Ubuntu Professional

Ubuntu Professional is a training course for systems administrators who need to deploy Ubuntu in an office environment

This five-day course will provide participants with the skills they need to deploy and configure Ubuntu within the office. It introduces participants to the basic skills required of Ubuntu systems administrators. Scenario-based exercises guide participants on how to select appropriate solutions and tools for their organisation.

After completing this course, participants will be able to:

• Install and configure Ubuntu systems.
• Perform routine administration tasks; manage user accounts and file systems, and maintain system security.
• Configure network connectivity and key network services.
• Work productively at the Linux command line.

Who should attend

The course has been designed for junior-to-intermediate-level systems administrators working in organisations that are about to deploy, or have already deployed Ubuntu desktops and servers in their office. It is most appropriate for systems administrators with experience in other Linux operating systems who wish to add Ubuntu to their skillset. Programmers and other IT professionals who wish to add Ubuntu systems administration to their portfolio will also benefit.

Pre-requisites

Students should have a good overall knowledge of IT and systems administration of other operating systems and at least six months' relevant work experience. The course covers key Linux fundamentals and is suitable for those with a Microsoft systems administration background.

Classroom students receive: Individual student packs consisting of:

• Student course guide. 
• Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Desktop and Server CDs. 
• Ubuntu notepad and pen. 
• Ubuntu gift (it's a surprise!) 
• Free access to the Landscape systems management and monitoring service.

Course methodology

This course helps transition participants from graphical user interface tools to the command-line interface. It provides a solid background in Linux using Ubuntu as the environment for exploration and learning. Lab exercises combined with highly engaging activities will be used to reinforce learning objectives.

Course schedule

Days 1 + 2: General Linux and Ubuntu introduction

Lesson 1: Ubuntu background and Linux (1 hour)

• Describe the history of Linux and the Ubuntu distribution.
• Explain the Ubuntu release cycle.
• Describe the Ubuntu community structure and governance board.

Lesson 2: Ubuntu desktop tour (1 hour)

• Describe the key features of Ubuntu Desktop. 
• Customise the desktop settings. 
• Navigate to directories and files in Nautilus. 
• Install and remove applications.
• Add new language settings.

Lesson 3: Using the command line interface (CLI) and sudo (3 hours)

• Essential CLI commands. 
  • cd, ls, grep, echo, uname, cat, less, more, rm, mkdir, touch, mv, nano. 
  • arguments.
  • man command. 
  • sudo command.

Lesson 4: Networking basics (2 hours)

• Current configuration of network interfaces. 
  • ip, ipconfig, /etc/resolv.conf, route.
• Changing the network configuration. 
• Testing for a working network connection.
  
  • ping, dig, host, nslookup. 
• • Managing the network with Network Manager.
  • adsl, wifi, ethernet. 
• Analyzing the network using Network Tools.

Lesson 5: Filesystem and basic backups (3 hours)

• Storage device naming system. 
• The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS). 
• Mounting and unmounting devices.
  
  • mount, umount. 
• Configuring fstab.
  
  • /etc/fstab. 
• Symbolic links. 
• Creating an ext4 file system.
  
  • ext2, ext4, xfs, mkfs. 
• Managing file systems.
  
  • fsck, debugfs, dump2fs, e2label.

Lesson 6: Permissions - User management (4 hours)

• Managing user accounts and groups. 
  • adduser, deluser, addgourp, delgroup.
• Different file system permissions. 
• Assigning permissions to different users and groups.
  
  • chmod, chown, chgrp. 
• Creating default settings for new user accounts.
  
  • /etc/adduser.conf. 
• Creating a default environment using /etc/profile.

Lesson 7: Process management (2 hours)

• Displaying and interpreting process statistics. 
  
  • top, ps.
• Managing processes. 
  
  • kill, nice, renice.
• Scheduling processes (pending upstart plans). 
  
  • at, cron. 
• Finding out who's using files or devices.
  
  • lsof

Days 3 - 5

Lesson 8: Ubuntu background, community and support (2 hours)

• The Ubuntu community structure and governance board. 
• Technical board, Linus, Linux, GNU, Debian.
• Support resources from Canonical, partners, and the user community including:
• Mailing lists. 
• IRC channels. 
• Launchpad and other sources for researching and reporting bugs.
• Official Ubuntu documentation and community documentation. 
• Ubuntu release cycle.
• LTS, regular.

Lesson 9: Service management (6 hours)

• Upstart. 
• SystemV compatibility. 
• Starting and stopping system services.
• Kernel management and boot procedures (2 hours) 
• Explain the working and functionality of Grub2.
  
  • update-grub[2]. 
• Customise the Grub2 boot environment.
  
  • /etc/default/grub. 
• Explain the modular kernel.
  
  • modinfo, /etc/modules, /lib/modules, /boot, /etc/initramfs, update- initramfs.
• Manage kernel modules. 
  • modprobe, rmmod, /etc/modprobe.d.
• Describe how udev creates device interfaces for hardware. 
  • udev rules, udevadm, /etc/udev/rules.d.
• Hardware management and monitoring (2 hours) 
• Manage partitions.
  
  • fdisk, cfdisk, system->administration->disk utility, parted. 
• Display hardware information.
  
  • lsusb, lshw, lspci, dmesg, lscpu, lsscsi.
• Monitor a hard drive through the SMART interface. 
  • smartctl.
• Use the memtest facility. 
  • /boot/memtest86+.bin, grub.

Lesson 10 - Package management (3 hours)

• Explain how packages are used in Ubuntu. 
  • packages vs applications, dependencies, conflicts, recommendations.
• Explain apt system, repositories and meta packages. 
  • apt-get, apt-cache, apt-key, repositories, meta packages.
• Manage packages using the appropriate tools. 
  • tasksel, update-manager, Ubuntu Software Centre.

Lesson 11 - Providing services (3 hours)

• Setup a basic LAMP environment. 
  • tasksel install lamp-server. 
  • /var/www/phpinfo.php.
• Setup a basic Samba file server. 
  • apt-get install samba. 
  • /etc/samba.smb.conf.. 
  • smbpasswd.
• Set up SSH for remote access. 
  • apt-get install ssh.

Lesson 12 - Security (2 hours)

• Explain how AppArmor uses default profiles to secure your services. 
  • /etc/apparmor.d.
• Display current profiles used by AppArmor. 
  • aa-status.
• Explain how UFW works to protect your system. 
  • ufw.
• Configure UFW. 
  • ufw enable|disable etc.

Lesson – 13 GNOME configuration (2 hours)

• Localise your GNOME environment. 
  • system -> administration -> language support.
• Manage your GNOME configuration and restore a default state. 
  • gconf-editor, gconftool.
• Customise the GNOME environment. 
  • gdmsetup, /etc/gdm/.
• Connect to a network printer. 
  • system -> administration -> printing.

Lesson 14 - Monitoring / Landscape (1 hour)

• Set up munin for monitoring. 
  • apt-get install munin munin-node, /etc/munin/.
• Set up a landscape account. 
  • apt-get install landscape-client ; dpkg-reconfigure landscape-client.
• Register a computer with landscape.