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Web Server Administration

Chapter 3Installing the Server

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Overview Prepare the server for system

installation Understand the installation process Install Windows or Linux Servers Examine basic Linux commands Configure TCP/IP

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Prepare the Server for Installation A typical installation

DVD/CD FTP HTTP NFS server (Network File System) SMB (server Message Block)

Live distro Live stripped-down version on DVD or

USB Provides way to test distro before

installing

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Multiple OS Production systems use a single-boot

system meaning only one OS is on a computer

Dual boot - You can put all described OSs on a single computer which is a multi-boot

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Checking Hardware Compatibility Typically you have fewer problems

if you are using hardware designed for a server from major manufacturers

With video adapters and NICs, it is best to use ones from major vendors

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Checking Hardware Compatibility You can have problems if you

Put a system together yourself Try to upgrade an OS on old servers

because they sometimes have specialized hardware that is not supported anymore

For Windows OSs www.microsoft.com/hardware

For Red Hat Linux www.redhat.com/support/hardware

For CentOS http://www.centos.org/

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System Documentation Should be detailed enough for

inexperienced network administrator

System documentation is an ongoing process Changes occur over the life of the

server These changes need to be

documented

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System Documentation Need compatibility information Hardware information

Server manufacturer, including model information

Processor type and speed Amount of RAM Drive interface – RAID, SCSI, IDE Hard disk – size, manufacturer, and model NIC manufacturer and model

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Our Laptop SpecsHardware Maintenance ManualServer manufacturer

Lenovo Thinkpad T500 2055-CTOProcessor type and speed

2.4GHz Core 2 Duo P8600Amount of RAM

3GB L2 Cache DDR3-1067 SDRAMHard disk

80 GB SATAPurchase Date

March 2009

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System Documentation System information

Partition information – number and sizes

OS version installed Latest software patches

Extra drivers needed URLs for latest drivers

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System Documentation Steps for installation including options

chosen Keep documentation, DVDs in a binder Know support details

Who to call Contract phone number Type of support contract Expiration of contract

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The Installation Process The Setup program will ask you

about your system You need to know the answers to

these questions before you start Many of the questions are common

to all operating systems

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The Installation Process-Partitioning the Hard Disk A partition is a logical division of the

hard disk A system boots from the primary

partition You can create an extended partition

Gives you more logical drives in Windows Gives you more Linux partitions It is best to isolate the operating system

from applications If the application partition fills and the operating

system is on the same partition, the OS stops

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The Installation Process Six partitions are used for Linux by

default / (root partition) swap (used for virtual memory) /boot (boot files – small) /usr (shared files and programs) /home (user files and programs) /var (Web site, FTP, log files)

Just / and swap are required

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Managing Multiple Operating Systems on a Single Computer Useful for development purposes Best to start with unpartitioned

hard disk Create one partition for each Windows

OS Allow Linux to create default

partitions Install Windows first, then Linux Linux installation then produces a

menu to select Windows

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The Installation Process-Naming Computers Identify a computer on the network Windows communicates the computer

name to other computers on the subnet so it should be unique

Name of computer is not related to how the computer is recognized on the Internet

In Linux, the hostname can exist on more than computer, it only uses IP addresses for communication

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The Installation Process-Licensing Describes how the software can be used For Windows Server, each installation

must be activated by Microsoft Linux is basically free but there may be

a cost for packaging, support, and extras Based on the GNU general public license Red Hat has personal, professional, and

Advanced Server options Cent OS – non commercial version of Red

Hat

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The Installation Process-Selecting a File System A file system determines how files are

stored on a hard disk Windows has two file systems

ReFS – Resilient Files System NTFS has security which is critical for a

server Red Hat/Cent OS is ext4

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Windows Server Installation Installation is simpler than

previous versions of Windows Only essential information such as

computer name, licensing, password, IP address, and domain membership are requested

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Linux Installation Generally accept the defaults Remember to select Server as the

Installation Type This gives you a list of packages that are

appropriate for a server environment Remember to select "No firewall"

This makes it easier to configure and test your own firewall (Chapter 10)

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Basic Linux Concepts No drive letters The root is /

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Shell Prompt Most work is done at the shell prompt

which is the command-line interface ls – list files cd – change directory mkdir – create a directory rmdir – remove a directory mv – move or rename a file cp – copy a file locate – find a file kedit <filename> - start editing a file

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Kedit Text Editor The Kedit

text editor is similar to Windows Notepad

Note that the positioning of the icons is basically the same as Notepad

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Configuring TCP/IP in Windows To determine TCP/IP configuration, type ipconfig at a command prompt

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To Change the IP Address in Windows

From the Local Area Status dialog box, click Properties

Select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), then click Properties

Now you can change the IP address The Advanced button allows you to

add multiple IP addresses for a single NIC

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Configuring TCP/IP in Linux To determine TCP/IP configuration, type ifconfig at a shell prompt

The IP address is on the third line

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To Change the IP Address in Linux

In System Settings, click Network Click the Edit button Now you can change the IP

address Click OK, then Apply, and Close

to save the changes

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Summary Windows and Linux installations share

the task of creating partitions The same computer can have multiple

operating systems Windows server operating systems are

licensed based on the edition and the number of users

Linux licensing is based on the GNU general public license

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Summary Microsoft and Linux have improved

their ability to recognize devices There are many useful commands

when using the Linux shell prompt