Archive:Docs/Drafts/AdministrationGuide/Introduction

Introduction

Edited by ZacharyHamed on 4.23.2008

Purpose

This document explains some of Linux's basic concepts and describes how to carry out common administrative tasks on Fedora systems.

Audience

Anyone responsible for the administration and maintenance of one or more Fedora systems

Using This Document

Each chapter of this document explains a particular aspect of the system and describes how to perform several administrative tasks. The final section of each chapter suggests related tools and features that the user may find valuable. Each section can be read individually without having to refer other sections.

Read the first three chapters prior to modifying a typically installed Fedora system. A typical installation process with the default configuration results in a fully functional and secure system. Use such a system with limited network access, in order to safely experiment with configurations. Improper configuration could lead to relaxed security or break system functionality.

This document describes how to administer system using both the graphical tools and related command-line utilities. While the graphical tools enable a new user to perform routine tasks in a consistent and efficient manner, the command-line utilities provide advanced features.

Testing with virtual machines
Virtual machine technologies enable you to create separate test Fedora systems on any computer alongside the main operating system. Fedora includes the virtualization software which allows for testing the described methods and services without modifying your main operating system.

The user can join several commands together when administrative tasks are performed using command-line utilities, allowing for rapid execution of complex administrative tasks and repetitive commands. The sequence of commands can further be scripted for later reuse, thus automating a routine process. Refer to Scheduling Tasks for more information. The technique of writing scripts is beyond the scope of this document. Refer to Additional Resources for links to relevant documentation.

A user could interact with the system either locally or remotely. To understand some concepts about terminals and shell refer here

Remote System Access
The SSH service, installed by default on a Fedora system, allows the execution of commands remotely via command line or graphical mode. The user can also transfer files securely between systems using this service.

Additional Resources

Other Fedora Documentation

• Fedora Documentation Website

Using the Command-Line Shell

• Bash Guide for Beginners

• Advanced Bash-Scripting Guide

OpenSSH

• OpenSSH Website

NOTE: Add SSH HOWTO link when this is live.

Using virtualization

• Fedora Virtualization Quick Start