Introduction To Linux - Extra Technology

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This fast-paced, 2-day, hands-on course equips you with the skills and competence to work confidently and proficiently with Linux. You'll learn how to use the shell, how to manage files and directories, and how to examine, search, and edit text files. You'll meet the package management tools and discover how to examine installed packages and add new ones. You'll learn how to monitor system activity such as open network ports and active processes, and how to start and stop system services. Graphical desktop tools are surveyed briefly but the main emphasis is on working at the command line. Red Hat Linux is used as a platform for hands-on exercises in the course, however the course does not lean heavily towards any specific linux distribution but focuses on that large core of tools and utilities that are common to all distributions.

INTENDED AUDIENCE:

The course is designed to offer a "first sight" of Linux for end-users, developers, system administrators, database administrators, technical managers, help desk staff, or anyone who needs to understand and use Linux on a day-to-day basis. The course is not intended to provide basic computer literacy to novices. Attendees should have previous experience with some other operating system (perhaps Windows or Mac OS X) and they should be reasonably proficient at typing and entering simple commands. They should understand concepts such as files, directories (folders) and programs. However, no previous knowledge of Linux is assumed.

KEY SKILLS

After completing this course you will be able to:

* Use the shell (command interpreter)
* View and manage files and directories using command line tools
* Monitor system activity and resource usage
* Construct advanced commands using filters and pipelines
* Locate and install software packages from internet repositories
* Become self-sufficient by locating and studying linux documentation

COURSE OUTLINE

CHAPTER 1: The Background to Linux

A little bit of history (but not much)

How is Linux different from Windows?
    What is open source software?
    Is it really free?
    What platforms does it run on?
    How secure is it?
    How do the various Linux distributions differ?
    What support is available?

The scope of Linux
    Graphical desktops and tools
    Command line tools and utilities
    Software development languages
    Networking support
    Web and e-commerce support

CHAPTER 2: Using the Gnome Desktop

    Starting and stopping Linux
    Logging in and logging out
    Quick Tour of desktop applications
    Switching between virtual desktops

File system basics
    Files and directories
    File ownerships and permissions

CHAPTER 3: Working at the Command Line

Introducing the shell
    Starting a terminal window
    Setting terminal window preferences
    Command syntax
    Ten commands to get you started
    Command history

File system basics
    Files and directories
    File ownership, group, and access permissions

Examining files and directories
    Using absolute and relative pathnames
    Viewing text files with less
    Listing directories with ls
    Filename completion
    Finding files with find and locate

Managing the filesystem from the command line
    Copying, moving and deleting files
    Using wildcards
    Changing file ownership and permissions
    Creating and removing directories

CHAPTER 4: Power Tools

Filtering and processing text
    Standard input and output streams
    Redirecting input and output to files or other programs
    Eight useful filters: wc, head, tail, sort, ...

Using programs in combination
    Pipelines
    Command substitution

Editing text files
    Surviving with vi
    Alternative editors (nano, gedit, ...)

Monitoring system activity
    Viewing resource usage with top
    Examining active processes
    Listing open network ports
    Controlling service startup (and shutdown)

CHAPTER 5: Package Management

Package management tools
    Listing installed packages (rpm)
    Package repositories
    Command-line package management tools (yum)
    Installing new packages and removing old ones
    Graphical package management tools
    Manual and automatic updates

CHAPTER 6: How to get help

Local help
    Man pages and info pages
    --help command option

On-line help
    Linux community web sites
    Documentation on the Internet
    Book recommendations

COURSE INSTRUCTOR

Dr. Chris Brown has been using UNIX as a software developer and system administrator since its pioneering days over 30 years ago, and has used Linux professionally and at home for about 10 years. He has written hands-on courses in UNIX/Linux system programming, network programming, PHP, and distributed computing, and has edited and provided instructional design support for many others.

Dr. Brown has taught UNIX and Linux extensively for more than 20 years, in Europe, USA, Canada, India, Hong Kong and Brazil. He provided in-depth technical training on SUSE Linux to Novell’s consultants and IT engineers. He developed training content for Canonical’s “Ubuntu Certified Professional” training and wrote their “Deploying Ubuntu Server” course, and was master trainer for their train-the-trainer program. He is author of the book “UNIX Distributed Programming” published by Prentice Hall, and of “SUSE Linux” published by O’Reilly. He also writes a regular column for the UK magazine “Linux Format”.

He is an ardent supporter of Linux and the Open Source movement and brings an enthusiasm, experience, depth of knowledge, and humour to the classroom to make for an effective and enjoyable learning experience. Chris holds a BA in theoretical physics, an MA, and a Ph.D. in particle physics, all from Cambridge University. He also has RedHat RHCE, Novell NCLP and Ubuntu UCP qualifications and is a Ubuntu Certified Instructor.