Preface


Linux started life as a "hobby project" of Linus Torvalds in April 1991. He was trying to create an alternative to the minix operating system that runs on Intel 386/486 AT-class machines. Linux has come a long way since its inception. Today, more than a dozen different Linux distributions such as SUSE, Red Hat, Slackware, and so on, are available and run on a variety of hardware, including big IBM irons (such as the S/390 and the zSeries systems).

For the longest time, Linux was mostly used by home users and within educational institutions due to its cost (free!). The availability of Linux kernel source code made it a very attractive operating system to be studied in computer science courses and also helped to further promote its popularity. In the past few years (starting around late 2002 or early 2003), Linux started to make an inroad into businesses, and Linux desktops are slowly being used to replace Windows machines. SUSE and Red Hat are two major players in the Linux server arena. With financial backing from IBM, Novell acquired SUSE in January 2004. In addition to the NetWare server operating system, Novell now also has the Novell SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server (SLES) and a number of Linux desktop products, such as Novell Linux Desktop.

Like NetWare, SLES offers a wide range of network services, ranging from web server (Apache) to file and print (via Samba, for instance) to directory services (such as LDAP or NIS). SLES 9 allows you to leverage Linux and open source products (such as Apache) by delivering a scalable, high-performance foundation for secure enterprise computing. Built for reliability, it offers comprehensive functionality to power today's networks and meet user demands.

No matter what your purpose is, if you implement SLES in your networking environment, it is important for you to have a firm handle on how it works and how to set up the necessary services. You should know how to configure the server environment so that it is easy for users to use, yet secure against intruders. Good network administrators need to take proactive steps to prevent trouble from developing in the first place. This book serves as your handy reference to administrating, configuring, and securing your SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server.

Although this book is written as an administrator's handbook, you'll find that it contains a large number of security-related discussions and references. Topics covered in this book range from the fundamentals of managing users and groups, setting up and configuring essential network services, to securing your server against possible hackers. The information presented in this book will help you maintain and secure your SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server.



    SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server 9 Administrator's Handbook
    SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server 9 Administrators Handbook
    ISBN: 067232735X
    EAN: 2147483647
    Year: 2003
    Pages: 134

    flylib.com © 2008-2017.
    If you may any questions please contact us: flylib@qtcs.net