Ubuntu.Linux.Toolbox.1000.plus.Commands.for.Ubuntu.and.Debian

Ubuntu®Linux®

TOOLBOX

1000+ Commands for Ubuntu

and Debian Power Users

Christopher Negus

François Caen

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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Ubuntu®Linux®

TOOLBOX

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82935ffirs.qxd:Toolbox 10/29/07 12:53 PM Page ii

Ubuntu®Linux®

TOOLBOX

1000+ Commands for Ubuntu

and Debian Power Users

Christopher Negus

François Caen

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

82935ffirs.qxd:Toolbox 10/29/07 12:53 PM Page iii

Ubuntu® Linux® Toolbox:

1000+ Commands for Ubuntu and Debian Power Users

Published by

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

10475 Crosspoint Boulevard

Indianapolis, IN 46256

www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2008 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

ISBN: 978-0-470-08293-5

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Negus, Chris, 1957–

Ubuntu Linux toolbox : 1000+ commands for Ubuntu and Debian power users / Christopher Negus,

François Caen.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-0-470-08293-5 (pbk.)

1. Linux. 2. Operating systems (Computers) I. Caen, François. II. Title.

QA76.76.O63N42676 2007

005.4'32—dc22

2007041567

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As always, I dedicate my work on this book to my wife, Sheree.

— Christopher Negus

To my wife, Tonya, for supporting me in all my endeavors.

— François Caen

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About the Authors

Christopher Negus is the author of the best-selling Fedora and Red Hat Linux Bibles,

Linux Toys, Linux Troubleshooting Bible, and Linux Bible 2007 Edition. He is a member of

the Madison Linux Users Group. Prior to becoming a full-time writer, Chris served

for eight years on development teams for the Unix operating system at AT&T, where

Unix was created and developed. He also worked with Novell on Unix development

and Caldera Linux.

François Caen, through his company Turbosphere LLC, hosts and manages business

application infrastructures, with 95 percent running on Linux systems. As an open

source advocate, he has lectured on OSS network management and Internet services,

and served as president of the Tacoma Linux User Group. François is a Red Hat

Certified Engineer (RHCE). In his spare time, François enjoys managing enterprise

Cisco networks.

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Credits

Acquisitions Editor

Jenny Watson

Development Editor

Sara Shlaer

Technical Editor

Thomas Blader

Copy Editor

Michael Koch

Editorial Manager

Mary Beth Wakefield

Production Manager

Tim Tate

Vice President and

Executive Group Publisher

Richard Swadley

Vice President and Executive Publisher

Joseph B. Wikert

Project Coordinator, Cover

Lynsey Osborn

Compositor

Laurie Stewart,

Happenstance Type-O-Rama

Proofreader

Kathryn Duggan

Indexer

Melanie Belkin

Anniversary Logo Design

Richard Pacifico

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Contents at a Glance

Chapter 1: Starting with Ubuntu Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Chapter 2: Installing Ubuntu and Adding Software . . . . . . . . . . .17

Chapter 3: Using the Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

Chapter 4: Working with Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

Chapter 5: Manipulating Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89

Chapter 6: Playing with Multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

Chapter 7: Administering File Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123

Chapter 8: Backups and Removable Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151

Chapter 9: Checking and Managing Running Processes . . . . . .169

Chapter 10: Managing the System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .187

Chapter 11: Managing Network Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . .211

Chapter 12: Accessing Network Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .235

Chapter 13: Doing Remote System Administration . . . . . . . . .255

Chapter 14: Locking Down Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .273

Appendix A: Using vi or Vim Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .289

Appendix B: Shell Special Characters and Variables . . . . . . . .297

Appendix C: Getting Information from /proc . . . . . . . . . . . . . .301

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .307

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Contents

Acknowledgments xix

Introduction xxi

Chapter 1: Starting with Ubuntu Linux 1

Ubuntu, Debian, and Linux 2

Ubuntu Compared to Other Linux Distributions 3

Finding Ubuntu Resources 4

Ubuntu Software 6

Focusing on Linux Commands 7

Finding Commands 8

Reference Information in Ubuntu 11

Using help Messages 11

Using man Pages 12

Using info Documents 14

Summary 15

Chapter 2: Installing Ubuntu and Adding Software 17

Obtaining and Installing Ubuntu 17

Preparing to Install 19

Choosing Installation Options 19

Answering Installation Questions 20

Working with Debian Software Packages 21

Working with Software Packages 23

Enabling More Repositories for apt 24

Managing Software with APT 25

Adding an APT Repository and Third-Party Signature Key 27

Finding Packages with APT 28

Installing Packages with APT 28

Upgrading Packages with APT 29

Upgrading a Single Package with APT 29

Removing Packages with APT 30

Cleaning Up Packages with APT 30

Managing Software with dpkg 31

Installing a Package with dpkg 32

Removing a Package with dpkg 33

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Contents

Extracting Files from a .deb File with dpkg 33

Querying Information about .deb Packages 33

Managing Software with aptitude 36

Updating and Upgrading Packages with aptitude 37

Querying Information about Packages with aptitude 38

Installing Packages with aptitude 38

Removing Packages with aptitude 39

Cleaning Up Packages with aptitude 39

Useful Combinations of Options with aptitude 40

Verifying Installed Packages with debsums 41

Building deb Packages 45

Summary 48

Chapter 3: Using the Shell 49

Terminal Windows and Shell Access 49

Using Terminal Windows 49

Using Virtual Terminals 51

Using the Shell 52

Using Bash History 52

Using Command Line Completion 54

Redirecting stdin and stdout 54

Using alias 57

Watching Commands 58

Watching Files 58

Acquiring Super User Power 59

Using the su Command 59

Delegating Power with sudo 60

Using Environment Variables 62

Creating Simple Shell Scripts 63

Editing and Running a Script 63

Adding Content to Your Script 64

Summary 68

Chapter 4: Working with Files 69

Understanding File Types 69

Using Regular Files 69

Using Directories 70

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