1. CHAPTER 2

2. Overview 1. Pre-Installation Tasks 2. Installing and Configuring Linux 3. X Server 4. Post Installation Configuration and Tasks

3. Pre-Installation Tasks

4. The Boot Method  There is a configuration setting in the BIOS that will tell the system which medium to boot from.  Choices are a floppy disk, hard drive, CD-ROM, a network drive that has the files stored on a server, or a high capacity removable drive like a Jaz or Zip drive.  Another way to begin the installation process is by using the existing OS bootstrap method.

5. Installation Media  The easiest and quickest way to do an installation is with the installation CD. Currently every distribution of Linux comes on CD.  Linux may also be installed from a Network connection and is recommended if there is a fast network connection.  Linux can be installed from files that are located on a different partition, even if this partition has a different OS running in it.  This is known as installing from a hard disk.

6. Installing and Configuring Linux

7. Linux Hardware Requirements  Linux can be installed on all Pentium class processors.  A floppy disk or a CD-ROM and a hard drive with at least 900MB of free disk space will be required.  The minimum requirement for RAM is 16 MB, but 64 MB of RAM minimum is preferred.

8. Starting the Installation  The installation will start once the CD is inserted and the BIOS is configured to boot from the CD.  Select the settings for the system  Choose the type of installation, server, or workstation  Partition the hard drive  Configure network settings and the time zone  For a server installation the next step is to install the operating system. If the workstation installation is selected, the installer will be prompted to first configure the X- Windows Environment before the installation will begin.

9. Selecting the Appropriate Parameters for Installation  One of the first options to be displayed will be Installation Options, Graphical or Text Mode. language  Then the choice of what language is to be used. mouse and keyboard  A window will be displayed to choose the type of mouse and keyboard that is attached to the computer if is not auto detected. number of buttons the mouse  Features like the number of buttons the mouse has and if it has a wheel or not can be selected.

10. Installation Type  Here you will choose the installation type that is best for your needs.  Personal Desktop, Workstation, server or custom type.

11. Disk Partitioning Setup  On this screen, a user can choose to perform automatic partitioning, partition manually using Disk Druid, or to partition manually using the DOS utility fdisk.  For this installation, select the Automatic partitioning option and Red Hat will automatically partition the hard drive.

12. Automatic Partitioning  The following are the automatic partitioning options:  Remove all Linux partitions on this system. (Select this option for this lab)  Remove all partitions on this system  Keep all partitions and use existing free space

13. Disk Setup  Red Hat will create one partition for the Linux Kernel (/boot), one for the files and applications (/), and a swap file to store data that does not fit into RAM.

14. Boot Loader Configuration  Choose LILO or Grup as the boot loader.  Install Boot Loader record on /dev/had.  Boot label: Linux.

15. Network Configuration  A prompt to configure the network settings (IP address, subnet mask, host name, DNS server, and default gateway) appears.  If the system is connected to a DHCP server it will provide the information automatically.

16. Firewall Configuration  The High selection only allows the following connections: DNS replies DHCP  The Medium selection does not allow the following Ports lower than 1023, such as FTP, SSH, telnet, and HTTP are blocked.  The No firewall disables any security checking.  Choose Customize to add trusted devices or to allow additional incoming services

17. Other Configuration  Language Support Choose a language that will be used as the default on the Linux system (Choose English and Arabic)  Time Zone Selection Select the correct time zone by scrolling to, and highlighting, the correct city.  Account Configuration Enter the root password twice: -Root Password: 123456-Confirm: 123456  Authentication Configuration Choose the security level for passwords (Shadow Password & MD 5)

18. Configuring Appropriate Security Settings  The Root account in Linux is also known as the superuser or system administrator account.  This account is mandatory, during installation the user will be prompted to enter the password twice to protect against typing errors.  There are advantages and disadvantages in creating user accounts during the installation.  Understanding these will help any administrator determine which is best based on the security implementations that have been planned.

19. Selecting Packages to Install  There are many packages to choose from, depending on which distribution is being installed.  Keep in mind that here is the amount of disk space that is available to work with.  Installing all of these packages will consume disk space. (about 5 GB)

20. X Server

21.  The X Window System is a software system that provides a graphical user interface (GUI) for computers.graphical user interface  It provides the basic for GUI environments: drawing and moving windows on the screen and interacting with a mouse and/or keyboard.windows  Its named as X.  It contains the drivers for most video cards.

23.  Xfree86 is the free X server that comes with every major distribution that supports a GUI interface.  Most Linux distributions that are shipped after the year 2001 come with the 4.0.X version of Xfree86.  With the growing popularity of Linux, many of the manufactures have made drivers available that will be supported by Xfree86.  Check the manufacturer’s website for the appropriate drivers.

24.  As with most Linux configurations there are two ways to configure X server.  1st is to use the graphical configuration tools, then the operating system automatically writes these changes to the XF86Config text file.  The XF86Config file is a text file that can be manually edited. This requires using a text editor to open the file and manually make the changes.  Unless the user is experienced with using a text editor, this is not the recommended way.  This method is usually used for adjusting a working configuration to get better performance and not to initially configure the X server.

25.  There are three configuration tools that are used with XFree86 3.3.X:  Xf86config: - It operates entirely in text mode  Xconfigurator: - This tool can be used in either text mode or GUI mode  XF86Setup: - This tool can only be used in GUI mode

26.  Some of the main hardware devices that need to be configured with the X server are the keyboard, mouse, monitor, and video card.  If any one of these devices is not configured correctly the X server will not operate at optimal performance or may not work at all.

27. Post-Installation Configuration and Tasks

28. package managers  There are three types of package managers that a Linux administrator needs to know. RPMDebian Tarballs  The Red Hat Package Manager (RPM), Debian Packages, and Tarballs are used to install and remove applications and programs in Linux systems after the installation process has completed.

29.  RPM is the most popular type of package.  It provides the necessary tools such as package databases that are needed to install and remove programs, however, not all applications or programs use RPM.  The difference between Debian and RPM packages is that they are not interchangeable.  Debian contains a package database that has the same features as the RPM database, however, the Debian database is stored in the /var/lib/dpkg directory.  Tarballs are by far the most widely supported type of package available with Linux.  Every distribution can use tarballs to install or remove applications and programs.  However, tarballs is not as advanced as RPM or Debian packages.

30.  An operating system’s kernel provides functions such as memory management, low-level hardware drivers (excluding X video drivers and printer drivers), scheduling when specific processes get access to the CPU, allow programs to access the network, and controls access to the file system on a hard drive.  An administrator must make sure that the kernel version is up-to-date.  A typical Linux Kernel version might look something like Linux 2.4.3.  1st number is the kernel version number  2nd number is the major revision number: indicates if the version is a stable or experimental version  3rd number minor revision number: represents any small or minor fixes usually done to an already stable kernel version

31.  The Environmental Variables in a Linux system contain information such as the user’s home directory, disk space, hostname, the name of the current shell, or resources available on the system.  There are many different types of environmental variables that can be set for a Linux system.  To see a list, type the env command at the prompt.

32.  The final stage of the installation process consists of testing and verifying that the programs, applications, and operating system in functioning properly.  Install the operating system first in a test network.  Then install all the programs and applications onto the system and verify that everything will work properly.  Testing and evaluating the new software on a test system helps reduce problems.  To set up a proper test environment, recreate as close as possible the existing system or systems.