3.

1 Navigating the Linux Desktop

To be a Linux systems administrator, it is necessary to be comfortable with Linux as a
desktop operating system and have proficiency with basic Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) skills. Using Linux for productivity tasks, rather than depending on
Windows or Macintosh systems, accelerates learning by working with Linux tools on a daily
basis. Systems administrators do far more than manage servers; they are often called upon
to assist users with configuration issues, recommend new software, and update
documentation among other tasks.
Most Linux distributions allow users to download a “desktop” installation package that can
be loaded onto a USB key. This is one of the first things aspiring system administrators
should do; download a major distribution and load it onto an old PC. This process is fairly
straightforward, and tutorials are available online. The Linux desktop should be familiar to
anyone who has used a PC or Macintosh with icons to select different programs and a
“settings” application to configure things like user accounts, WiFi networks, and input
devices. After familiarizing oneself with the Linux Graphical User Interface (GUI), or
desktop, the next step is learning how to perform tasks from the command line.

3.1.1 Getting to the Command Line

The command line interface (CLI) is a simple text input system for entering anything from
single-word commands to complicated scripts. Most operating systems have a CLI that
provides a direct way of accessing and controlling the computer.
On systems that boot to a GUI, there are two common ways of accessing the command
line—a GUI-based terminal, and a virtual terminal:
• A GUI terminal is a program within the GUI environment that emulates a terminal
window. GUI terminals can be accessed through the menu system. For example,
on a CentOS machine, you could click on Applications on the menu bar,
then System Tools > and, finally, Terminal. If you have a search tools, you can
search for terminal, as shown here.
 • A virtual terminal can be run at the same time as a GUI but requires the user to log
in via the virtual terminal before they can execute commands (as they would before
accessing the GUI interface).
Each Linux desktop distribution is slightly different, but the application terminal or x-
term will open a terminal window from the GUI. While there are subtle differences between
the terms console and terminal window sessions, they are all the same from an
administrators standpoint and require the same knowledge of commands to use.
Ordinary command line tasks are starting programs, parsing scripts, and editing text files
used for system or application configuration. Most servers boot directly to a terminal, as a
GUI can be resource intensive and is generally not needed to perform server-based
operations.⁠

3.2 Applications
The kernel of the operating system is like an air traffic controller at an airport, and
the applications are the airplanes under its control. The kernel decides which program gets
which blocks of memory, it starts and kills applications, and it handles displaying text or
graphics on a monitor.
Applications make requests to the kernel and in return receive resources, such as memory,
CPU, and disk space. If two applications request the same resource, the kernel decides
which one gets it, and in some cases, kills off another application to save the rest of the
system and prevent a crash.
The kernel also abstracts some complicated details away from the application. For
example, the application doesn’t know if a block of disk storage is on a solid-state drive, a
spinning metal hard disk, or even a network file share. Applications need only follow the
kernel’s Application Programming Interface (API) and therefore don’t have to worry about
the implementation details. Each application behaves as if it has a large block of memory
on the system; the kernel maintains this illusion by remapping smaller blocks of memory,
sharing blocks of memory with other applications, or even swapping out untouched blocks
to disk.
The kernel also handles the switching of applications, a process known as multitasking. A
computer system has a small number of central processing units (CPUs) and a finite
amount of memory. The kernel takes care of unloading one task and loading a new one if
there is more demand than resources available. When one task has run for a specified
amount of time, the CPU pauses it so that another may run. If the computer is doing
several tasks at once, the kernel is deciding when to switch focus between tasks. With the
tasks rapidly switching, it appears that the computer is doing many things at once.
When we, as users, think of applications, we tend to think of word processors, web
browsers, and email clients, however, there are a large variety of application types. The
kernel doesn’t differentiate between a user-facing application, a network service that talks
to a remote computer, or an internal task. From this, we get an abstraction called
a process. A process is just one task that is loaded and tracked by the kernel. An
application may even need multiple processes to function, so the kernel takes care of
running the processes, starting and stopping them as requested, and handing out system
resources.

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3.2.1 Major Applications

The Linux kernel can run a wide variety of software across many hardware platforms. A
computer can act as a server, which means it primarily handles data on others’ behalf, or
as a desktop, which means a user interacts with it directly. The machine can run software
or be used as a development machine in the process of creating software. A machine can
even adopt multiple roles as Linux makes no distinction; it’s merely a matter of configuring
which applications run.
One resulting advantage is that Linux can simulate almost all aspects of a production
environment, from development to testing, to verification on scaled-down hardware, which
saves costs and time. A Linux administrator could run the same server applications on a
desktop or inexpensive virtual server that are run by large internet service providers. Of
course, a desktop would not be able to handle the same volume as a major provider would,
but almost any configuration can be simulated without needing powerful hardware or server
licensing.
Linux software generally falls into one of three categories:

• Server Applications

Software that has no direct interaction with the monitor and keyboard of the
machine it runs on. Its purpose is to serve information to other computers,
called clients. Sometimes server applications may not talk to other
computers but only sit there and crunch data.

• Desktop Applications

Web browsers, text editors, music players, or other applications with which
users interact directly. In many cases, such as a web browser, the
application is talking to a server on the other end and interpreting the data.
This is the “client” side of a client/server application.

• Tools

A loose category of software that exists to make it easier to manage

computer systems. Tools can help configure displays, provide a Linux shell
that users type commands into, or even more sophisticated tools, called
 compilers, that convert source code to application programs that the
computer can execute.
The availability of applications varies depending on the distribution. Often application
vendors choose a subset of distributions to support. Different distributions have different
versions of key libraries, and it is difficult for a company to support all these different
versions. Some applications, however, like Firefox and LibreOffice are widely supported
and available for all major distributions.
The Linux community has come up with lots of creative solutions for both desktop and
server applications. These applications, many of which make up the backbone of the
Internet, are critical to understanding, and utilizing the power of Linux.
Most computing tasks can be accomplished by any number of applications in Linux. There
are many web browsers, web servers, database servers, and text editors from which to
choose. Evaluating application software is an important skill to be learned by the aspiring
Linux administrator. Determining requirements for performance, stability, and cost are just
some of the considerations needed for a comprehensive analysis.

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3.2.2 Server Applications

Linux excels at running server applications because of its reliability and efficiency. The
ability to optimize server operating systems with just needed components allows
administrators to do more with less, a feature loved by startups and large enterprises alike.

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[Link] Web Servers

One of the early uses of Linux was for web servers. A web server hosts content for web
pages, which are viewed by a web browser using the HyperText Transfer Protocol
(HTTP) or its encrypted flavor, HTTPS. The web page itself can either be static or dynamic.
When the web browser requests a static page, the web server sends the file as it appears
on disk. In the case of a dynamic site, the request is sent by the web server to an
application, which generates the content.
WordPress is one popular example. Users can develop content through their browser in
the WordPress application, and the software turns it into a fully functional dynamic website.
Apache is the dominant web server in use today. Apache was originally a standalone
project, but the group has since formed the Apache Software Foundation and maintains
over a hundred open source software projects. Apache HTTPD is the daemon, or server
application program, that “serves” web page requests.
Another web server is NGINX, which is based out of Russia. It focuses on performance by
making use of more modern UNIX kernels and only does a subset of what Apache can do.
Over 65% of websites are powered by either NGINX or Apache.

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[Link] Private Cloud Servers

As individuals, organizations, and companies start to move their data to the cloud, there is
a growing demand for private cloud server software that can be deployed and administered
internally.
The ownCloud project was launched in 2010 by Frank Karlitschek to provide software to
store, sync and share data from private cloud servers. It is available in a standard open
source GNU AGPLv3 license and an enterprise version that carries a commercial license.
The Nextcloud project was forked from ownCloud in 2016 by Karlitschek and has been
growing steadily since then. It is provided under a GNU AGPLv3 and aims for “an open,
transparent development process.”
Both projects focus on providing private cloud software that meets the needs of both large
and small organizations that require security, privacy, and regulatory compliance. While
several other projects aim to serve the same users, these two are by far the largest in
terms of both deployment and project members.

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[Link] Database Servers

Database server applications form the backbone of most online services. Dynamic web
applications pull data from and write data to these applications. For example, a web
program for tracking online students might consist of a front-end server that presents a web
form. When data is entered into the form, it is written to a database application such
as MariaDB. When instructors need to access student information, the web application
queries the database and returns the results through the web application.
MariaDB is a community-developed fork of the MySQL relational database management
system. It is just one of many database servers used for web development as different
requirements dictate the best application for the required tasks.
A database stores information and also allows for easy retrieval and querying. Some other
popular databases are Firebird and PostgreSQL. You might enter raw sales figures into
the database and then use a language called Structured Query Language (SQL) to
aggregate sales by product and date to produce a report.

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[Link] Email Servers

Email has always been a widespread use for Linux servers. When discussing email
servers, it is always helpful to look at the 3 different tasks required to get email between
people:

• Mail Transfer Agent (MTA)

The most well known MTA (software that is used to transfer electronic
messages to other systems) is Sendmail. Postfix is another popular one
and aims to be simpler and more secure than Sendmail.

• Mail Delivery Agent (MDA)

 Also called the Local Delivery Agent, it takes care of storing the email in
the user’s mailbox. Usually invoked from the final MTA in the chain.

• POP/IMAP Server

The Post Office Protocol (POP) and Internet Message Access Protocol
(IMAP) are two communication protocols that let an email client running on
your computer talk to a remote server to pick up the email.
Dovecot is a popular POP/IMAP server owing to its ease of use and low
maintenance. Cyrus IMAP is another option. Some POP/IMAP servers implement their
own mail database format for performance and include the MDA if the custom database is
desired. People using standard file formats (such as all the emails in one text file) can
choose any MDA.
There are several significant differences between the closed source and open source
software worlds, one being that of inclusion of other projects as components to a project or
[Link] the closed source world, Microsoft Exchange is shipped primarily as a
software package/suite that includes all the necessary or approved components, all from
Microsoft, so there are few if any options to make individual selections. In the open source
world, many options can be modularly included or swapped out for package components,
and indeed some software packages or suites are just a well-packaged set of otherwise
individual components all harmoniously working together.

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[Link] File Sharing

For Windows-centric file sharing, Samba is the clear winner. Samba allows a Linux
machine to look and behave like a Windows machine so that it can share files and
participate in a Windows domain. Samba implements the server components, such as
making files available for sharing and certain Windows server roles, and also the client end
so that a Linux machine may consume a Windows file share.
The Netatalk project lets a Linux machine perform as an Apple Macintosh file server. The
native file sharing protocol for UNIX/Linux is called the Network File System (NFS). NFS
is usually part of the kernel which means that a remote file system can be mounted (made
accessible) just like a regular disk, making file access transparent to other applications.
As a computer network becomes more substantial, the need for a directory increases. One
of the oldest network directory systems is the Domain Name System (DNS). It is used to
convert a name like [Link] to an IP address like [Link], which is a
unique identifier of a computer on the Internet. DNS also holds global information like the
address of the MTA for a given domain name. An organization may want to run their own
DNS server to host their public-facing names, and also to serve as an internal directory of
services. The Internet Software Consortium maintains the most popular DNS server,
simply called bind after the name of the process that runs the service.
The DNS is focused mainly on computer names and IP addresses and is not easily
searchable. Other directories have sprung up to store information such as user accounts
and security roles. The Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) is one common
directory system which also powers Microsoft’s Active Directory. In LDAP, an object is
stored in a tree, and the position of that object on the tree can be used to derive information
about the object and what it stores. For example, a Linux administrator may be stored in a
branch of the tree called “IT Department,” which is under a branch called “Operations.”
Thus one can find all the technical staff by searching under the “IT Department”
branch. OpenLDAP is the dominant program used in Linux infrastructure.
One final piece of network infrastructure to discuss here is called the Dynamic Host
Configuration Protocol (DHCP). When a computer boots up, it needs an IP address for
the local network so it can be uniquely identified. DHCP’s job is to listen for requests and to
assign a free address from the DHCP pool. The Internet Systems Consortium (known until
January 2004 as the Internet Software Consortium) also maintains the ISC DHCP server,
which is the most common open source DHCP server.

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3.2.3 Desktop Applications

The Linux ecosystem has a wide variety of desktop applications. There are games,
productivity applications, creative tools, web browsers and more.

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[Link] Email
The Mozilla Foundation came out with Thunderbird, a full-featured desktop email client.
Thunderbird connects to a POP or IMAP server, displays email locally, and sends email
through an external SMTP server.
Other notable email clients are Evolution and KMail which are the GNOME and KDE
projects' email clients. Standardization through POP and IMAP and local email formats
means that it’s easy to switch between email clients without losing data.

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[Link] Creative
For the creative types, there is Blender, GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program),
and Audacity which handle 3D movie creation, 2D image manipulation, and audio editing
respectively. They have had various degrees of success in professional markets. Blender is
used for everything from independent films to Hollywood movies, for example. GIMP
supports high-quality photo manipulation, original artwork creation, graphic design
elements, and is extensible through scripting in multiple languages. Audacity is a free and
open source audio editing tool that is available on multiple operating systems.

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[Link] Productivity
Use of common open source applications in presentations and projects is one way to
strengthen Linux skills. The basic productivity applications, such as a word processor,
spreadsheet, and presentation package are valuable assets. Collectively they’re known as
an office suite, primarily due to Microsoft Office, the dominant player in the market.
LibreOffice is a fork of the OpenOffice (sometimes called [Link]) application
suite. Both offer a full office suite, including tools that strive for compatibility with Microsoft
Office in both features and file formats.
Shown below is the spreadsheet and the document editor of LibreOffice. Note how the
spreadsheet, LibreOffice Calc, is not limited to rows and columns of numbers. The
numbers can be the source of a graph, and formulas can be written to calculate values
based on information, such as pulling together interest rates and loan amounts to help
compare different borrowing options.
Using LibreOffice Writer, a document can contain text, graphics, data tables, and much
more. You can link documents and spreadsheets together, for example, so that you can
summarize data in a written form and know that any changes to the spreadsheet will be
reflected in the document.

LibreOffice can also work with other file formats, such as Microsoft Office or Adobe
Portable Document Format (PDF) files. Additionally, through the use of extensions,
LibreOffice can be made to integrate with Wiki software to give you a powerful intranet
solution.

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[Link] Web Browsers

Linux is a first class citizen for the Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome browsers. Both
are open source web browsers that are fast, feature-rich, and have excellent support for
web developers. These packages are an excellent example of how competition helps to
drive open source development – improvements made to one browser spur the
development of the other browser. As a result, the Internet has two excellent browsers that
push the limits of what can be done on the web, and work across a variety of platforms.
Using a browser, while second nature for many, can lead to privacy concerns. By
understanding and modifying the configuration options, one can limit the amount of
information they share while searching the web and saving content.

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3.3 Console Tools

Historically, the development of UNIX shows considerable overlap between the skills of
software development and systems administration. The tools for managing systems have
features of computer languages such as loops (which allow commands to be carried out
repeatedly), and some computer programming languages are used extensively in
automating systems administration tasks. Thus, one should consider these skills
complementary, and at least a basic familiarity with programming is required for competent
systems administrators.

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3.3.1 Shells
At the basic level, users interact with a Linux system through a shell whether connecting to
the system remotely or from an attached keyboard. The shell’s job is to accept commands,
like file manipulations and starting applications, and to pass those to the Linux kernel for
execution. ⁠ The Linux shell provides a rich language for iterating over files and customizing
the environment, all without leaving the shell. For example, it is possible to write a single
command line that finds files with contents matching a specific pattern, extracts useful
information from the file, then copies the new information to a new file.
Linux offers a variety of shells to choose from, mostly differing in how and what can be
customized, and the syntax of the built-in scripting language. The two main families are
the Bourne shell and the C shell. The Bourne shell was named after its creator Stephen
Bourne of Bell Labs. The C shell was so named because its syntax borrows heavily from
the C language. As both these shells were invented in the 1970s, there are more modern
versions, the Bourne Again Shell (Bash) and the tcsh (pronounced as tee-cee-shell).
Bash is the default shell on most systems, though tcsh is also typically available.
Programmers have taken favorite features from Bash and tcsh and made other shells, such
as the Korn shell (ksh) and the Z shell (zsh). The choice of shells is mostly a personal
one; users who are comfortable with Bash can operate effectively on most Linux systems.
Other shells may offer features that increase productivity in specific use cases.

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3.3.2 Text Editors

Most Linux systems provide a choice of text editors which are commonly used at the
console to edit configuration files. The two main applications are Vi (or the more
modern Vim) and Emacs. Both are remarkably powerful tools to edit text files; they differ in
the format of the commands and how plugins are written for them. Plugins can be anything
from syntax highlighting of software projects to integrated calendars.
Both Vi and Emacs are complex and have a steep learning curve, which is not helpful for
simple editing of a small text file. Therefore, Pico and Nano are available on most systems
and provide very basic text editing.
Consider This
The Nano editor was developed as a completely open source editor that is loosely based
on Pico, as the license for Pico is not an open source license and forbids making changes
and distributing it.
While Nano is simple and easy to use, it doesn’t offer the extensive suite of more advanced
editing and key binding features that an editor like Vi does. Administrators should strive to
gain some basic familiarity with Vi, though, because it is available on almost every Linux
system in existence. When restoring a broken Linux system by running in the distribution’s
recovery mode, Vi can be a critical tool, and the best time to learn Vim or any editor is
before you desperately need it to fix a broken system.

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3.4 Package Management

Every Linux system needs to add, remove, and update software. In the past this meant
downloading the source code, setting it up, compiling it, and copying files onto each system
that required updating. Thankfully, modern distributions use packages, which are
compressed files that bundle up an application and its dependencies (or required files),
greatly simplifying the installation by making the right directories, copying the proper files
into them, and creating such needed items as symbolic links.
A package manager takes care of keeping track of which files belong to which package and
even downloading updates from repositories, typically a remote server sharing out the
appropriate updates for a distribution. In Linux, there are many different software package
management systems, but the two most popular are those from Debian and Red Hat.

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3.4.1 Debian Package Management

The Debian distribution, and its derivatives such as Ubuntu and Mint, use the Debian
package management system. At the heart of Debian package management are software
packages that are distributed as files ending in the .deb extension.
The lowest-level tool for managing these files is the dpkg command. This command can be
tricky for novice Linux users, so the Advanced Package Tool, apt-get (a front-end
program to the dpkg tool), makes management of packages easier. Additional command
line tools which serve as front-ends to dpkg include aptitude and GUI front-ends
like Synaptic and Software Center.

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3.4.2 RPM Package Management

The Linux Standards Base, which is a Linux Foundation project, is designed to specify
(through a consensus) a set of standards that increase the compatibility between
conforming Linux systems. According to the Linux Standards Base, the standard package
management system is RPM.
RPM makes use of an .rpm file for each software package. This system is what
distributions derived from Red Hat, including Centos and Fedora, use to manage software.
Several other distributions that are not Red Hat derived, such as SUSE, OpenSUSE, and
Arch, also use RPM.
⁠ Like the Debian system, RPM Package Management systems track dependencies between
packages. Tracking dependencies ensures that when a package is installed, the system
also installs any packages needed by that package to function correctly. Dependencies
also ensure that software updates and removals are performed properly.
The back-end tool most commonly used for RPM Package Management is
the rpm command. While the rpm command can install, update, query and remove
packages, the command line front-end tools such as yum and up2date automate the
process of resolving dependency issues.
Note
A back-end program or application either interacts directly with a front-end program or is
"called" by an intermediate program. Back end programs would not interact directly with the
user. Basically, there are programs that interact with people (front-end) and programs that
interact with other programs (back-end).
There are also GUI-based front-end tools such as Yumex and Gnome PackageKit that
also make RPM package management easier.
Some RPM-based distributions have implemented the ZYpp (or libzypp) package
management style, mostly openSUSE and SUSE Linux Enterprise, but mobile distributions
MeeGo, Tizen and Sailfish as well.
The zypper command is the basis of the ZYpp method, and it features short and long
English commands to perform functions, such as zypper in packagename which installs a
package including any needed dependencies.
Most of the commands associated with package management require root privileges. The
rule of thumb is that if a command affects the state of a package, administrative access is
required. In other words, a regular user can perform a query or a search, but to add, update
or remove a package requires the command to be executed as the root user.

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3.5 Development Languages

It should come as no surprise that as software built on contributions from programmers,
Linux has excellent support for software development. The shells are built to be
programmable, and there are powerful editors included on every system. There are also
many development tools available, and many modern programming languages treat Linux
as a first-class citizen.
Computer programming languages provide a way for a programmer to enter instructions in
a more human readable format, and for those instructions to eventually become translated
into something the computer understands. Languages fall into one of two
camps: interpreted or compiled. An interpreted language translates the written code into
computer code as the program runs, and a compiled language is translated all at once.
Linux itself was written in a compiled language called C. The main benefit of C is that the
language itself maps closely to the generated machine code so that a skilled programmer
can write code that is small and efficient. When computer memory was measured in
kilobytes, this was very important. Even with large memory sizes today, C is still helpful for
writing code that must run fast, such as an operating system.
C has been extended over the years. There is C++, which adds object support to C (a
different style of programming), and Objective C that took another direction and is in heavy
use in Apple products.
The Java language puts a different spin on the compiled approach. Instead of compiling to
machine code, Java first imagines a hypothetical CPU called the Java Virtual Machine
(JVM) and then compiles all the code to that. Each host computer then runs JVM software
to translate the JVM instructions (called bytecode) into native instructions.
The additional translation with Java might make you think it would be slow. However, the
JVM is relatively simple so it can be implemented quickly and reliably on anything from a
powerful computer to a low power device that connects to a television. A compiled Java file
can also be run on any computer implementing the JVM!
Another benefit of compiling to an intermediate target is that the JVM can provide services
to the application that usually wouldn’t be available on a CPU. Allocating memory to a
program is a complex problem, but it’s built into the JVM. As a result, JVM makers can
focus their improvements on the JVM as a whole, so any progress they make is instantly
available to applications.
Interpreted languages, on the other hand, are translated to machine code as they execute.
The extra computer power spent doing this can often be recouped by the increased
productivity the programmer gains by not having to stop working to compile. Interpreted
languages also tend to offer more features than compiled languages, meaning that often
less code is needed. The language interpreter itself is usually written in another language
such as C, and sometimes even Java! This means that an interpreted language is being
run on the JVM, which is translated at runtime into actual machine code.
JavaScript is a high-level interpreted programming language that is one of the core
technologies on the world wide web. It is similar to but fundamentally different from Java,
which is a completely object-oriented programming language owned by Oracle. JavaScript
is a cross-platform scripting language for adding interactive elements to web pages, that is
in wide use across the internet. By using JavaScript libraries, web programmers can add
everything from simple animations to complex server-side applications for internet users.
JavaScript is continuously evolving to meet the functionality and security needs of internet
users and is capable of being released under a GNU GPL License.
Consider This
The term object-oriented refers to programing that abstracts complex actions and
processes so that the end user only deals with basic tasks. To visualize this concept, think
of a machine that performs a complex set of tasks by simply pushing a button.
Perl is an interpreted language. Perl was originally developed to perform text manipulation.
Over the years, it gained favor with systems administrators and continues to be improved
and used in everything from automation to building web applications.
PHP is a language that was initially built to create dynamic web pages. A PHP file is read
by a web server such as Apache. Special tags in the file indicate that parts of the code
should be interpreted as instructions. The web server pulls all the different parts of the file
together and sends it to the web browser. PHP’s main advantages are that it is easy to
learn and available on almost any system. Because of this, many popular projects are built
on PHP. Notable examples include WordPress (for blogging), cacti (for monitoring), and
even parts of Facebook.
Ruby is another language that was influenced by Perl and Shell, along with many other
languages. It makes complex programming tasks relatively easy, and with the inclusion of
the Ruby on Rails framework, is a popular choice for building complex web applications.
Ruby is also the language that powers many of the leading automation tools
like Chef and Puppet, which make managing a large number of Linux systems much
simpler.
Python is another scripting language that is in general use. Much like Ruby it makes
complex tasks easier and has a framework called Django that makes building web
applications very easy. Python has excellent statistical processing abilities and is a favorite
in academia.
A computer programming language is just a tool that makes it easier to tell the computer
what you want it to do. A library bundles common tasks into a distinct package that can be
used by the developer. ImageMagick is one such library that lets programmers manipulate
images in code. ImageMagick also ships with some command line tools that enable
programmers to process images from a shell and take advantage of the scripting
capabilities there.
OpenSSL is a cryptographic library that is used in everything from web servers to the
command line. It provides a standard interface for adding cryptography into a Perl script, for
example.
At a much lower level is the C library. The C library provides a basic set of functions for
reading and writing to files and displays, and is used by applications and other languages
alike.

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3.6 Security
Administrators and computer users are increasingly aware of privacy concerns in both their
personal and professional lives. High-profile data breaches have been in the news all too
often recently, and the cost of these break-ins can reach into the millions of dollars for the
institutions that fall victim to hackers and ransomware attacks. Many times the cause of
these breaches is simply human error such as opening a suspicious email or entering
passwords into a phony login page.
Cookies are the primary mechanism that websites use to track you. Sometimes this
tracking is good, such as to keep track of what is in your shopping cart or to keep you
logged in when you return to the site.
As you browse the web, a web server can send back the cookie, which is a small piece of
text, along with the web page. Your browser stores this information and sends it back with
every request to the same site. Cookies are normally only sent back to the site they
originated from, so a cookie from [Link] wouldn’t be sent to [Link].
However, many sites have embedded scripts that come from third parties, such as a
banner advertisement or Google analytics pixel. If both [Link] and [Link]
have a tracking pixel, such as one from an advertiser, then that same cookie will be sent
when browsing both sites. The advertiser then knows that you have visited both
[Link] and [Link].
With a broad enough reach, such as placement on social network sites with “Like” buttons
and such, a website can gain an understanding of which websites you frequent and figure
out your interests and demographics.
There are various strategies for dealing with this. One is to ignore it. The other is to limit the
tracking pixels you accept, either by blocking them entirely or clearing them out periodically.
Browsers typically offer cookie-related settings; users can opt to have the browser tell the
site not to track. This voluntary tag is sent in the request, and some sites will honor it. The
browser can also be set never to remember third-party cookies and remove regular cookies
(such as from the site you are browsing) after being closed.
Tweaking privacy settings can make you more anonymous on the Internet, but it can also
cause problems with some sites that depend on third-party cookies. If this happens, you
might have to explicitly permit some cookies to be saved.
Browsers also offer a private or incognito mode where cookies and tracking pixels are
deleted upon exiting the window. This mode can be helpful if you would like to search for
something without letting other websites know what you are looking for.

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3.6.1 Password Issues

Good password management is essential to security in any computing environment. The
Linux systems administrator is often the person responsible for setting and enforcing
password policies for users at all levels. The most privileged user on any Linux system
is root; this account is the primary administrator and is created when the operating system
is installed. Often administrators will disable root access as the first line of defense against
intrusion since computer hackers will try to gain root access in order to take control of the
system.
There are many levels of access and various means of password management on a Linux
system. When users are created, they are given different login permissions depending on
what groups they are assigned to. For example, administrators can create and manage
users while regular users cannot. Services that run on systems such as databases can also
have login permissions with their own passwords and privileges. Additionally, there are
specific passwords for accessing systems remotely through SSH, FTP, or other
management programs.
Managing all these accounts, and their accompanying passwords is a complicated and
necessary part of the systems administrator role. Passwords need to be complex enough
not to be easily guessed by hackers, yet easy to remember for users. Increasingly users
and administrators are turning to password manager programs to store login credentials in
encrypted form. Another trend is two-factor authentication (2FA), a technique where a
password is supplemented by a second “factor,” often a passcode sent to the user's phone
or other devices. Keeping up with current security trends, while ensuring authorized users'
ease of access, is an ongoing challenge that must be met.

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3.6.2 Protecting Yourself
As you browse the web, you leave a digital footprint. Much of this information goes ignored;
some of it is gathered to collect statistics for advertising, and some can be used for
malicious purposes.
The easiest thing you can do is to use a good, unique password everywhere you go,
especially on your local machine. A good password is at least 10 characters long and
contains a mixture of numbers, letters (both upper and lower case) and special symbols.
Use a password manager like KeePassX to generate passwords, and then you only need
to have a login password to your machine and a password to open up your KeePassX file.
Also, limit the information you give to sites to only what is needed. While giving your
mother’s maiden name and birthdate might help unlock your social network login if you lose
your password, the same information can be used to impersonate you to your bank.
After that, make a point of checking for updates periodically. The system can be configured
to check for updates on a regular basis. If there are security-related updates, you may be
prompted immediately to install them.

Finally, you should protect your computer from accepting incoming connections.
A firewall is a device that filters network traffic, and Linux has one built-in. If you are using
Ubuntu, then the Gufw is a graphical interface to Ubuntu’s Uncomplicated Firewall
(UFW).
Under the hood, you are using iptables, which is the built-in firewall system. Instead of
entering complicated iptables commands you use a GUI. While this GUI lets you build an
effective policy for a desktop, it barely scratches the surface of what iptables can do.

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3.6.3 Privacy Tools

The use of modern privacy tools, both at the server and user level, can help prevent system
intrusions and unauthorized access to data.
The good news is that Linux is by default one of the most secure operating systems ever
created. Many of the exploits that plague other operating systems simply won’t work on
Linux due to the underlying architecture. However, there are still many known weaknesses
that hackers can take advantage of so the proactive systems administrator is wise to
deploy privacy tools that protect their users as well as the systems they use.
Encryption is probably the best-known and most widely-deployed privacy tool in use today.
Administrators deploy encryption with authentication keys on almost every system that
communicates with the outside world. One well-known example is the HyperText Transfer
Protocol Secure (HTTPS) standard used on web servers to ensure that data transmitted
between users and online resources cannot be intercepted as it travels on the open
Internet.
Virtual private networks (VPN) have been in use by companies to connect their remote
servers and employees for many years. Now they are gaining popularity amongst ordinary
users looking to protect their privacy online. They work by creating an encrypted channel of
communication between two systems, so the data transmitted between them is scrambled
by an algorithm only the systems know.
The Tor project has long been involved in creating privacy tools like it’s Tor Browser that
works by relaying internet requests through a network of servers that prevents websites
and others from learning the identity of the person making the request.
These tools are constantly evolving and choosing which ones are appropriate for the users
and systems involved is an essential part of the systems administrator's role.
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3.7 The Cloud

No doubt you’ve heard of the cloud. Whether you’re using Google Docs for your homework
or storing music and photos on iCloud, you probably have at least some of your digital
content hosted on a cloud server somewhere.
Cloud computing has revolutionized the way we access technology. As Internet
connectivity and speeds have increased, it’s become easier to move computing resources
to remote locations where content can be accessed, manipulated and shared around the
globe. Organizations are increasingly looking at the cloud as essential to their businesses
and operations. The migration of an organization's IT applications and processes to cloud
services, known as cloud adoption, is rapidly becoming a strategic business decision for
many. With cloud adoption rising significantly all over the globe, cloud computing is not the
catchphrase that it once was. Cloud computing is seen as one of the major disruptive
technologies of the coming decade which will significantly transform businesses,
economies, and lives globally.
Physically, a cloud can be described as computing resources from one or many off-site
data centers which can be accessed over the internet. The cloud builds on the benefits of a
data center and provides computing solutions to organizations who need to store and
process data, and it allows them to delegate management of IT infrastructure to a third-
party. The data and resources that organizations store in the cloud can include data,
servers, storage, application hosting, analytics and a myriad of other services.
A cloud deployment model provides a basis for how cloud infrastructure is built, managed,
and accessed. There are four primary cloud deployment models:
• Public Cloud: A public cloud is a cloud infrastructure deployed by a provider to
offer cloud services to the general public and organizations over the Internet. In the
public cloud model, there may be multiple tenants (consumers) who share common
cloud resources. More than likely, many of us have accessed public cloud
resources at some point through providers such as Amazon, Google, and other
popular public cloud providers.
• Private Cloud: A private cloud is a cloud infrastructure that is set up for the sole
use of a particular organization. When compared to a public cloud, a private cloud
offers organizations a greater degree of privacy, and control over the cloud
infrastructure, applications, and data. It can be hosted either on servers managed
by the company that is using it or through a managed private cloud provider such
as Rackspace or IBM.
• Community Cloud: A community cloud is a cloud infrastructure that is set up for
the sole use by a group of organizations with common goals or requirements. The
organizations participating in the community typically share the cost of the
community cloud service. This option may be more expensive than the public cloud;
however, it may offer a higher level of control and protection against external
threats than a public cloud.
• Hybrid Cloud: A hybrid cloud is composed of two or more individual clouds, each
of which can be a private, community, or public cloud. A hybrid cloud may change
over time as component clouds join and leave. The use of such technology enables
data and application portability. It also allows companies to leverage outside
resources while retaining control of sensitive resources.

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3.7.1 Linux in the Cloud
Linux plays a pivotal role in cloud computing. It powers 90% of the public cloud workload,
most virtual servers are based on some version of the Linux kernel, and Linux is often used
to host the applications behind cloud computing services. So what makes Linux uniquely
suited to enabling cloud computing?
Flexibility
Cloud computing provides the capability to provision IT resources quickly and at any time.
This agility enables rapid development and experimentation that, in turn, facilitates
innovation which is essential for research and development, the discovery of new markets
and revenue opportunities, creating new customer segments, and the development of new
products.
As a result, cloud computing must compensate for the fact that each organization has a
unique, evolving set of resource requirements.
Linux stands out here because it is highly adaptable. For starters, Linux is modular by
design, and at the center of an enormous ecosystem of open source applications providing
endless configuration options to suit various systems and use cases. On top of that, Linux
scales efficiently, allowing it to run anything from a tiny remote sensor to an entire server
farm.
Accessibility
In a traditional environment, IT resources are accessed from dedicated devices, such as a
desktop or a laptop. In cloud computing, applications and data reside centrally and are
accessed from anywhere over a network from any device, such as desktop, mobile, or thin
client, and there is a version of Linux for every single one of these devices.
Cost-Effective
Cloud computing is attractive as it has the potential for consumers to reduce their IT costs.
In cloud computing, consumers can unilaterally and automatically scale IT resources to
meet workload demand, thereby eliminating overhead from underutilized resources.
Additionally, the expenses associated with IT configuration, management, floor space,
power, and cooling are reduced.
Cloud providers absorb these infrastructure costs but must remain a low-cost alternative.
Choosing Linux is one of the most cost-effective solutions providers can deploy. Linux is
one of the most power efficient operating systems, and the Linux kernel is completely free,
as are many associated applications, utilities, and additional software components.
Enterprise and government organizations can opt to pay for commercially-supported
distributions, which are still more cost-effective when compared to licensed competitors.
Non-commercial distributions that support cloud computing also are a viable option for
many organizations.
Not only can vendors pass these savings onto the customers, offering Linux-based
solutions can be cheaper for the client to implement. Setting up Linux on their own systems
eliminates expensive user licensing fees potentially associated with competing operating
systems.
Manageability
While Linux began as a niche operating system, its widespread presence in the IT industry
has made Linux use and administration a necessary skill for IT professionals. It is
becoming increasingly easy for cloud vendors and consumers to acquire the necessary
talent, or reallocate existing team members.
The nature of Linux, built on the C programming language, also lends itself to automated
management tools. A significant portion of Linux servers operating in the cloud are created
and managed by automated management programs rather than human operators. This
process frees up administrators to monitor computing operations rather than manually
configuring and updating systems.
Security
When using a cloud solution, especially a public cloud, an organization may have concerns
related to privacy, external threats, and lack of control over the IT resources and data.
Linux can help offset these issues because it is one of the most secure and reliable
operating systems available. Linux is open source, meaning its source code is available for
anyone to obtain, review, and modify. This also means the code can be inspected for
vulnerabilities and compatibility issues, resulting in an extensive community effort to rectify
these issues and uphold the robust reputation of Linux.
Virtualization
Virtualization is one of the most significant advancements that has contributed to the
enablement cloud of computing.
Linux is a multi-user operating system, which means that many different users can work on
the same system simultaneously and for the most part can’t do things to harm other users.
However, this does have limitations – users can hog disk space or take up too much
memory or CPU resources and make the system slow for everyone. Sharing the system in
multi-user mode also requires that everyone run as unprivileged users, so letting each user
run their own web server, for example, is challenging.
Virtualization is the process where one physical computer, called the host, runs multiple
copies of an operating system, each copy called a guest. These guest images can be pre-
configured for specific functions to allow rapid deployment, often automatically, when
needed. The host system runs software called a hypervisor that switches resources
between the various guests just like the Linux kernel does for individual processes. With
bare metal hypervisors, the hypervisor runs directly on computer hardware rather than on
top of an OS freeing up more resources for guest images.
Virtualization works because servers spend most of their time idling and don’t need
physical resources such as a monitor and keyboard. With software
like Workstation and VirtualBox from companies like VMWare and Oracle, you can now
take a powerful CPU and by using it to run multiple virtual machines administrators can
optimize usage of physical resources and dramatically reduce costs over the previous one-
machine, one-OS data center model. The main limitation is usually memory, however, with
advances in hypervisor technology and CPUs, it is possible to put more virtual machines on
one host than ever.
In a virtualized environment one host can run dozens of guest operating systems, and with
support from the CPU itself, the guests don’t even know they are running on a virtual
machine. Each guest gets its own virtual resources and communicates with the network on
its own. It is not even necessary to run the same operating system on all the guests, which
further reduces the number of physical servers needed.
Virtualization offers a way for an enterprise to lower power usage and reduce data center
space over an equivalent fleet of physical servers. Guests are now just software
configurations, so it is easy to spin up a new machine for testing and destroy it when its
usefulness has passed.
Since it is possible to run multiple instances of an operating system on one physical
machine and connect to it over the network, the location of the machine doesn’t matter.
Cloud computing takes this approach and allows administrators to have virtual machines in
a remote data center owned by another company, and only pay for the resources used.
Cloud computing vendors can take advantage of scales of economy to offer computing
resources at far lower prices than operating an on-site data center.
Containers and Bare Metal Deployments
With the rise of containerization technologies like Docker and Kubernetes application
software is now being written that runs in a serverless environment. Essentially,
programmers are creating software that does one single function of a system (like database
processing or storage) that runs in a container. These containers are organized in pods that
run within a node and can talk with each other, and the outside world if needed. Nodes, in
turn, are organized and controlled by a master node that provides services to each
component within the structure. Building applications in this way decouples each of the
components from the others, and from the overhead of running an OS. Since each piece of
the puzzle can be automatically destroyed and recreated by the master node they no
longer need to be as robust as software that runs on top of an OS. Although these new
programming architectures are in many ways bypassing the need for a traditional OS the
underlying technology that makes them work is still Linux. So, working in Linux will
increasingly be working within a development team that draws on the disciplines of
programming, database design, networking, and systems administration to create the
systems of the future.

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