Fedora Core and Redhat Linux CD Installation

Fedora Core and Redhat
Linux CD Installation,
Version Upgrade,
Configuration and Basic
Administration
This tutorial covers the installation and/or upgrades,
configuration and basic administration of Red Hat
Enterprise Linux, Fedora Core 1-6, Redhat 5.0-9.0,
Enterprise 3,4 CD-ROM distribution.
Contents:
• # Configuration Options
• # Hardware considerations
• # Documentation on the installation CD
• # MS/Windows Backup and Recovery Plan - (if something fails in dual
boot installation)
• # Installation
• # Lilo, Grub and boot loaders
• # Completing Install
• # Creating a Linux intall boot floppy for Linux Installation
• # Post Installation Configuration
• # NVidia Graphics driver installation
• # System services
• # Features and Changes
• # Pitfalls and Fixes
• # System Re-Configuration
• # Basic System Administration
• # Links
• # Books and references
Configuration options:
You have two choices, a single Operating System (OS) or a multi-boot system.
Many desktop users like to run Linux in addition to Windows on an existing PC. An
additional hard drive may be used for Linux or an existing drive may be sectioned
into two or more partitions. Linux may also reside as the only operating system on
the computer as is preferred by those creating a server. Using a separate drive for
Linux is the easiest and the preferred multi-boot configuration because it allows the
original Windows drive to remain intact.
Note: Re-partitioning a drive will destroy all data on the drive unless a tool such as
partition magic or fips is used. The Red Hat CD-ROM includes the repartitioning tool
"fips" in the dosutils directory. See /dosutils/fipsdocs. This tool is unsupported.
Partition Magic would be a wiser choice for those pursuing this approach. For dual
boot installations, MS/Windows can be re-installed allowing the Microsoft installer to
repartition the drive.
For those creating a dual boot system with Microsoft Windows and versions of
Fedora Core or Red Hat Linux (8/9) with the GRUB boot loader, install Windows first
and then let the Linux installation handle the dual boot configuration. It's that easy.
Details: When creating a dual boot system with Windows NT or Windows 2000, the
NT loader resides on the Master Boot Record (MBR). Upon boot-up, the NT loader is
activated and then it loads lilo or Grub to boot Linux. (Lilo is the older Linux boot
loader. Red Hat 7.2 introduced Grub as the default boot loader.) In this instance, lilo
(or Grub) does not reside on the Master Boot Record (MBR) as it would for a
Windows 95 or Linux only installation. Instead lilo (or Grub) will install on the first
sector of the root partition. See: LDP: NT Loader HOWTO (Or boot with a floppy
which has Lilo or GRUB on the MBR of the floppy. See the: YoLinux Boot Disk
Creation Tutorial)
Upgrades: I have been upgrading versions of Red Hat since 5.2. Each release can
upgrade to the next. Fedora Core is the upgrade path to Red Hat 9.0.
Hardware considerations:
The latest releases of the Linux kernel will have the best chance at supporting newer
hardware. Older versions may require downloading drivers separately and
introducing them during install. Thus the latest release of Fedore Core will have the
best chance of supporting the latest graphics cards and SATA chipsets. Other Linux
OSs which tend to include the latest kernels and thus the latest hardware support,
are SuSE and Ubuntu Linux.
Most PC motherboard support two IDE connectors, a primary and a secondary. Each
IDE connector has a ribbon cable which can support two devices. A typical PC with
one hard drive and one CD-ROM can thus support two more devices. A jumper on
the device will set the device to be either the master or slave device on that IDE
connection. (You can't have both devices configured as master or slave on one IDE
ribbon cable, you may have a maximum of one of each.)
Also check the hardware compatability list before you begin.
A tool to detect the hardware you are using is available as a DOS disk from the
Ulitimate Boot Disk site.
AMD x86_64: The wonderfull thing about this hardware and a release of Linux
compiled for this harware is that it runs all your old i386 32 bit applications. In order
to run third party browser plugins for which there is no source (Macromedia Flash,
Real Player, ...) do NOT install the x86_64 version of the browser but instead,
manually install the i386 32 bit version after the OS installation. I run Fedora Core 3
x86_64 on an AMD Athelon 64 but installed and run the i386 Fedora Core 3 RPM for
the firefox browser. This allows all of the 32 bit plugins to integrate with the browser
and operate successfully. One can also run programs compiled for i686
(/lib/i686/). How's that for compatability!! The Fedora Core 3 Linux release has
/usr/lib64/ as well as /usr/lib/. You will also find /usr/X11R6/lib64/ and
/usr/X11R6/lib/ as well as compatability libraries for i386 (i.e. /usr/lib/gcc-
lib/i386-redhat-linux/...). The compilers gcc/g++ will compile a 64-bit
executable. Given the option "-m32", the compiler will generate 32-bit executables.
It's the ultimate developers platform as well!! I even have no problem running some
old Red Hat Powertools 7.1 RPMs. Due to the native and highly integrated x86 32 bit
processing with new 64 bit extentions, there is no 32 emulation or noticable loss of
speed when running 32 bit apps. The advantage of compiled 64 bit applications
running on this chip is the 64 bit addressibility (64 bits can address more memory
and larger file systems) and handling of larger data chunks with a single operation.
This information should also be true for the Intel EM64T architecture.
Documentation on the Installation CD:
Online manuals can be read from the Linux CD-ROM by any operating system. From
Windows you can look at your Linux CD and open the files with a web browser.
Fedora Core 1-6:
Release notes are on the first CD. For documentation see
http://fedora.redhat.com/docs/.
RH 8.0, 9.0:
Documentation is contained on a CD separate from the 3 installation CD's.
RH 7.2:
Red Hat 7.2 has an identical layout to 7.1. Documentation is held on a dedicated CD
with the same paths and files (If you substitute 7.2 for 7.1).
RH 7.1:
CDR!"#R$-DC%#rhl-cg-en-&.1#index.ht'l - Red Hat
Configuration Guide: Dual Boot, Kickstatrt Install, Rescue Mode, RAID,
Network, !", ##H, #a$%a, A&ac'e, BIND, "rinters, (inu)conf, %uilding a
Kernel, R"M, "G"
CDR!"#R$-DC%#rhl-gsg-en-&.1#index.ht'l - Getting #tarted
Guide: Gno$e, KD*, +e%, e-$ail, Audio, ,ideo, Gi$&, s', general intro
CDR!"#R$-DC%#rhl-ig-x86-en-&.1#index.ht'l - Red Hat (inu) )-.
Installation Guide
CDR!"#R$-DC%#rhl-rg-en-&.1#index.ht'l - Red Hat Reference
Guide: ile s/ste$s, users, grou&s, %oot, init, s'utdown, (DA", CC,#
0Credit Card ,erification #/ste$1, #end$ail, #ecurit/, "AM, Ker%eros,
!ri&wire, ##H, A&ac'e, "owertools
CDR!"#()*%#... - re2uentl/ Asked 3uestions
CDR!"#$+,%#-.D/X.ht'l - How !o docu$entation fro$ t'e
4(inu) Docu$entation "ro5ect4
The Red Hat 7.1 release put all documents on a separate CD labeled
"Documentation CD".
RH 6.2:
CDR!"#doc#gsg#index.ht' - Redhat 0etting %tarted 0uide
CDR!"#doc#install-guide#index.ht' - R$ -nstallation 0uide
CDR!"#doc#ref-guide#index.ht' - R$ Reference 0uide
Note: RH 6.2 did NOT include the HOWTO section. See: http://en.tldp.org/HOWTO/
All releases contain documentation on DEC/Alpha installations in:
CDR!"#doc#alpha#
RH 6.1:
CDR!"#doc#rhinst#index.ht' - -nstall 0uide
CDR!"#doc#rhgsg#index.ht' - 0etting %tarted 0uide
CDR!"#doc#rhref#index.ht' - Reference 0uide
RH 6.0: introduced the ``Getting Started Guide'' in:
CDR!"#doc#rhgsg#index.ht'
RH 5.2/6.0:
CDR!"#doc#rh'anual#'anual#index.ht' - R/D$), 'anual.
CDR!"#doc#$+,#... - R$ 1.2/6.3/6.1
CDR!"#()*#$,!4#-ndex.ht' - R$ 1.2/6.3/6.1
MS/Windows Backup and Recovery Plan: (if something fails in dual
boot installation):
For those who will be creating a dual boot computer and wish to maintain a windows
partition or drive:
1. Backup important partitions.
2. Create a DOS boot floppy to restore a ``Master Boot Record'' if it gets
corrupted.
3. Create DOS/Windows recovery disks for DOS/Windows partitions. (For dual
boot configurations)
It would be wise to make a backup of anything important that may reside on disks or
partitions you don't intend on disturbing. The Linux installation has the option of
installing one of the operating system loaders Lilo or GRUB. GRUB was introduced
as the default Linux boot loader in Red Hat 7.2. The boot loader allows one to boot
one or more operating systems and is usually installed on the master boot record of
the hard drive (boot drive). In the case of Windows NT (or variants), the Microsoft
boot loader is used to launch the Linux boot loader which will then boots Linux. As a
precaution, it would be wise to have a rescue plan for the Master Boot Record.
DOS recovery disk: From DOS create a floppy:
C"#5(R!), /6 )"/%
C"#5C78 C"#D%#(D-%9./X/ )"#
C"#5C78 C"#D%#(R!),.C! )"#
C"#5C78 C"#D%#!%D./X/ )"#
This creates a boot floppy with some rescue tools. To restore a Master Boot Record,
boot the PC from the floppy and enter the following shell command:
• DOS/Win9X:
• )"#5(D-%9 /!:R C"
• Win 2000/NT: (boot from CD and enter "Recovery Console")
• fix'br
• Win XP: (boot from CD and enter "Recovery Console")
• bootcfg /rebuild
Explanation of MBR: The Master Boot Record is on a sector of your hard drive
which cannot be seen from your file system. It is separate. Upon booting, the system
reads the MBR first. This points the computer to the portion of the disk where the
operating system resides and the OS is loaded from there. When running a dual boot
system, LILO (or Grub) in the MBR can point to more than one operating system
from which to boot.
Windows 95 recovery diskette: To create a windows ``start-up'' disk, select ``Start''
+ ``Settings'' + ``Control Panel'' + ``Add/Remove Programs'' then select the ``Startup
Disk'' tab. This may require your Windows 95 CD-ROM.
Red Hat re-install on an existing system: Save configuration info
• Configuration files are held in the directory /etc/. Save a backup or hard copy
of the "conf" files you need to re-configure your system. The command ls
-lrt will list files in a reverse time ordered fashion. The newer files are listed
last and are the ones most likely changed.
• Backup or print file /etc/s;sconfig/rhn/s;ste'id to preserve the
configuration information for up2date. See pitfall
Installation:
I highly recommend that you choose "Custom Installation" mode and not Server or
Workstation . Server and Workstation installation modes add pre-configured
disk partitions which may wipe out stuff on drives you did not intend to
disturb. A server-class installation does NOT install a GUI interface nor does it
install X-windows. To install everything choose the "Custom" installation option. You
can always turn off or ignore services and software you don't need.
[Potential Pitfall]: (RH 7.1) A server-class installation WILL erase all partitions
both Linux and Non-Linux from every one of your computer's hard drives. This
method will also put Lilo (or Grub) on the MBR. (Not good for Windows NT dual boot)
The "Automatic Partitioning" option (RH 7.1 and greater) is used by workstation,
server and laptop class preconfigured installtions and has the consequences of
overwriting the MBR and re-partitioning all your drives. The "Manual" partition option
is much more flexible.
Two manual partition tools are available:
1. "Disk Druid" - I use this one
2. fdisk
The auto option creates two partitions (/boot and /) and represents the most simple
of installations. It is ideal for single user systems. A server or shared system may
want to separate the users from the operating system by placing /ho'e on a separate
partition as well as /<ar and /opt. (More on this later)
Upgrades will be logged to the file /t'p/upgrade.log.
Linux installation is fairly intuitive except managing the disk partitions. The Linux CD-
ROM is a boot disk, thus stick it in and re-boot your computer and the install menu
will appear. If this does not work check your BIOS to see if your CD-ROM is in the
list of boot devices. In my BIOS configuration I had to change the boot device default
from )=C=%C%- to CDR!=C=). After the installation was complete I changed it back. If
you cannot boot from the CD-ROM, see instructions in section titled ``Creating a
Linux boot floppy for Linux Installation'' in this guide. Most hardware is auto-detected
during installation. The user is queried for the rest.
[Potential Pitfall]: (RH 7.2) RAID disk configuration requires text mode installation.
Graphical GUI does NOT support RAID.
[Potential Pitfall]: (RH 6.1 and later) If the installation program presents itself as a
text based console (DOS like) interface instead of a graphical based interface,
chances are that the install program could not detect your graphics card and does
not have the drivers for it.
Disk Druid: This is the disk partition manager. IDE drives are referred to as hda for
the first drive, hdb for the second etc ... IDE uses separate ribbon cables for primary
and secondary drives. The partitions on each drive are referred numerically. The first
partition on the first drive is referred to as hda1, the second as hda2, the third as
hda3 etc ... SCSI drives would be identified as sda, sdb ...
Linux IDE naming conventions:
Device Description Configuration
/dev/hda 1st (Primary) IDE controller Master
/dev/hdb 1st (Primary) IDE controller Slave
/dev/hdc 2nd (Secondary) IDE controller Master
/dev/hdd 2nd (Secondary) IDE controller Slave
If the CD-ROM was NOT recognized, restart from the Linux boot floppy and enter at
the ``boot:'' prompt, linux hd6>cdro', where X is a,b,c or d as described above.
Partitions: You will add at least three partitions. The first will be unnamed as a Linux
swap partition of a given size i.e. 127Mb. (I'm generous and use at least twice the
value of RAM memory on my system.) Add another as /boot of type ext2 Linux
native and the third as /, Linux native ext3 (Red Hat native journaled file system) or
LVM (logical volume manager: allows growing a file system by adding extra drives.
Introduced in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 and Fedora Core) and [*] growable. The
"growable" option takes whatever size is given as a minimum and actually allows the
partition to take up the rest of the drive without actually specifying how much space
is left. Use the space bar to toggle your choices between un-selected [ ] and selected
[*]. (For RH 6.1 pick the select button.)
Mount Point Size Growable Type
/boot
23Mb (RH9)
75Mb (RHEL4)
? @
Linux native (ext2)
(no need to journal /boot)
AAAAAAAAA
512 (for 256 Mb RAM)
(Use RAM memory * 2)
? @
Linux swap
/
100
?B@
Linux native (ext3 or LVM)
The size of "/" set to 500 min. is arbitrary as the installer will use whatever is
available because "Growable" is selected.
RHEL 4 defaults: boot-75Mb
RH 5.2/6.0 defaults: boot-16Mb, swap-127Mb
Descriptions:
• Swap - used for virtual memory (Use the larger value: 2 x physical memory or
127Mb. Red Hat 7.1 directions recomends at least 254Mb.
• /boot - Bootable operating system kernel is placed here. No need for a
journaled file system thus you can use ext2. (ext3 will also work)
• / - All the rest of the UNIX files are placed under this directory
o /ho'e - User directories. Server configurations often make this a separate partition
so that user's disk resources are limited. Another way to limit user disk resources is to
use the quota feature. See YoLinux quota tutorial
o /opt - Optional software added to the system. (Software which didn't come with the
OS. Some user /usr/local.)
o /<ar - Files with variable or changing state and size (log files, print spool files, etc.)
Server configurations often make this a separate partition so that bloated log files,
spooled print jobs, etc are limited to the amount of space they can consume.
o /t'p - Temporary space used by the system and user services.
o /sbin - System admin commands
o /bin - Binaries (commands/executables) which everyone uses.
o /etc - Configuration files.
o /usr - User binaries (commands), documentation, ...
o /... - The rest: /dev - devices, /lib - libraries, /mnt - device mount point, /lost+found -
repository of corrupt but repaired files, ...
See Compaq ProLiant Server recomendations.
Server installations: It is common practice to create more partitions to isolate user,
system and temporary file directories. In this way, a user would not be able to fill up
a drive and lock-up the computer, nor would the installation of large software
packages or the generation of temporary files or log files. Create separate partitions
for /ho'e (user space), /opt (optional, non-standard software packages) or
/usr/local, /t'p, /<ar etc... Making /ho'e and /opt a separate partition from / also
helps Linux upgrades which can be set to write over and upgrade all partitions
except /ho'e and /opt. Separating partitions and placing them on separate disk
drives can also increase performance by reducing the load on a single drive.
My Workstation: If the installation is for your very own workstation which no one
else is using, you can get away with three partitions, "/boot", "/" and swap. It gives
ultimate disk flexibility (all disk space is available for whatever you want) but no
protection from your own stupidity is enforced.
Other partitioning tools: fdisk is another disk partitioning tool.DOS, Linux and
other version of fdisk exist. I recommend Red Hat s Disk Druid .
Note: The placement of /boot is limited by the Disk Druid tool to account for BIOS
limitations. Although unlikely, you may not have these BIOS limitations, in which
case, use fdisk to partition the drive and no limitations will be imposed.
Note: The /opt directory is often used to create a separate directory structure for
commercial and "optional" software which is not part of the base install. This way it is
a separate self-contained environment which is easy to backup and restore
separately from the rest of the system. The directory structure will often mimic the /
directory with /opt/bin, /opt/etc, /opt/lib etc...
Specialized device drivers: If your hardware is on the bleading edge and does not
have support built in with the Red Hat installation CD, then you must provide the
device driver during installation. Typically the Red Hat installation software will
recognize that it does not have a driver for the hardware detected. For example: Red
Hat 8.0 and the Adaptec U320 SCSI driver:
• Download the host bus adapter floppy image.
• Unzip the file: gCip -d aicXX..-i686-rh8.0.i'g.gC
• Copy floppy image to floppy: dd if>aicXX..-i686-rh8.0.i'g of>/de</fd3
bs>1443D
The Red Hat installation program will request the missing driver. Load the floppy
when asked: "No drivers found - would you like to select drivers now?". Select "yes".
Press "F2" to provide the SCSI driver on a floppy and continue with the installation.
Other Installation Methods: This tutorial covers installation from a CR-ROM. It
should be pointed out that Linux may also be installed from an NFS server, by FTP,
SMB (a windows shared drive) and from a local hard drive.
[Potential Pitfall]: If using IDE, note that most BIOS's requires /boot be installed on
a drive attached to the Primary controller. If using two IDE hard drives it might be
best to place them on the primary controller and place the CD-ROM on the
Secondary .
[Potential Pitfall]: When using SCSI devices, the /boot partition must reside on
SCSI ID 0 or 1.
[Potential Pitfall RH7.0 and earlier]: NOTE: The /boot partition must be completely
placed within the first 1024 cylinders of the disk. This drive geometry information is
presented by Disk Druid under the heading Geom. The symbols [C / H / S] represent
[Cylinders / Heads / Sectors] of the drive. (This is one reason why it may be easiest
to install Linux on a separate drive and place the /boot partition at the beginning of
the drive.) RH 7.1 introduced a newer version of LILO with LBA32 support which
corrects this limitation. Red Hat 7.2 has even fewer restrictions. In fact RH 7.2
introduces new features which allow flexibility in choosing location and placement of
file systems, boot loaders and kernel on your drive.
[Potential Pitfall]: I had one installation where I selected the "Check for bad blocks"
while formatting and it caused the install to lock up. On this particular system I had to
skip this check.
[Potential Pitfall]: If the hard drive was 100% entirely formatted for windows, there
will be no space for Linux partitions. During the install you must select the windows
partition and delete it before adding new partitions and assigning percentages.
Lets Do The Install: Partitions and mount points which are already allocated, are
listed at the top of the screen. Use the "Tab" key to get to "Add" if you want to create
a new partition for Linux. Use the "Tab" key to get to "Delete" , if you are going to put
Linux on a partition previously used for DOS and then "Add" it as a new Linux
partition.
Tab to the hard drive selection box which will have all drives selected.
?B@ hda
?B@ hdb
Tab to the drive you don't want to use and press the space bar to un-select.
? @ hda
?B@ hdb
Now add the partitions for /boot, /root (optional), "/" and swap (and any others you
wish to add) as described above.
Lilo Text Boot Options:
• boot" text - No GUI. Console text mode only.
• boot" linux text console>tt;%3 - For use with a serial terminal
• boot" linux isa - To explicitly request ISA configuration dialog
• boot" linux 'ediachecD - Check ISO CD integrity
Red Hat 7.2 upgrade/install: EXT3 The 7.2 upgrade allows one to upgrade the
Linux EXT2 file system to EXT3. EXT3 is a journaled file system which is crash
resistant, insuring the integrity of the data even if the system crashes during a
system write because it journals the transaction before it undertakes a disk write. I
recommend the EXT3 upgrade. The RH 7.2 EXT3 upgrade will also dissable periodic
file system checks as it assumes that file system integrity is maintained. (See
autofsck) Use tune2fs (-c or -i) to re-enable check. EXT3 is the default file system for
a fresh Red Hat 7.2 installation. EXT3 may be installed in one of three modes:
• ordered: Default. Crash will result in a valid non-corrupted file system.
• journal: slow
• writeback: Fast but NOT crashproof.
The option is also specified in the file /etc/fstab with the string Edata>orderedE.
Also note that Red Hat 7.2 does NOT include a "Powertools" CD. Most of the
"Powertools" packages have been included as part of the base installation.
Lilo, Grub and boot loaders:
Lilo is the Linux bootstrap loader used by the Red Hat distribution up to and including
version 7.1. Red Hat version 7.2 defaults to the use of Grub as the default boot
loader. Grub supports a password that controls access to a Grub shell.
Lilo and Grub are the Linux bootstrap loaders that actually loads and starts the
kernel. Only one bootloader, Lilo or GRUB, is used. The Linux install will ask if you
want to place lilo (or Grub) on the master boot record (MBR). The answer of course
is YES (Unless you are installing Windows NT/2000. See special install section for
dual booting with these operating systems). If you do not install Lilo (or Grub) on the
MBR, you can boot linux from a boot floppy which can be generated during the
install.
Other bootstrap loaders are available. A DOS program called loadlin can boot Linux
from DOS. Loadlin can be found on the Red Hat CD under CDROM:\dosutils\. Both
loadlin.exe and the Linux kernel must be loaded on a DOS partition. A commercially
available software product "System Commander" from V Communications requires
and partially installs in a DOS partition. See: VCOM: System commander product
information
SCSI and lilo: The choice of selecting "Use Linear Mode" during lilo install is a little
complicated. PCs running Microsoft operating systems use a SCSI BIOS based LBA
mode to access drives of more than 1,024 MB. This is the default selection for most
PCs. Check your SCSI BIOS if you are un-sure.
RH 5.2: Use the Linux default lilo setting of [*] "Use Linear Mode" .
RH 6.0: The default was changed to [ ] where Linear mode is un-selected. This is
incompatible with most Microsoft OS's. If you are dual booting with Windows, you will
probably want to set to [*] "Use Linear Mode" .
RH 6.2/7.1: The default "Use Linear Mode" is pre-selected. This is compatible with
LBA mode. (It imples LBA mode).
[Potential Pitfall]: If the system boots to a prompt "LI" and a blinking cursor and is
stuck, you chose the wrong option for your SCSI configuration.
Systems using Unixware or older PCs with smaller drives may NOT be using LBA
and thus Use Linear Mode must be unselected. If this selection is incorrect, your
machine will not boot and the Master Boot Record will have to be restored and lilo
will have to be re-installed.
Adaptec SCSI card users: Press ctrl-A on boot up to enter the SCSI card BIOS set-
up. This is where you chose LBA mode or not. ( > 1 Gb addressing)
[Potential Pitfall]: Adding an extra drive on which to install Linux: If the drive is a
pre-formatted drive for Microsoft Windows, and if you boot Windows after installing
the drive you may experience the following problem. Windows will recognize and
assign a letter to the new drive and may re-assign the letters assigned to your CD-
ROM and previous drives. If installing a new pre-formatted drive, DO NOT boot to
Windows. It would be best to boot from the Linux CD-ROM. The Linux install will
allow you to assign the new drive as a Linux drive. Thus when booted to Windows
(after the Linux install), the system will not recognize the new Linux drive and
therefore will not reassign your drive letters.
Pitfall Fix: If you do reboot to Windows and Windows re-assigns your drive letters for
your CD-ROM, restore the settings by:
• "Start" + "Settings" + "Control Panel"
• Select "System"
• Select the tab "Device Manager" and select the CD-ROM
• Set the drive letter to the letter of your choice.
Kernel Boot Options: (see /etc/grub.conf or /etc/lilo.conf)
• nosysinfo :Disable NPL thread support. Used for RH 9.0 to fix incompatability
of Java version earlier than 1.4.1.
• root=LABEL=/ :Location of root of filesystem.
GRUB: GRUB allows one to boot one of many operating systems installed on the
hard drives. GRUB can hide partitions from operating systems which is important
when cohabitating with a Microsoft operating system. You can use a partition to
install an operating system and hide the other partitions from it. (GNU: GRUB home
page)
Grub was introduced with Red Hat 7.2 as the default boot loader. It's configuration
file is /boot/grub/grub.conf. While lilo requires reconfiguration with new information
loaded on the MBR for each new kernel, grub does not. Grub requires that the new
kernel information be entered in the configuration file /boot/grub/grub.conf.
A Red Hat7.2 installation using lilo may be switched to grub using the command
/sbin/grub-install. (i.e. /sbin/grub-install /de</hda Specify the drive on which
the boot loader will be installed on it's MBR.)
GRUB Menu:
1. Select kernel
2. Press 'e' to edit entry
3. Use arrow keys to navigate to kernel line. i.e. Dernel /<'linuC-2.4.&-1 ro
root>/de</hda2
4. Add argument 'single' to the end of the line. Then press return.
5. Press 'b' to boot.
The Red Hat 7.3 Installation/Upgrade offers three choices:
1. Update current: Update boot loader currently on the system.
2. Skip update
3. New boot loader configuration: Choose this if you wish to update from Lilo to
Grub.
Completing Install:
[Potential Pitfall RH7.2 Upgrade]: After Grub/Lilo options have been entered the
installation software examines your system for packages to upgrade. Be Patient. It
may appear that the system locked up but it is just working on the upgrade. It takes a
while.
Linux System Kernel Note: The default Linux kernel installed supports a multitude
of devices using loadable modules. In order to keep the kernel small, maximize
device support and minimize memory usage, the appropriate module is loaded at run
time. The kernel may be optimized for performance by compiling in support for the
specific devices needed. Video drivers are not controlled by the kernel but by the X-
window application program.
Kernel boot options are set in the config file /etc/grub.conf
i.e.: Dernel /boot/<'linuC-2.6.13-1.&&3A(C3 ro root>4):/4>/ rhgb Fuiet
• Remove "Fuiet" if you would like to see the kernel boot information.
• Add "<ga>&88" to set a larger text console at boot.
• Disable SeLinux mode, add: "selinux>3" or (prefered) set in
/etc/selinux/config:
o Security policy is enforced: %/4-.6X>enforcing
o Security policy is disabled: %/4-.6X>disabled
o Print warnings instead of enforcing: %/4-.6X>per'issi<e
• Graphical Boot Loader: "rhgb"
• Remove "hidden'enu" to see Grub boot menu.
Note: Install output is written to five of the virtual consoles. Note these key bindings
are for the installation only.
Console # Key Output
1 Alt-F1 Installation Dialog
2 Alt-F2 Shell Prompt
3 Alt-F3 Install Log
4 Alt-F4
System Log
(from OS kernel)
5 Alt-F5 Other Messages
7 Alt-F7 X Graphical Display (new to RH 9.0)
After installation the X-window system will use ctrl-Alt-F1 as the system console
terminal, ctrl-Alt-F2 to F6 for virtual consoles and ctrl-Alt-F7 for the X-window display.
ctrl-Alt-Backspace will kill the X-Window session.
Screen shots of the installer can be made using "Shift" + "Print Screen". Screen
shots will be saved to /root/anaconda-screenshots.
Mouse: If your connector at the end of your mouse is round, you have a PS/2 bus
mouse. Many UNIX programs require three mouse keys. If yours has only two,
choose the three button emulation. In emulation mode, pressing both mouse buttons
at the same time is the same as pressing the middle button on a three button mouse.
The typical X-Window interface uses button 1 to select (i.e. text), button 2 to paste
and button 3 to pull up optional menus.
Printers: Note that DOS calls your printer port "lpt1". Linux refers to your first printer
as /dev/lp0. The numbering of all Linux devices starts with 0. (0, 1, 2, 3...) The printer
will aslo be assigned a given name. A printer of the name "lp" will be considered the
default printer. Another printer definition may be duplicated under this name to make
it the default. (Create a default printer of this name "lp" and life gets easier because
many applications such as Adobe Acrobat reader rely on this default.)
Upgrade Note: Some really old versions of Linux began printer numbering at lpt1. If
upgraded, this would have to be changed to reflect a newer version of Linux.
Unix Time: Most web servers use UTC (Universal Coordinated Time) and an
environment variable representing one's time zone as an offset and whether Daylight
Savings Time is observed. This is used to calculate the displayed time. UTC is the
method used by standard UNIX to measure time internally. It is the total number of
seconds from January 1, 1970.
Authentication: The basic standard authentication configuration uses the
installation defaults:
• "Enable MD5 passwords"
• "Enable Shadow passwords"
The other options are NIS, LDAP and Kerberos. All three rely on the configuration of
an authentication server for this purpose. The MD5/Shadow configuration is a stand
alone password authentication system residing on the Linux systems and is only
effective for that system.
• NIS is the SUN "yellow pages" authentication server configuration which is
most comonly used with the NFS file sharing infrastructure.
• LDAP uses an authentication server which holds a database of logins and
passwords.
• Kerberos is MIT's high security network based authentication scheme.
Sample Network Configuration:
• IP address: 1G2.168.133.131
• netmask: 211.211.211.3
• Network address (lowest): 1G2.168.133.3
• Broadcast address (highest): 1G2.168.133.211
The networking addresses beginning with "192.168." are reserved for private local
networks.
Creating a boot floppy for Linux Installation:
This is only necessary if you can not boot from the CD-ROM.
Creating Linux install diskette from a Microsoft OS: Use rawrite to load the file
boot.img to the diskette from the CD-ROM (D:\ in this example):
C"#5 D"
D"#5 CD #D%6,-4%
D"#D%6,-4%5 R)+R-,/ D"#-!)0/%#:,.-!0 )"

RAWRITE does not work with NT/2000. Use winimage.
Creating Linux install diskette on Unix/Linux:
'ount -t isoG663 -o ro /de</cdro' /'nt/cdro'
cd /cdro'/i'ages
dd if>boot.i'g of>/de</fd3 bs>1443D
The -o ro option mounts the CR-ROM as Read Only.
Post Installation Configuration:
Post Install: (perform these functions as root user)
Login:
• Upon boot (if text mode) the loader (LILO) will show the prompt "boot:". Press
Return to take the default or type ? or tab to see all possible selections then
type the selection. i.e. type linux to boot Linux or dos (default name given for
the Microsoft partition), or win95" if that is the name you gave for
MS/Windows 95 upon Linux partitioning and install. The defaults and
configuration of lilo may be altered. See the section on lilo and
/etc/lilo.conf.
• At the Login: prompt, enter the user id root and give the password you chose
during install. This will log you into the system in command console mode. (If
set to text mode init level 3)
X-Windows:
• startx : This command start the graphical user interface X- windows system.
• If X windows fails:
o RH8.0: Use the X windows configuration tool /usr/bin/redhat-config-
xfree86. This will edit the configuration file /etc/X11/X(86Config
o RH7.3-: If this fails one can reconfigure X windows with the command
Xconfigurator. (or you can also use XF86setup or xf86config which
performs a similar function) This produces the same graphics setup
interface as the installation. Xconfigurator generates the file
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/X(86Config (This is linked to /etc/X11) (See
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/doc/R/)D!/.Config)
• The /etc/X11/X(86Config file holds X-windows configuration information
about the graphics card, monitor, mouse and keyboard.
• For my 17 inch monitor (1280x1024 resolution) I configured X-Windows for a
resolution of 1024x768 for better readability.
• If you find that the text and other details on the screen are too small, use
Xconfigurator to set up a configuration file using a lower resolution. You can
save multiple configuration files and rename them to /etc/X11/X(86Config
when needed.
• To exit out of X-windows and the GNOME interface gracefully, select the
GNOME Start icon (left side of tool bar) and select log out . Changes to the
XF86Config configuration file will not be implemented by X-windows until it is
halted and restarted. This can be done by rebooting the system (shutdoHn -h
noH) or logout and go to a console terminal (ctrl-alt-F5) and login as root. The
command "init 3" (Red Hat systems) will bring the system out of X-Window
mode. The command "init 1" will bring it back. See the YoLinux tutorial on
the Linux init process for more info.
• The key sequence <ctrl>-<alt>-<F2> will allow you jump out of a mis-
configured X-windows session and go to a console. If the X-window session is
inoperable you can kill the process from this new console. The command ps
-a will reveal the startx process id (PID). Then Dill Iprocess id nu'ber5.
Your initial console upon boot is ctrl-Alt-F1. Use ctrl-Alt-F7 to return to the X-
window session. The simplest and recommended method to kill the X-Window
session is to use the key sequence ctrl-Alt-Backspace.
Leaving the system: (UNIX text console commands)
• exit : This is the command to logoff. This allows one to re-login as new user
• /sbin/shutdown -h now : shutdown the system. (Must beroot) Wait for the
message:
o RH 5.2: System halted .
o RH 6.0+, FC: Power Down .
o Do NOT turn the power off without doing this first.
Red Hat 9.0: Support dropped for wu-ftpd (use vsftpd instead), Window Maker and
sndconfig.
Red Hat 8.0: Nautilus application and system configuration tool is invoked with the
"Start here" icon. RH 8.0 introduces a new default printer manager: cups. See config
files /etc/cups/.... Man pages exist for most of these config files. (i.e. 'an
printers.conf) The older lpd can still be optionally installed.
Red Hat 7.2 upgrade: After X login, a dialog box asks the user if they wish to
upgrade their file manager to Nautilis. (your choice) Nautilis is a very MS/XP like
interface which provides a combined file and system manager GUI tool with a web
like interface. Nautilis is invoked with the "Start here" icon.
Installing NVidia Graphics card drivers:
The commercially supported proprietary graphics drivers for NVidia graphics cards
are not included with the Red Hat distribution. Only a basic driver is available. (Good
enough for the 2-D world) The NVidia drivers are libraries and loadable modules
which are tightly integrated with the kernel for ultimate OpenGL, 3D and DRI
integration and performance. To install the NVidia graphics drivers, boot the kernel
which you wish to use with the NVidia drivers. The NVidia driver installer will use the
running kernel as it's target. The NVidia installer is a console (non X-Window
graphics) shell script program which will detect which kernel you are running and
download the appropriate drivers. If you are running a known kernel (i.e. a prebuilt
Red Hat kernel) it will install a prebuilt driver. If you are running a custom kernel you
MUST have the appropriate kernel source available as it will attempt to rebuild the
kernel from source with the appropriate NVidia kernel modifications and support.
Installation:
1. Download the NVidia installer script from:
o http://www.nvidia.com/content/drivers/drivers.asp
or
o http://www.nvidia.com/object/linux.html.
2. Enter console mode without running W-Windows: ctrl J alt J (1
3. As root bring the system to init level 3 by:
o Boot with /etc/inittab entry:
o id"3"initdefault"

OR
o Issue the command: init 3
4. Run the NVidia installer in console mode: sh .K-D-)-4inux-x86-1.3-44G6-
pDg2.run
5. Bring system to init level 5:
o Reboot with /etc/inittab entry:
o id"1"initdefault"

OR
o Issue the command: init 1
6. Edit file /etc/X11/X(86Config to tweak options. (Sample for NVidia Quadro
Pro Dual Monitor)
Using YUM to install nVidia drivers for kernel currently running:
• ;u' install n<idia-glx Dernel-'odule-n<idia-LMuna'e -rNL
• ;u' install Dernel-'odule-n<idia-LMrp' -F --Fuer;for'at>OPQ<ersionR-P
QreleaseR#nO Dernel S tail -n 1NL
[Potential Pitfall]: File /etc/X11/xorg.conf
If not updated, change in the "Device" section, from:
Dri<er On<O
to:
Dri<er On<idiaO
[Potential Pitfall]: If switching init levels does not work, then changes may be
required to udev in which case you need to reboot the system so that the device path
is generated: /etc/ude</de<ices/n<idiaB
Module loading may be forced by adding the following entry to the end of
/etc/rc.local, /sbin/'odprobe n<idia
[Potential Pitfall]: NVidia Quadro Pro dual monitor cards may produce stretched
images in Open Office or Adobe Acrobat reader.
See: YoLinux.com: Dual Monitor Configuration - Fix for dual monitor configuration
and pitfalls
Links:
• FedoraFaq.org: How to do a custom installation of the nVidia drivers
• FedoraFaq.org: Enabling Fedora core 3 nVidia 3D support
System Services:
After installation of Linux one should determine which system services one needs.
Each available service has a start script in the directory /etc/rc.d.init.d/. See the
YoLinux init process tutorials.
It is easiest to use the Red Hat GUI tool:
• Fedora Core 3: /usr/bin/s;ste'-config-ser<ices
• Red Hat 8/9, FC 1: /usr/bin/redhat-config-ser<ices
Recommended basic services include: anacron, atd, autofs, cron, gpm, iptables,
keytable, kudzu, microcode_ctl, network, random, rawdevices, syslog and xfs.
Features and Changes:
• Fedora Core 6:
o Unified kernel suports both SMP and uniprocessor hardware. Separate
kernels no longer required.
o Interface: Improved desktop look and feel, window manager (Compiz) ,
improved X-windows, fonts (default font: DejaVu), artwork/graphics.
o Improved printer support (CUPS 1.2), improved YUM, Evolution,
Nautilus
o New applications: GnuCash, virt-manager (for Xen), SELinux graphical
troubleshooting tool, integrated smartcard (Coolkey), cluster volume
manager (lvm2-cluster).
o Totem now default media player (not Helix)
o Improved performance: ext3 file system, dynamic linking
(DT_GNU_HASH), Fontconfig, NFS (CacheFS), CUPS.
• Fedora Core 5:
o FC5 includes Mono and Mono applications.
o FC5 includes mySQL5, the Geronimo J2EE server.
o FORTRAN 90/95 upgraded from FORTRAN 77
o Changes to the SELinux reference policy.
o Wireless support for Broadcom 43xx wireless chipsets.
o Changes FC4 to FC5
• Fedora Core 4:
o Introduces gcc version 4, Eclipse IDE with CDT and valgrind.
o Introduces Evince (and poppler libraries) to replace gv and xpdf.
o No Mozilla, gv (ghostscript front-end), fvwm2 desktop, cdp (CD player,
introduces apolos)
o Changes FC3 to FC4
• Fedora Core 3: Stable (similar to RHEL4)
o Ships with SELinux (Security Enhanced Linux) which works.
o Introduces Firefox browser. Previously Mozilla only.
• Fedora Core 2:
o System configuration GUI tools name changes from redhat-config-
xxxx to s;ste'-config-xxxx.
o SELinux introduced. Needs work.
o Ships with Linux kernel 2.6 and ALSA (sound)
o No longer ships with XFree86. Now shipping with Xorg release of X-
Windows.
• Fedora Core 1:
o Name changes to Fedora Core and confuses the Linux world.
• Red Hat 9.0: Stable (similar to RHEL3)
o Introduces vsftpd. Was wu-ftpd.
o Introduces Apache 2.0, Subversion CM.
o LDAP default configuration changes. May require database dump and
reload.
o NPL: Native POSIX Thread Library
o Networking now uses /etc/s;sconfig/netHorD-scripts/route-
interfacename rather than /etc/s;sconfig/static-routes.
o CUPS print spooler is default.
• Red Hat 8.0: Stable
o They stop shipping LDAP admin tool gq.
o Ships with OpenOffice
o Apache RPM is now called httpd.
o Netscape browser no longer ships with OS.
o Introduces UML (User mode Linux)
o No longer ships with xmms MP3 plugins. Find and load.
• Red Hat 7.3: Stable
o Introduces CUPS print spooler.
• Red Hat 7.2:
o Kernel 2.4
• Red Hat 7.1:
o Linux Firewall: Introduces iptables. Earlier version used ipchains.
o Introduces DNS bind 9. Previous versions used bind 8.
o Introduces LDAP 2.0.
• Red Hat 7.0:
o Introduces xinetd. Previously used inetd.
o Default web server directory changes from /ho'e/httpd/ht'l/ to
/<ar/HHH/ht'l/.
• Red Hat 6:
o Introduces Gnome desktop.
o Linux Firewall: Introduces ipchains. Earlier version used ipfwadm.
o Red Hat 6.2 introduces Judzu for device discovery and initialization.
Pitfalls and Fixes:
• General Pitfalls:
o [Pitfall]: Installation locks up and you have no keyboard or mouse
control. I have found this problem when using a USB mouse on RHEL4
and FC4. Install the OS with a PS2 mouse and plug-in the USB mouse
after installation and boot. The USB can even be a hot plug-in while the
system is running.
o [Pitfall]: Man pages don't display properly. Escape characters are not
interpreted properly. A quick fix is to set the lang environment variable:
export 4).0>C
o A service will not start upon system boot. i.e. After an upgrade from
RH7.2 to 9.0 my web server would not start even after using the
command chDconfig --add httpd. I had to force the entry with
chDconfig --le<el 341 httpd on. This can happen to any service and
this is how to fix it.
• Platform x86_64 Pitfalls:
o Don't install 64 bit versions of Mozilla or Firefox. See Mozilla/Firefox
x86_64 Platform Pitfalls and Fixes
• Video Problems:
o If the Installation program does not recognise your graphics card, the
installer defaults to a text console mode rather than use the GUI mode.
It will also not install a proper video driver and your system will not boot
to the graphics mode and you will not have a graphical desktop. You
can edit the X-windows configuration file and specify a basic VGA
graphics driver which can give you simple 2-D graphics. The VGA
mode is supported by all the graphics cards I have encountered.
Edit file: /etc/X11/xorg.conf
..
...
%ection ODe<iceO
-dentifier OKideocard3O
Dri<er O<esaO
Kendor.a'e OKideocard <endorO
:oard.a'e O0enericO
/nd%ection
...
..
Specify the generic VGA video driver.
• Sound/Audio Problems:
o Default settings may have sound muted. Run /usr/bin/alsa'ixer,
/usr/bin/D'ix (KDE sound/volume mixer), or /usr/bin/gno'e-<olu'e-
control (GNOME desktop sound/volume mixer) and make sure that
the Master and PCM volume settings are not muted.
o RH 8.0: Test audio with /usr/bin/redhat-config-soundcard. Just a
testing tool. Does not alter /etc/'odules.conf
Also: /sbin/sndconfig. (sndconfig support dropped in RH 9.0)lters
/etc/'odules.conf.
o To set all controls to maximum volume: au'ix -<133 -H133 -b133
-s133
o Check permissions on devices: /de</dsp= /de</sndstat= /de</'ixer
o Check the file /etc/'odules.conf to see if your system is loading the
proper module to support your sound card. If edited, re-boot so your
kernel will pick up the changes.
o Test under user id root. If it works when logged in as root but not as a
regular system user, it is a security configuration problem. The user
does not have the privaleges to access the hardware devices
necessary. See the YoLinux Tutorial on Managing Group Access.
o If you can not get your sound card to work try entering your BIOS
configuration and removing "plug-and-play" support.
o [Pitfall] My sound card would not record using the microphone after
installation. The final resolution was that it was a conflict with the
motherboard built-in sound card support. The BIOS allowed me to
select an IRQ for the on-board sound device. By selecting a new IRQ,
the PCI sound card began working flawlessly. The BIOS option of
disabling the motherboard device did nothing.
• Fedora Core:
o FC-4 uses GCC 4. Compatability library RPMs allow running older
software. Install RPM packages: co'pat-gcc-32= co'pat-libstdcJJ-
33= co'pat-libstdcJJ-2G6
o System won't shut down? Using Hyperthreading? Add "acpi>ht to the
line "Dernel /boot/... in file /etc/grub.conf
o Nautilus default behavior was changed to open new windows for each
sub directory you enter. VERY ANNOYING!! Make it operate normally
by selecting "Edit" + "Preferences" + select "Behavior tab" and choose
option "Always open in browser windows"
o I downloaded and burned ISO CD's. During install one is offered the
choice to verify the CD. It failed verification but installed ok. I'm not sure
what to make of it.
Update: linux 'ediachecD nocdd'a
o FC 3: The x86_64 version of gftp crashes and is not functional.
Download and install the 32 bit version:
 rp' -e gftp-2.3.1&-3
 rp' -i<h gftp-2.3.1&-3.i386.rp'
o One of the first things you will notice is that the boot screen is now
hidden from view by a graphical boot screen. You can revert back to
the text console boot screen by editing /etc/s;sconfig/init
Change "0R)7$-C)4>;es" to "0R)7$-C)4>no".
• Upgrade/Install: RH 9.0:
o [Pitfall] Post install/RPM upgrade. Do not use rp' -6<h glibcB, use the
command rp' -(<h glibcB. This "Freshen" option will upgrade
previous files if they exist. Also see:
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=88456
o [Pitfall] Java version older than 1.4.1 will be incompatible with the
kernel NPTL threads library of the Red Hat 9.0 kernel. One can disable
NPTL by the following:
 Kernel option: nos;sinfo
(use in /etc/grub.conf)
 Set environment variable:
 export 4DA)%%6!/A9/R./4>2.42
 export 4DA)%%6!/A9/R./4>2.21
o [Pitfall] Ximian Gnome RPMs are not compatible with RH 9.0 Gnome
due to version conflicts. Remove before upgrading or install new
version after upgrade.
o [Pitfall] If upgrading from RH 6.2, all upgrades must be installed first or
upgrade will fail.
o [Pitfall] Installing X-CdRoast may conflict with the archive CD burning
facility within Nautilus. (using folder burn)
o Mozilla browser plugin problems? Upgrade from 1.2.1 to 1.31
o Xmms MP3 plugins: Red Hat 8/9 RPMs - Download xmms-mpg123-
1.2.7-21. Red Hat 9.0 install will include xmms-1.2.7-21, xmms-skins
and xmms-devel.
o See fix for Mozilla plugin "plugger".
• Upgrade/Install: RH 8.0:
o [Huge Problem Pitfall]: Systems using Adaptec SCSI chipsets (U320)
with aic79xx drivers beware!!! You may get file corruption problems
while handling large files (>.4Gb). Red Hat 8.0 ships with the Adaptec
driver 1.0.0. At this time the latest driver from the Adaptec open source
support web site is version 1.1.0. Use at least version 1.3.0 available
from the Adaptec Linux driver home page
http://people.freebsd.org/~gibbs/linux/. Red Hat 9.0 is also a problem.
Installation drivers and Red Hat RPM's are also availble from this site.
Also see http://bugzilla.redhat.com bug #97786
o [Potential Pitfall]: Java based GUI installer for Borland Togethersoft
would not work on KDE desktop (messed up/locked up display) but it
would for Gnome. FYI.
o The configuration tools for RH 8.0 are all new. See System Re-
Configuration section below.
o [Potential Pitfall]: Desktop application launch icons located in
T$!//.gno'e-desDtop/ no longer allow a command to be prefixed with
"cd T$!/U". Only a single command may be referenced. It is no longer
required. (It use to be required so that applications were not launched
from the sub directory.)
o Many applications one expects with Red Hat Linux were missing but
are still available from previous 7.x releases or from the application
web sites:
 xmmx MP3 player mpg123 rpm's - Red Hat had MPEG licensing
issues
 xanim-2.80.1-12.i386.rpm - Video player - last shipped with RH
7.1 Powertools
 xine-0.9.8-4.i386.rpm - xine-devel-0.9.8-4.i386.rpm - MPEG
video player (RH 7.3) [xine downloads] - Video player
Alsa-lib - aalib - libfame - flac - xvidcore - xine-libs - xine -
 xpaint-2.6.1-1.i386.rpm - RH 7.1 graphics paint program
 gq-0.4.0-5.i386.rpm - LDAP admin tool - last shipped with RH
7.3
 kwintv-0.8.5-5.i386.rpm - TV viewer for Hauppauge TV card -
Last shipped with RH 7.1 Powertools
o Many Red Hat clone distributions were required to remove
trademarked Red Hat logos and replace them with thier own. (i.e.
Cheap Bytes calls their Red Hat distribution "Pink Tie".) To restore the
installation to a Red Hat clone download and install the following
RPMs: (Use command: rp' -i<h --force name-of-rpm.rp')
 redhat-logos-1.1.6-2.noarch.rp'
 redhat-artHorD-3.4&-3.i386.rp'
 redhat-release-8.3-8.noarch.rp'
 initscripts-6.G1-1.i386.rp'
(Provide your own graphics and text to customize your system.)
o [Potential Pitfall]: Case study - Dell Precision 340 with IDE hard drives,
CD and DVD, Adaptec SCSI 29160. The SCSI module would not load
even though it is listed in the /etc/'odules.conf. The SCSI driver
module (aic????) was not listed as loaded when the /sbin/ls'od
command was issued. I had to add an entry to the file:
/etc/rc.d/rc.local:
ins'od aic&xxx
o [Potential Pitfall]: My upgrade corrupted the RPM database. Once that
is gone, the installation, maintenance and upgrades of rpm packages is
impossible. At this point I re-installed. I believe that my disk
approached 100% capacity. Make sure you have enough space. I had
close to 1Gb free but it may not have been enough. (???)
o [Potential Pitfall]: My up2date ,configuration no longer worked after the
new installation. To recover my old configuration I edited the file
/etc/s;sconfig/rhn/s;ste'id and changed the string values for
checksum, system_id, profile_name and username to values from my
backup.
o [Potential Pitfall]: The default installation uses Unicode instead of ASCII
representation. (UTF-8 is the ASCII compatible Unicode encoding.)
Some applications do not utilize Unicode and thus must be directed to
use English ASCII.
Turn off localization: en< 4).0>C abiHord
OR
define localization: (ISO 3166, 639) en< 4).0>enA6% abiHord
The GUI tool redhat-config-language can change your system
laguage settings. For more info see "'an locale".
o [Potential Pitfall]: The default Red Hat 8.0 behaviour for regular
expression computation is NOT backwards compliant with UNIX. Tools
which use regular expresion syntax such as grep, awk, sed,... Red Hat
8.0 will NOT perform as expected for the default locale enA6%.6,(-8
4).0 assignment. It will behave in a case insensitive fashion. (Usually
one uses grep -i to force case insensitivity.) Example:
File: testReg/x.txt You can also set the environment variable
4CA)44>C which overrides the 4).0 environment variable..
X8V
abc
abcX8V
Test grep:
?pro'pt@T grep ?)-V@ testReg/x.txt
X8V
abc
abcX8V
?pro'pt@T export 4).0>C
?pro'pt@T grep ?)-V@ testReg/x.txt
X8V
abcX8V
The default locale, enA6%.6,(-8 will result in "unspecified" behavior
while "C" or 7%-X will result in specific and expected (traditional)
behaviour. Beware of the default!! Red Hat Bugzilla #76328 (Closed
bug. Red Hat is hiding behind the phrase that "unspecified behaviour is
POSIX compliant.") It should be noted that shell scripts should specify
the 4).0 environment variable to ensure expected behaviour.
o [Potential Pitfall]: Apache 2.0 is now included and in not compatable
with old modules. If using Tomcat servlets or any module which is
Apache 1.3 dependant, do NOT upgrade Apache (RPM httpd).
o [Pitfall]: The "vi" editor goes into a funky highlight mode when editing
specialty files such as html. This is due to a symbolic link of vi to
/usr/bin/vim. To get non-highlighted old fashioned "vi" operation use the
command: unalias <i. The <i command will now referenece /bin/<i
OR
See setting default vim color scheme.
o [Pitfall]: Rumor (??) Don't run the Gnome Galeon browser and Mozilla
at the same system.
• Upgrade: RH 7.3:
o [Potential Pitfall] Upgrade from Red Hat 7.1 to 7.3 broke the "Photo
Album" web cgi I was using due to bugs in Image Magick. To fix this I
had to reinstall the old version by performing the following steps:
11 rp' -e -'age!agicD -'age!agicD-perl -'age!agicD-de<el
xfig
11 ln -s /usr/lib/libbC2.so.1.3.2 /usr/lib/libbC2.so.1.3
11 rp' -i<h --nodeps -'age!agicD-1.3.&-1.i386.rp'
-'age!agicD-de<el-1.3.&-1.i386.rp' -'age!agicD-perl-
1.3.&-1.i386.rp'
o [Pitfall] Application xCdRoast fix:
My launcher now states: cd T$!//Uxhost
JlocalhostU/usr/bin/xcdroast
The wrapper controlling xCdRoast is like "sudo" in that it executes the
application with root privileges. This of course may conflict with the
application owner of the X-windowing system process (unless you are
operating as root to begin with). You must first grant access to root to
access the display with the xhost command. Starting xCdRoast from
the menu worked. The only problem was launching by command.
o [Pitfall] Some KDE applications did not work due to overprotective (for
a private workstation) directory permissions. To fix this:
o 7 root &ro$&t89 cd /usr/lib
o 7 root &ro$&t89 ch'od -R ugoJx Dde2-co'pat

o [Pitfall] On one desktop machine, all the desktop icons where
duplicated. This is because Nautilus and Gnome were both displaying
the desktop icons. To fix this, turn off the rendering of desktop icons by
Nautilus. Select the "Start Here" icon on the desktop tool bar or choose
the menu "Programs" + "Applications" + "Nautilus" to start the Nautilus
manager. From the Nautilus manager window toolbar, select
"Preferences" + "Edit Preferences...". Select "Window and Desktop"
from the left panel and un-select the option "Use Nautilus to draw the
desktop".
o [Pitfall] Some of my desktop icons (launchers "lost" their graphic and
one even got renamed. (What is going on??) Each upgrade seems to
lose a few graphics and gain a few new ones. The files to repair are
found in $HOME/.gnome-desktop/ (i.e. /ho'e/user1/.gno'e-desDtop/)
You can also right click the icon select "properties" and use the gui
tool. Icons are located in /usr/share/pix'aps/. Due to all the changes
I have begun using my own repository /opt/share/pix'aps/.
o [Pitfall] I'm often the type who installs everything and turns on what is
needed. I am starting to re-think this strategy. My upgrade of a system
from 7.1 to 7.3 took 3.5 hours!!!!! This is of course dependant on the
speed of your system. This was a 350MHz, 256Mb, IDE system. The
more you have loaded or the more packages you choose to install, the
longer it takes to upgrade. The upgrade prompt "Preparing to install..."
held for 20 minutes. At first I thought the system froze. BEWARE!!!
o [Pitfall] In the beginning of the upgrade, the system prompts "Boot from
ATAPI CD-ROM:". Press "Enter" right away with no delay!! Otherwise it
continues to boot from the hard drive with your existing installation
rather than performing the upgrade. This message of course only
applies to systems with an ATAPI CD-ROM.
o [Pitfall] After the boot loader configuration screen appears, the upgrade
pauses to search for packages to upgrade. Have patience. The
message "Finding packages to upgrade..." will appear. It took over 10
minutes!!! Another penalty of having too much loaded.
• Install: RH 7.2:
o CD-Rom mounting problems: SCSI subsystem used with IDE drives to
support CD-Rom burning. If module does not install properly the drive
will not mount. To see if module was loaded use the command ls'od
and look for module srA'od. If it is not listed then it did not load. One
may manually load the module by issuing the commands dep'od and
then 'odprobe srA'od. The CD-Rom should then be mountable.
o Desktop/Gnome problems:
 Desktop Launcher icon labels: Many began to display
"application-label.desktop" instead of just the application label.
Change the contents of the configuration file T$!//.gno'e-
desDtop/application-label.desDtop
From:
?DesDtop /ntr;@
.a'e?enA6%.-%881G-1@>application-label
/xec>cd T$!/U/usr/bin/application
-con>/usr/share/pix'aps/application.png
,er'inal>false
!ultiple)rgs>false
,;pe>)pplication

 To:
?DesDtop /ntr;@
.a'e>application-label - Add this line
.a'e?enA6%.-%881G-1@>application-label
/xec>cd T$!/U/usr/bin/application
-con>/usr/share/pix'aps/application.png
,er'inal>false
!ultiple)rgs>false
,;pe>)pplication

o To generate a desktop launcher I created a toolbar launcher and then
moved it to the desktop with a drag and drop. (The menus have
changed)
o Interface change: Note that the graphical symbol "X" to kill the window
moved from the top right to the top left corner of the window.
o [Pitfall]: My start script for xinetd on one of my servers would give the
following error:
?" >" unar; operator expected
My fix was to edit the script /etc/rc.d/init.d/xinetd. Comment out
the line:
? TQ./,+R9-.0R > O;esO @ SS exit 3
by placing a "#" at the beginning of the line. Why is it that one server
does not have this problem but another does, and the script is identical
on both machines??? Somehow the environment variable is messed
up on one causing the environmet variable to become blank resulting in
the "=" operator to only operate on a single operand (thus an error).
o [Pitfall]: After upgrade from 7.1 to 7.2, Gimp hung when I attempted to
launch it. To fix this problem I removed the xsane plug-in: r'
/usr/lib/gi'p/1.2/plug-ins/xsane
o [Pitfall]: After upgrade from 7.1 to 7.2, the toolbar application, "panel",
would crash upon desktop start-up. (Not sure why but my guess is that
the old settings were incompatible) To fix this, I created a new user and
logged in as this user. The toolbar was displayed correctly. Starting up
under my own id then launched the toolbar correctly. I then changed a
bunch of the tool bar properties. This temporarily cleaned up the
problem by writing a new and correct configuration.
Permanent panel fix: Update gnome with Gnome 1.4.0.6-1 RPM's.
This was required even after using up2date (on Feb 1, 2002) to get all
the latest Red Hat fixes. Check your version of gnome with the
command: rp' -F gno'e-core You may also have to copy a new
version of the panel config file to your directory: cp -p
/etc/gno'e/panel-config/panel T$!//.gno'e/panel
o [Pitfall]: When I upgraded to Red Hat 7.2 from 7.1, both of my TV
viewing programs, KwinTV and Zapping, behaved flakey with poor
tuning. The only solution I could find was to remove them both (rp' -e
DHint< Capping) and then re-install them.
o [Pitfall]: The "vi" editor goes into a funky highlight mode when editing
html files. To get non-highlighted old fashioned "vi" operation use the
command: ex -< file-name
Add to the file T$!//.bashrc: alias <i>Eex -<E
o [Pitfall]: Installing on Red Hat Linux on one of those $250.00 BTC-
USA/VIA Linux computers from Fryes? They have a Linux VIA modem
driver which I could not compile because of incompatible structure
definitions in the include (.h) header files. Give up and buy a Linux
compatible modem. Could not get the microphone to work either. BTC
Support: M113N61&-3816 x316
Install: RH 7.1:
o [Pitfall] Linux now supports more APM features, but that is both good
and bad. APM (Advanced Power Management) is good for laptops but
often bad for desktops as the hardware may support it poorly. APM
controls screen blanking and power saving features required by
laptops. On the desktop it has been a source of many random lock-ups
I experienced just after or near the end of the boot sequence. I
STRONGLY recommend that you boot and enter your bios and turn off
all APM features. You may just find that boot reliability goes from flakey
to flawless.
Apm standby: ap' -%
Apm suspend: ap' -s
o [Pitfall] Note on iptables and ipchains support.
o [Pitfall] In a fresh install of RH 7.1 I found that the DNS service "Bind"
(named) could not be added to the init process using the chDconfig
--add na'ed command. Use the command chDconfig --le<el 341
na'ed on to force bind to start upon system boot.
o [Pitfall] Your mail server no longer works. See the configuration
changes to the default sendmail configuration.
o [Pitfall] While performing an upgrade to Red Hat 7.1, the package to
manage iptables (the firewall facility in the new kernel) was not
included. You must manually include this facility by selecting the
package. It seems that an upgrade looks at your configuration and
upgrades the packages that you have installed on your system. The
previous versions of Red Hat used kernel 2.2 which used ipchains and
thus did not support iptables. Iptables were included for the first time in
the kernel 2.4 used by Red Hat 7.1.
Check your installation by using the command: rp' -F iptables
ipchains
Thus after the upgrade, manually install the RPM: rp' -i<h iptables-
XXX.i386.rp'
o [Pitfall] The upgrade created a new /etc/printcap.local file. The old
/etc/printcap file was saved to /etc/printcap.sa<e. This is a good
thing as all references to printers except lp were deleted. The
configuration tool /usr/bin/printtool is no longer used. The new tool
is /usr/sbin/printconf-gui. (The 7.1 upgrade replaced printtool with a
script which starts printconf-gui.) I'm confused as this new tool still uses
the file /etc/printcap. I started the tool /usr/sbin/printconf-gui and
then selected "File" + "Save Changes" to re-generate the
/etc/printcap file. The man page for lpd suggests that the file
/etc/printcap is indeed the proper configuration file for the lpd
daemon. This file is constructed each time the lpd daemon is run, thus
it is useless to edit this file. Use the GUI tool.
For more info see RH 7.1 manual: Printer Configuration
o [Pitfall] The default upgrade to Gnome has mysteriously made the
autohide feature of the toolbar useless. The autohide feature is turned
on by a right-mouse-button-click on the Gnome toolbar + "Properties" +
"Hiding policy" + "Auto hide". The toolbar will unhide but it is always
displayed below other applications so it can't be seen or used.
To fix this stupid behavior:
 Start the Gnome Control Center: select the toolbox on the
toolbar.
 Select tree items (LHS) "Desktop" + subitem "Panel".
 Then select tab (RHS) "Miscellaneous"
 Un-select the button "Keep panel below windows (GNOME
compliant window managers only)"
 Complete this action by selecting "Ok".
o [Pitfall] Reducing system overhead: While performing an upgrade, the
installation will add some packages to your init procedure even if it was
not included in the init process previously. The installation assumes
that if it is installed, you want to use it. To clean this up use the
chkconfig command: i.e. chDconfig --del sshd (server daemon which
allows remote login) and chDconfig --del send'ail (mail server). I
performed this on my workstation to disable FreeWnn (Kana-to-Kanji
conversion system. That's what I get for installing everything!!), pppoe
(point to point over ethernet), medusa, nfslock (I'm not running NFS),
netfs (mounts NFS and SMB), autofs (NFS) and portmap (RPC's used
by NFS). One can also use the GUI tool /usr/sbin/nts;s<.
In the end my workstation runs init scripts crond, anacron, atd, crond,
gpm, keytable, kudzu, lpd, network, portsentry (my add-on - not
typical), random, rawdevices, reconfig, syslog, xfs, iptables, autofs and
xinetd upon system boot. My server on the other hand runs a whole lot
more and omits the font server xfs. Your choices will be based upon
your requirements.
Tripwire is a great file system monitoring tool for a server but really un-
neccessary for a dial-up PPP system or a system which is rarely
connected to the internet. It is used to detect file changes by hackers.
The default is to use cron to run tripwire every day. This behaviour can
be changed to run tripwire weekly or monthly by moving the script
/etc/cron.dail;/tripHire-checD to the /etc/cron.HeeDl;/ directory.
o [Note and Pitfall] The inetd daemon and the configuration file
/etc/inetd.conf has been replaced by xinetd which uses files located
in the directory /etc/xinetd.d/. Xinetd has access control
machanisms, logging capabilities, the ability to make services available
based on time, and can place limits on the number of servers that can
be started, etc... and thus a worthy upgrade from inetd.
For more info on xinetd see the YoLinux Networking Tutorial.
The pitfall: The services are all disabled upon install. I found that the
wu-ftpd default was that the service was turned off.
To turn on the FTP service:
 Edit the file /etc/xinetd.d/Hu-ftpd and change the line:
disable > ;es
to
disable > no
Then restart the daemon: /etc/rc.d/init.d/xinetd restart.
OR
 Use the command: chconfig Hu-ftpd on
This command will also restart the xinetd process to pick up the
new configuration.
The ftp server is now available.
o [Note and Pitfall] The locations of some the applications have changed
with release 7.1. If you have created a launcher icon and hard-coded
the full path name, it may not work. I noticed that xpaint moved from
/usr/X11R6/bin/ to /usr/bin/ and some of my network utilities moved
from /usr/sbin/ to /usr/bin/.
Install: RH 7.0:
o [Pitfall] Sendmail hangs for a while before allowing Linux to complete
the boot process. This is often due to the fact that you have given your
computer a name but it is unknown to the networking software on your
system. Add the computer name to the /etc/hosts file.
o 12&.3.3.1 <put-your-computer-name-here> localhost

The host name is often assigned during install and can be found in the
/etc/$%,.)!/ file. It can be assigned/re-assigned using the hostname
command or by using the GUI admin tool "/bin/linuxconf". (Note that
linuxconf is no longer included with Red Hat Linux 7.3+)
Note that there may be NO blank spaces in the host name.
Install: RH 6.2, 7.0:
o [Pitfall] Apache fails due to an improper configuration file option. Edit
file /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf. Uncomment the line:
o %er<er.a'e localhost

by removing the "#" at the begining of the line.
Install: RH 6.2:
o [Pitfall] Desktop application launching icons (GMC) may fail due to an
update in their format.
Edit the files in T$!//.gno'e-desDtop/.desDtop so that the line:
.a'e>Iapplication5
is changed to:
.a'e?enA6%.-%881G-1@>Iapplication5
Then right click on the desktop and select "Rescan Desktop Directory".
o [Pitfall] For a more robust desktop, change the default window
manager from "Enlightenment" to "Sawmill". After about three days of
heavy desktop use, "Enlightenment" will start to get flakey.
Note: Red Hat 7.0 makes Sawfish (the current version of Sawmill) the
default window mananger. They must have had a similar experience.
Upgrade: RH 6.1:
o [Pitfall] The SAMBA upgrade was incomplete. The /etc/sb.conf file
gets backed up as /etc/s'b.conf.rp'sa<e but a new samba
configuration file (s'b.conf) was not generated. Copy the
s'b.conf.rp'sa<e to s'b.conf.
o [Pitfall] Fix for SAMBA if it is not initiated upon boot.
chDconfig --le<el 341 s'b on
o [Pitfall] Printing or serial ports ignored: Add the following line to the file
/etc/conf.'odules:
alias parportAloHle<el parportApc
This configures the kernel upon system boot to auto-detect and
configure system serial ports. This may also effect modem use.
Note: Newer kernels such as 2.2.17 use /etc/'odules.conf.
Upgrade: RH 5.2 to 6.0:
o [Pitfall] The RH 6.0 installation/upgrade manual states the following but
will cause X-windows to fail. Don't do it.
The upgrade will not touch your video settings held in /etc/X11/XF86Config. In order
to use the new font server add the following line:
(ont7ath tcp/localhost"&133O

Next set the system configuration to run the font server at boot time:
/sbin/chDconfig --add xfs
Note: you can add or remove any system services to be started (at boot time) in this
manner.
o [Pitfall] RH 6.0 upgrade - I added everything for my upgrade. The news
server and server for plan calendars were not configured and caused
errors upon boot thus slowing the boot process.
To remedy the situation: chDconfig --del innd and chDconfig --del
netplan
This removes the background daemons/services from the system boot
process.
Release Updates and fixes: After a successful installation or update, it is wise to
check the Red Hat web site for updates to the CD release. See:
http://www.redhat.com/security/updates/.
You can also directly download update RPM's using FTP:
7root &ro$&t89 ftp updates.redhat.co'
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223 Red $at (,7 ser<er read;. )ll transfers are logged.
...
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7assHord" -Enter your email address
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233- O)% -%O +-,$6, +)RR).,8 ( ).8 9-.D= /-,$/R /X7R/%%/D R
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6sing binar; 'ode to transfer files.
ftp5 cd :;<=en=os=i<-.=
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ftp5 &ro$&t
ftp5 $get a&ac'e> -Example: download apache upgrades
ftp5 %/e
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System Re-Configuration: (Must be root)
During the Red Hat installation process, a series of configuration tools were used to
configure the mouse, keyboard, video etc. These can be run separately at any time
after the installation. Use the following commands to re-configure the system for new
or replaced hardware devices or to correct inappropriate settings.
Device Linux Configuration Tool
System Configuration
All: keyboard, mouse, ...
/usr/bin/system-config-item-to-configure (FC
2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-item-to-configure (RH
8.0/9.0/FC1 - see below)
/usr/sbin/setup
Video card,monitor /usr/bin/system-config-display (FC 2/3)
redhat-config-xfree86 (Red Hat 8.0/9.0)
/usr/bin/X11/Xconfigurator (Red Hat 6.x,7.x)
/usr/X11R6/bin/xf86config (From
XFree86.org)
Keyboard /usr/bin/system-config-keyboard (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-keyboard (RH
8.0/9.0/FC1)
/usr/sbin/kdbconfig
Gnome Desktop Keyboard
Properties
/usr/bin/gnome-accessibility-keyboard-
properties (RH 9.0, FC 2/3)
Gnome Desktop Keybinding
Properties
/usr/bin/gnome-keybinding-properties (RH
9.0, FC 2/3)
Mouse /usr/bin/system-config-mouse (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-mouse (RH 8/9/FC1)
/usr/sbin/mouseconfig (Removed in RH 9.0)
Which Red Hat genius devised a mouse
configuration tool which requires a mouse!!!
They really need to bring back a console
based mouse configuration tool.
Date / Time / Time zone /usr/bin/system-config-data (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-date (RH 8.0/9.0/FC1)
dateconfig (RH 7.2)
/usr/sbin/timeconfig (Pre 7.2)
Sound Card /usr/bin/system-config-soundcard (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-soundcard (RH
8.0/9.0 - test only)
/usr/sbin/sndconfig (still used in 8.0)
Network Card /usr/bin/system-config-network (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-network (/usr/bin/neat)
(RH 7.2+)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-network-tui (text
console RH 9.0)
/usr/sbin/netconfig (console. First interface
only - eth0)
/usr/bin/netcfg (GUI) (no longer available
with RH 7.2)
/usr/bin/redhat-control-network (Start/Stop
network interfaces RH 9.0)
redhat-config-network-druid (Configure
CIPE,Ethernet,modem,token Ring,Wireless
or DSL)
System services
(processes started at boot)
/usr/bin/system-config-services (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-services (RH 8.0/9.0,
FC1)
serviceconf (RH 7.2)
/usr/sbin/ntsysv
/usr/X11R6/bin/tksysv (GUI)
System Start /usr/bin/system-config-kickstart (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-kickstart (RH 8.0 only)
Printer /usr/bin/system-config-printer (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-printer (RH 8.0/9.0,
FC1) Configures lpd service. Modifies
/etc/printcap file.
/usr/bin/redhat-config-printer-gui (RH
8.0/9.0, FC1) (Exact same as above)
/usr/bin/printtool (Also the exact same as
above)
Red Hat 7.1: /usr/sbin/printconf-gui (Yes, in
RH 8.0+ this is also the exact same as
above)
/usr/sbin/printconf-gui (Was a text mode tool
introduced with Red Hat 7.2 In RH 8.0+ it is
the same as above)
/usr/bin/redhat-switch-printer (RH 8.0+)
Choose printing service: lpd or CUPS
(Can also set environment variable to set
default printer: export 7R-.,/R>Olp$7O)
RH 7.1: System security.
Choose and configure NIS, LDAP
or Hesiod for authentication.
/usr/bin/system-config-authentication (FC
2/3)
/usr/bin/authconfig-gtk (RH 8.0)
/usr/sbin/authconfig (console tool)
RH 8.0+: System security.
Firewall configuration.
Note this will configure your
system to use iptables.
/usr/bin/system-config-securitylevel (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-securitylevel
RH 7.1: System security. Firewall
configuration.
Note this will configure your
system to use ipchains and NOT
iptables.
/usr/sbin/lokkit
/usr/sbin/gnome-lokkit
System Management /bin/linuxconf
(No longer included with Red Hat 7.3+)
Make an Emergency/Recover
boot floppy
/sbin/mkbootdisk 2.2.16-3
(Enter release of kernel.
See directory /boot)
users/groups /usr/bin/system-config-users (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-users
Set/Change Root Password /usr/bin/system-config-rootpassword (FC
2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-rootpassword (RH
8.0/9.0, FC1)
System Log File Viewer
Scan, search boot, cron, kernel
start logs, mail, mysql, rpm
(current list of all packages
installed), security, system,
XFree86,... logs
/usr/bin/redhat-logviewer (RH 8.0+)
System Proc Files
(Kernel tuning parameters. You
need to know what your are
dooing here!!)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-proc (RH 8.0+)
Package Manager - Add/Remove
application/service packages
/usr/bin/system-config-packages (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-packages (RH 8.0/9.0,
FC1)
Desktop Switching Tool /usr/bin/switchdesk-gnome (RH 8.0+)
/usr/bin/switchdesk (Same tool as above)
Can choose Gnome, KDE, TWM. Choose
TWM for sparse lightweight desktop.
Red Hat Linux Server Services Configuration:
Server Service Linux Configuration Tool
httpd Apache Web Server
Configuration
/usr/bin/system-config-httpd (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-httpd (RH 8.0/9.0,
FC1)
named DNS Bind /usr/bin/system-config-bind (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-bind (RH 8.0/9.0,
FC1)
nfsd NFS File Server /usr/bin/system-config-nfs (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-nfs (RH 8.0/9.0,
FC1)
SMTP Mail /usr/bin/system-switch-mail (FC 2/3)
/usr/bin/redhat-switch-mail (RH 9.0, FC1)
/usr/bin/redhat-switch-mail-nox
/usr/bin/redhat-config-switchmail (RH
8.0+)
/usr/bin/redhat-config-switchmail-gnome
For GNOME Desktop configuration commands (sound, keyboard, fonts,
properties, ...) see the Yolinux Tutorial on the GNOME Desktop: Configuration
Commands
Cloning The Drive To Duplicating The Installation:
• Symantec (Norton) Ghost (commercial)
• g4u - Harddisk Image Cloning for PCs (open source)
Basic System Administration:
Editing files:
Many editors come with the basic Linux install. Basic console text editors
include jed, joe, pico, emacs and vi. (Listed from easiest to most difficult to
master) GUI X-window editors (which may be used after X-Windows has
started - using the startx command or init level 5) include gedit (Gnome/RH8.0
default), gnp (gnotepad), nedit, editor, edit and xemacs. These editors may be
invoked from the command line or from the desktop tollbar. Man pages should
be available for the editors. By far the easiest to use is gedit. ("Toolbar Start
Icon" + "Accessories" + "Text Editor+")
Linux command shell mode:
By default, when you first log in, the system is in the UNIX command shell
mode. After X-windows is started, the GNOME desktop will offer you a
command shell by selecting the computer terminal icon on the toollbar.
(RH5.2 puts a shell on your desktop by default.) The default shell is bash. For
more information type: 'an bash .
Information, documentation and help:
• Documentation can be found localy in /usr/doc/. (also/usr/doc/HOWTO/) It is
easiest to view this with Netscape.
Beginning with Red Hat 7.1 the documentation is located in directory
/usr/share/doc/
• Many commands have a simple help facility built in. Try the --help option. For
example try cat --help= ls --help or even 'an --help.
• Information on a Linux subject or on individual commands is available with the
UNIX "man" command. To find commands which refer to a subject, enter 'an
-D IsubWect5. To view a Linux manual page on a particular command, enter
'an I6.-X co''and5 . The pages scroll using Page Up/Down keys and arrow
keys. To exit type the letter q . Use the command 'an man for more
information.
• /etc/cron.weekly/makewhatis.cron : This sets up manual page index for man
-k subject help facility.
It is recommended that after installation that you execute the script to
configure the database rather than wait a week for it to execute automatically.
Issue the command (as root): /etc/cron.HeeDl;/'aDeHhatis.cron
• /etc/cron.daily/updatedb.cron : Sets up index for locate command. (Creates
data file /<ar/lib/locatedb)
Security and permissions:
UNIX controls file, directory and device access by user id and group
membership. File, directory and device permissions may be granted or denied
for reading (r), writing (w) and executing (x). These permissions may be
granted to a specific user (u), group (g) or all other users (o). Directory listings
can show this with letters representing permissions. For example: -rw-r--r--
which shows that the owner (user) has read and write privileges while the
group members and all other users have read only privileges. The symbols
display access privileges in the order of owner, group and other. Users are
listed in the file /etc/passHd. Groups and group members are listed in the file
/etc/group.
See man pages:
• chmod - Change/modify file access permissions.
• group
• ls - list files
Note on root id: The login id root is all powerful and should be used for
system administration only. For regular user operation of the system, it is best
to create a new user.
All users are a member of a group. New users will be added to a group of the
same name as the user (each user had his own group). Membership in other
groups may be added. This is often done to give a group of users access to a
file or device which is accessible to all group members. See the tutorial on
managing groups.
For a complete tutorial on protecting your system while connected to the
internet, see the YoLinux Internet Security Tutorial.
Device access:
Devices such as diskettes and CR-ROMs are often used by desktop users. It
is common to have these devices owned by the groups floppy and cdrom
respectively. The device permissions are set such that the device is
accessible only by group members. To grant access to a device, add a user to
the respective group. Unlike desktop systems, user access to these devices in
a server environment is often not a good idea. See the YoLinux tutorial
Managing Group Access.
Mounting a Windows partition:
Use the command: 'ount -t <fat /de</hda1 /'nt/C
Mount MS/windows partition with long filenames so Linux can look at it if
Win95 is on your 1st partition on the first drive. Use option "-t umsdos" for
DOS/Win 3.1partition. (i.e. On my SCSI based system: 'ount -t u'sdos
/de</sda3 /'nt/C) This requires that one create the directory mount point first
('Ddir /'nt/C ) This mount can be made permanent by making the following
entry to the /etc/fstab file:
/de</hda1 /C <fat defaults 3 3
For more information see the man pages for mount, umount, fstab and dump.
Note: The "umount" command is NOT "unmount". Notice the difference in
spelling.
u'ount /'nt/C
How to mount NTFS drives used for MS/Windows NT, 2000 (not ME) and XP.
Support for other file systems:
Partial list:
Filesystem Filesystem Description
ext2 Linux
msdos Basic Microsoft DOS
umsdos DOS with ling file names and Linux extensions
vfat Windows 95
iso9660 CD: Auto detects "High Sierra" and "Rock Ridge"
hpfs OS/2 (Read only)
sysv Commercial System V Unix
nfs Network File System (remote mounts)
smb Windows for workgroups, NT and LAN manager
ncpfs Novel Netware NCP file system
Also see: fs man page.
Windows upgrade on a Dual Boot system:
• Create a Linux boot disk.
• Re-write the DOS boot loader onto the hard drive: fdisD /'br
• Upgrade Windows.
• Boot system with Linux boot disk.
• Run /sbin/lilo -< to re-install Linux boot loader onto hard drive.
or
/sbin/grub-install (Grub was introduced in Red Hat 7.2)
Setting graphical Login screen as default:
This may be configured during installation but can be changed. Do this only
after X-windows is properly configured to the proper resolution. Init level 3 will
boot the system to a console mode. Edit file /etc/inittab and change the
following entry id"3"initdefault" to id"1"initdefault" . This will start X-
windows upon boot-up by default without having to initiate it manually with the
startx command.
Desktop choices:
The basic choices are GNOME (default), KDE and FVWM2 (default for RH
5.2 and earlier. Also called Another Level). You may choose a different
desktop by selecting from the Start or selection menu, "System" + "Desktop
Switching Tool" . Other desktop GUIs available on the system include
AfterStep (clone of the NextStep interface), WindowMaker, FVWM95 (also a
clone of the Windows 95/NT 4.0 interface) and MWM (Motif Window Manager
based on Open Source Lesstif).
Tip: Gnome toolbar help on Red Hat 7.1 - right-mouse-click within the toolbar
+ "Panel" + "Panel manual".
[Potential Pitfall]: RH 6.1 has a slight bug in that it allows you to select the
Win 95 interface (FVWM2) but you cant get back. The selection process is
controlled by your T$!//.Xclients script which calls .Xclient-T$%,.)!/"3
or .Xclients-default file. Use one of the following entries in your .Xclients-
default file to restore your configuration:
• exec gno'e-session
• exec startDde
FVWM2 uses a script rather than a single line command.
Minimal desktop graphics for limited resources:
If your system is slow and limited you can still run a graphical desktop, just not
Gnome or KDE. Boot to init level 3 (console only not init level 5 with graphics)
and issue the following commands:
• Start X-Windows: xinit
• Start a very lean window manager: 'H'
Use the right mouse button to bring up a menu.
Soft Paws:
Left Handed users might want to use the mouse on the opposite side. To
revers the mouse button order, issue the command:
gp' -: 321
CD player:
  Red Hat 8.0:
/usr/bin/gno'e-cd
  Red Hat 6.x, 7.x:
/usr/bin/gtcd: "Start" + "Programs" + "Multimedia" + "CD Player"
To use a free CDDB internet database set the server to: freedb.freedb.org
port 8880
X-Window scripts:
The X-Window initialization script is /etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc. The user script
is X/.xinit. Programs you wish to autostart should be placed in your xinit
script. The desktop system you choose will probably also have a script as
well. For KDE see X/.Dde/)utostart.
See X-Window User HOWTO for more information.
Adding an application to the start menus:
"Gnome start button" + "Settings" + "Menu Editor". You will have to be root to
add to system menus.
User menus unique to the login account are held in
T$!//.gno'e/apps/<application>.desDtop
Apache Web server (httpd):
Fedora Core 1/2/3 and Red Hat 7.x/8.0/9.0 file locations:
/<ar/HHH/ht'l/ - +e% &ages go 'ere; Ho$e &age is
inde);'t$l
icons/ - Gra&'ical icons used %/ t'e ser?er
cgi-bin/ - (ocation for CGI &rogra$s
/<ar/log/httpd/accessAlog - #er?er log files
errorAlog
Red Hat 6.x and earlier file locations:
/ho'e/httpd/ht'l/ - +e% &ages go 'ere; Ho$e &age is
inde);'t$l
icons/ - Gra&'ical icons used %/ t'e ser?er
cgi-bin/ - (ocation for CGI &rogra$s
/<ar/log/httpd/accessAlog - #er?er log files
errorAlog
See httpd man page.
See Apache online manual
YoLinux Web site configuration tutorial
RPM - Redhat Package Manager:
The rp' command is used to manage software applications and system
modules. See the YoLinux Admin Tutorial - rpm
Linux devices:
If you are missing a device: (i.e. /de</radio)
cd /de<
./!)9/D/K radio
Something Cool:
Slide Show:
1. Put a bunch of JPEG files in a directory (i.e. develop photos and get
the "Kodak Picture CD")
2. Start photo viewer application:
o RH 8.0: Start GQview - (/usr/bin/gF<ieH) or GUI desktop select
the "start icon" + "Graphics" + "GQview".)
 Open the folder/directory where the photos reside.
 Select "Edit Options"
 Tab "General": Select "Repeat" and choose delay
in seconds.
 Tab "Image": Select "Fit image to window" and
"Expand images for zoom to fit"
 Select "View" + "Toggle Slide Show"
 Select "View" + "Full Screen"
OR
o RH 7.x: Start Gtk-See (/usr/bin/gtDsee or select "The paw/start
icon" + "Programs" + "Graphics" + "Gtk-See".)
 Open the folder/directory where the photos reside.
 Select "Tools" + "Slide Show" or ctrl-S
 Select the "Full Screen" icon.
3. Use the right mouse button to bring up a menu.
4. Enjoy!
Admin Tutorials:
YoLinux Tutorials:
• Init process tutorial - Tutorial on how to add/remove background
processes/services which start on system boot-up.
• Managing Group Access - Granting and administering file and device
access.
• System Administration
• File System Quotas - Limiting a user's disk usage.
• Netscape Configuration and plug-ins
• Networking
• Set up Linux as an internet gateway for home or office
• Internet Web Server and Domain Configuration
• Configuring a Linux workstation for interoperability with the
MS/Windows environment
• List of all YoLinux.com tutorials
Links:
• Configuration HOWTO - Guido Gonzato
• Bash Prompt HOWTO - Giles Orr
• Linux Printing HOWTO - Grant Taylor
• Text-Terminal-HOWTO - David S. Lawyer
Linux Installation Related Links:
• Dual boot Linux with Win2k
• Linux Installation HOWTO - Eric S. Raymond
• PLIP Install HOWTO - Install over the network - Gilles Lamiral
• Unix and Internet Fundamentals HOWTO - Eric S. Raymond (for beginners)
• Linux BootPrompt-HowTo - Paul Gortmaker
• Linux Bootdisk HOWTO - Tom Fawcett
• Multi Disk System Tuning - How best to use multiple disks and partitions -
Stein Gjoen
• Linux Large Disk HOWTO - Andries Brouwer
• Filesystems HOWTO - Martin Hinner
• Diskless Nodes HOW-TO - Robert Nemkin, Al Vasudevan, Markus Gutschke,
Ken Yap, Gero Kuhlmann
• Root over nfs clients and server Howto - Hans de Goede
• Managing Multiple Operating Systems HOWTO - Robert W. Schultz
• Keyboards - 104 or 101 keys - Settings
• Linux Busmouse HOWTO - Chris Bagwell
• Linux Hardware Compatibility HOWTO - Patrick Reijnen
• Linux Plug-and-Play-HOWTO - David S.Lawyer
• Linux XFree86 HOWTO - V 4 - Eric S. Raymond
• Linux Touch Screen HOWTO - Christoph Baumann
• XFree86 Video Timings HOWTO - Eric S. Raymond
• USB Device Guide
Laptop Guides:
• Linux Laptop HOWTO - Werner Heuser
• Linux PCMCIA HOWTO - David Hinds
Red Hat Installation Guide:
• RH 7.1 Install Guide
• RH 7.0 Install Guide i386 - [Alpha]
• RH 6.2 Install Guide i386 - [Alpha/SPARC]
• RH 6.1 Install Guide
Installation guides for other distributions:
• Ubuntu
• Debian GNU:
o Installation Guide
o Installation Instructions for all hardware platforms and all languages
o Debian FAQ
• Mandriva: (was named Mandrake)
o FreeOS.com: Mandrake 7.2 install Guide
• Slackware:
o Installation Help
• S.u.S.E.:
o S.u.S.E. Support Data Base