students the chance to progress with their skills and grow into the Linux world. I have often pointed to this book when asked to recommend a solid Linux reference. -- Eric Hartwell, Chair, School of Information Technology, ITT Technical Institute Praise for Previous Editions of A Practical Guide to Fedoraa and Red Hat(R) Enterprise Linux(R) Since I'm in an educational environment, I found the content of Sobell's book to be right on target and very helpful for anyone managing Linux in the enterprise. His style of writing is very clear. He builds up to the chapter exercises, which I find to be relevant to real-world scenarios a user or admin would encounter. An IT/IS student would find this book a valuable complement to their education. The vast amount of information is extremely well balanced and Sobell manages to present the content without complicated asides and meandering prose. This is a 'must have' for anyone managing Linux systems in a networked environment or anyone running a Linux server. I would also highly recommend it to an experienced computer user who is moving to the Linux platform. --Mary Norbury, IT Director, Barbara Davis Center, University of Colorado at Denver, from a review posted on slashdot.org I had the chance to use your UNIX books when I when was in college years ago at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA. I have to say that your books are among the best! They're quality books that teach the theoretical aspects and applications of the operating system. --Benton Chan, IS Engineer The book has more than lived up to my expectations from the many reviews I read, even though it targets FC2. I have found something very rare with your book: It doesn't read like the standard technical text, it reads more like a story. It's a pleasure to read and hard to put down. Did I say that?! :-) --David Hopkins, Business Process Architect Thanks for your work and for the book you wrote. There are really few books that can help people to become more efficient administrators of different workstations. We hope (in Russia) that you will continue bringing us a new level of understanding of Linux/UNIX systems. --Anton Petukhov Mark Sobell has written a book as approachable as it is authoritative. --Jeffrey Bianchine, Advocate, Author, Journalist Excellent reference book, well suited for the sysadmin of a Linux cluster, or the owner of a PC contemplating installing a recent stable Linux. Don't be put off by the daunting heft of the book. Sobell has striven to be as inclusive as possible, in trying to anticipate your system administration needs. --Wes Boudville, Inventor A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) is a brilliant book. Thank you, Mark Sobell. --C. Pozrikidis, University of California at San Diego This book presents the best overview of the Linux operating system that I have found... [It] should be very helpful and understandable no matter what the reader's background: traditional UNIX user, new Linux devotee, or even Windows user. Each topic is presented in a clear, complete fashion and very few assumptions are made about what the reader knows... The book is extremely useful as a reference, as it contains a 70-page glossary of terms and is very well indexed. It is organized in such a way that the reader can focus on simple tasks without having to wade through more advanced topics until they are ready. --Cam Marshall, Marshall Information Service LLC, Member of Front Range UNIX, Users Group [FRUUG], Boulder, Colorado Conclusively, this is THE book to get if you are a new Linux user and you just got into RH/Fedora world. There's no other book that discusses so many different topics and in such depth. --Eugenia Loli-Queru, Editor in Chief, OSNews.com Praise for Other Books by Mark G. Sobell This book is a very useful tool for anyone who wants to 'look under the hood' so to speak, and really start putting the power of Linux to work. What I find particularly frustrating about man pages is that they never include examples. Sobell, on the other hand, outlines very clearly what the command does and then gives several common, easy-tounderstand examples that make it a breeze to start shell programming on one's own. As with Sobell's other works, this is simple, straightforward, and easy to read. It's a great book and will stay on the shelf at easy arm's reach for a long time. --Ray Bartlett, Travel Writer Overall I found this book to be quite excellent, and it has earned a spot on the very front of my bookshelf. It covers the real 'guts' of Linux--the command line and its utilities--and does so very well. Its strongest points are the outstanding use of examples, and the Command Reference section. Highly recommended for Linux users of all skill levels. Well done to Mark Sobell and Prentice Hall for this outstanding book! --Dan Clough, Electronics Engineer and Slackware Linux User Totally unlike most Linux books, this book avoids discussing everything via GUI and jumps right into making the power of the command line your friend. --Bjorn Tipling, Software Engineer, ask.com This book is the best distro-agnostic, foundational Linux reference I've ever seen, out of dozens of Linux-related books I've read. Finding this book was a real stroke of luck. If you want to really understand how to get things done at the command line, where the power and flexibility of free UNIX-like OSes really live, this book is among the best tools you'll find toward that end. --Chad Perrin, Writer, TechRepublic I currently own one of your books, A Practical Guide to Linux(R). I believe this book is one of the most comprehensive and, as the title says, practical guides to Linux I have ever read. I consider myself a novice and I come back to this book over and over again. --Albert J. Nguyen Thank you for writing a book to help me get away from Windows XP and to never touch Windows Vista. The book is great; I am learning a lot of new concepts and commands. Linux is definitely getting easier to use. --James Moritz I am so impressed by how Mark Sobell can approach a complex topic in such an understandable manner. His command examples are especially useful in providing a novice (or even an advanced) administrator with a cookbook on how to accomplish real-world tasks on Linux. He is truly an inspired technical writer! --George Vish II, Senior Education Consultant, Hewlett-Packard Company Overall, I think it's a great, comprehensive Ubuntu book that'll be a valuable resource for people of all technical levels. --John Dong, Ubuntu Forum Council Member, Backports Team Leader The JumpStart sections really offer a quick way to get things up and running, allowing you to dig into the details of the book later. --Scott Mann, Aztek Networks I would so love to be able to use this book to teach a class about not just Ubuntu or Linux but about computers in general. It is thorough and well written with good illustrations that explain important concepts for computer usage. --Nathan Eckenrode, New York Local Community Team Ubuntu is gaining popularity at the rate alcohol did during Prohibition, and it's great to see a well-known author write a book on the latest and greatest version. Not only does it contain Ubuntu-specific information, but it also touches on general computer-related topics, which will help the average computer user to better understand what's going on in the background. Great work, Mark! --Daniel R. Arfsten, Pro/ENGINEER Drafter/Designer I read a lot of Linux technical information every day, but I'm rarely impressed by tech books. I usually prefer online information sources instead. Mark Sobell's books are a notable exception. They're clearly written, technically accurate, comprehensive, and actually enjoyable to read. --Matthew Miller, Senior Systems Analyst/Administrator, BU Linux Project, Boston University Office, of Information Technology This is well written, clear, comprehensive information for the Linux user of any type, whether trying Ubuntu on for the first time and wanting to know a little about it, or using the book as a very good reference when doing something more complicated like setting up a server. This book's value goes well beyond its purchase price and it'll make a great addition to the Linux section of your bookshelf. --Linc Fessenden, Host of The LinuxLink TechShow, tllts.org The author has done a very good job at clarifying such a detail-oriented operating system. I have extensive Unix and Windows experience and this text does an excellent job at bridging the gaps between Linux, Windows, and Unix. I highly recommend this book to both 'newbs' and experienced users. Great job! --Mark Polczynski, Information Technology Consultant When I first started working with Linux just a short 10 years or so ago, it was a little more difficult than now to get going... Now, someone new to the community has a vast array of resources available on the web, or if they are inclined to begin with Ubuntu, they can literally find almost every single thing they will need in the single volume of Mark Sobell's A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux(R). I'm sure this sounds a bit like hyperbole. Everything a person would need to know? Obviously not everything, but this book, weighing in at just under 1200 pages, covers so much so thoroughly that there won't be much left out. From install to admin, networking, security, shell scripting, package management, and a host of other topics, it is all there. GUI and command line tools are covered. There is not really any wasted space or fluff, just a huge amount of information. There are screen shots when appropriate but they do not take up an inordinate amount of space. This book is information-dense. --JR Peck, Editor, GeekBook.org I have been wanting to make the jump to Linux but did not have the guts to do so--until I saw your familiarly titled A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) at the bookstore. I picked up a copy and am eagerly looking forward to regaining my freedom. --Carmine Stoffo, Machine and Process Designer, to pharmaceutical industry I am currently reading A Practical Guide to Red Hat(R) Linux(R) and am finally understanding the true power of the command line. I am new to Linux and your book is a treasure. --Juan Gonzalez Overall, A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux(R) by Mark G. Sobell provides all of the information a beginner to intermediate user of Linux would need to be productive. The inclusion of the Live DVD of the Gutsy Gibbon release of Ubuntu makes it easy for the user to test-drive Linux without affecting his installed OS. I have no doubts that you will consider this book money well spent. --Ray Lodato, Slashdot contributor, www.slashdot.org

Author Information

Mark G. Sobell is President of Sobell Associates Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in UNIX/Linux training, support, and custom software development. He has more than twenty-five years of experience working with UNIX and Linux systems and is the author of many best-selling books, including A Practical Guide to Linux (R) Commands, Editors, and Shell Programming, Second Edition, and A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux (R), Second Edition, both from Prentice Hall, and A Practical Guide to the UNIX System from Addison-Wesley.

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