Introduction to Unix Administration
Objectives
to identify the basic concepts of Unix administration
Contents
history of Unix
unix vendors and standards
working as root
system administration shells
Practicals
evaluating an administration shell
Summary
Unix
Unix - Genealogy
Systems
Date
1969
1972
1975
1978
1981
1983
1985
1987
1989
1991
1993
1995
Unix - PDP/7
Unix 1st edition - PDP/11
Unix 5/6th edition - C
BSD
Unix System III
BSD 4.1
BSD 4.2
25
Unix 7th edition - non PDP
Unix System V
Amdahl UTS
SunOS
BSD 4.3
AIX
Unix System V.3
500
XENIX
SCO Unix
100000
SunOS 4
AIX 3.1
Solaris 1.0
Solaris 2.0
Unix System V.4 - SVR4
UnixWare 1.0
AIX 4.1
UnixWare 2.0
Unix SVR4.2
2800000
5000000
Major Unix Versions
AT&T System V
currently release 4.2 (SVR4.2)
most widely implemented version of Unix
Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD)
pure BSD systems usually found as free Unix on PCs
OSF/1 derived from BSD with SVR4 additions
HP
HP
ICL
ICL
SNI/Pyramid
SNI/Pyramid
Silicon
SiliconGraphics
GraphicsInc
Inc
SCO
SCO
Sun
SunMicrosystems
Microsystems
HP/UX
HP/UX
DRX
DRX
DC/OSx
DC/OSx
IRIX
IRIX
UnixWare
UnixWare
Solaris
Solaris22
SVR4
SVR4++OSF/1
OSF/1
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SVR4
SCO
SCO
Sequent
Sequent
SCO
SCOUnix
Unix
Dynix/PTX
Dynix/PTX
SVR3.2
SVR3.2
SVR3.2
SVR3.2++security
security
Sun
SunMicrosystems
Microsystems
DEC
DEC
IBM
IBM
SunOS
SunOS44
Digital
DigitalUnix
Unix
AIX
AIX
BSD
BSD
OSF/1
OSF/1++SVR4
SVR4
OSF/1
+
SVR4
OSF/1 + SVR4
Unix Standards
Unix has been standardised
SVR4, OSF/1, POSIX, spec1170
standards concentrate on kernel functionality and API
administration not covered by standards
Administration is similar for all Unix systems
command names can vary from one variant to another
command options can vary
some systems provide better support for administrators than others
Unix administration is developing standards
Distributed Computing Environment (DCE)
Domain Name Services (DNS)
Common Desktop Environment (CDE)
Scope of this Course
To cover basic administrative functions
describe underlying concepts and utilities
Features described in a vendor independent manner
concentrate on SVR4
reference to other systems where appropriate
Cover common areas of administration in detail
users, processes, files & backups
networking, terminals & printers
Introduce less common administration
installing the system and software
accounting & performance monitoring
Useful commands are briefly described
use the on-line manual pages for full information
Discussion - Administration Roles
What are the typical jobs performed by a Unix System
Administrator in the following categories?
Operations
Administration
Technical Support
General Responsibilities
Identify your role and responsibilities
can you delegate some of your work?
Find out about your system
when was it purchased
do you have hardware maintenance, if not why not?
do you have OS maintenance, if not why not?
What hardware does your system have?
What software is installed?
is all the software necessary
Who uses your system?
System Logbook
Keep a logbook for each system
Record activities such as
system crashes
maintenance,
hardware problems
system upgrades
software installations
Keep as paper copy, not an on-line copy
Working As Root
Nearly all Unix administration must be done as user root
this superuser account (user id 0) has unrestricted access to the
system
Administration should be done by one person at a time
check that no one else is logged in as root
if someone else is working as root, find out what they are doing
In a secure room, keep the console logged in as root
useful for getting out of trouble if system starts to hang
do all administration from the console
disable root logins on other terminal lines for security
WARNING
root can irrevocably damage the system
take care when working as root
The su Command
The set user (su) command changes to another user
runs a new shell for the new user
exit from the new shell to resume original user's shell
su changes your effective user id (and group id)
most commands use effective uid/gid for access control
real uid/gid not changed
be aware that some commands always use real uid/gid
Root can use su without providing a password
other users must supply a password
$$ su
su -- root
root
password:
password:
work
workas
asroot,
root,with
withroot's
root'senvironment
environment
Running Commands with su
su can be used to run a command as another user
Use the -c option to specify a "command string"
useful for including in shell scripts
## /bin/su
/bin/su -- printer
printer -c
-c cleanup
cleanup
run
runthe
theprinter
printercleanup
cleanupscript
script
su defaults are in /root/.bash_profile
it it usual for root to have a separate su path
## more
more /root/.bash_profile
/root/.bash_profile
su attempts are logged in /var/log/messages
Permission file: /etc/sudoers tell who is allowed to su
Permission file is edited with command visudo
Exercise - Using su
What do the following commands do and which ones require
a password?
$$ su
su
## su
su -- henry
henry
$$ su
su -## su
su -- root
root -c
-c poweroff
poweroff
## exit
exit
$$ su
su root
root -c
-c "rm
"rm /tmp/.lock321"
/tmp/.lock321"
Traditional Administration
Traditionally, Unix administration requires a good knowledge
of the Unix operating system
Administrators work directly with configuration files and
special programs
Administrators develop or borrow extra programs and scripts
to support standard utilities
Difficult for novice administrators even to get started...
Administration Shells
System manufacturers often provide menu driven
administration interfaces
some are better than others
some only work under X-Windows
Admin shells are not as comprehensive as one would like
Unix administrators still need to know about underlying commands
Linux
Linux
SuSE
SuSE
AIX
AIX
Digital
DigitalUnix
Unix
HP/UX
HP/UX
IRIX
IRIX
SCO
SCOUnix
Unix
Solaris
Solaris22
SVR4
SVR4
WebMin
WebMin
YaST
YaST
SMIT
SMIT
setup
setup
SAM
SAM
Cadmin
Cadmin
sysadmsh
sysadmsh
admintool
admintool
sysadm
sysadm
http
http
tty
tty&&XX
tty
tty&&XX
tty
tty
XX
XX
tty
tty
XX
tty
tty
smit on AIX is awarded to be the most friendly and
comprehensive front end to administration
Summary
Unix administration is similar but not identical
for all systems
Unix administrators tend to learn a lot about
how Unix works
Nearly all administration is undertaken as the
superuser (root)
Administration shells such as sysadm or SMIT
can simplify Unix for novice administrators
Use the su command to run a shell as another
user
When you know one Unix system you can easly
learn all other dialects.
SuSE uses yast and yast2 for most common
admin work.
