Fedora Linux | O'Reilly Media

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Fedora is a powerful, fast-changing, freely available operating system. It can be used as a productive desktop or server environment, or it can be used to learn about Linux and experiment with new technologies.

There are many different Linux distributions, each with a different set of features, aimed at a different type of user. Before you invest time and effort in Linux, you need to decide if Fedora is the right distribution for you.

Fedora Core is a collection of software that provides a complete working environment for a desktop or a server computer. It is often called an operating system, but, like other Linux distributions, it provides a lot more functionality than operating systems such as Microsoft Windows or Mac OS X because it includes desktop productivity applications and server software. Fedora Extras is a collection of software that is compatible with and extends the functionality of Fedora Core.

Fedora is developed and supported by a large community of developers, testers, package maintainers, documentation writers, marketers, and advocates. Many leading community members are also employees of Red Hat, Inc., which provides servers, build systems (the computers that compile and test the thousands of packages included with Fedora) and some funding for the project. In return, Red Hat gains the opportunity to receive feedback on new software and features before incorporating them into its commercial product line, called Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

What compatibility do you need?

If you want (or need) to run Windows games or a specific Windows application, Fedora may not be the right OS for you—although Wine will let you run some Windows applications when you’re in a pinch. Two commercial products based on Wine are available: Cedega, for Windows games, and CrossOver Office, for Microsoft Office and other business applications.

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There are many different Linux distributions, each with a different set of features, aimed at a different type of user. Before you invest time and effort in Linux, you need to decide if Fedora is the right distribution for you.

Fedora Core is a collection of software that provides a complete working environment for a desktop or a server computer. It is often called an operating system, but, like other Linux distributions, it provides a lot more functionality than operating systems such as Microsoft Windows or Mac OS X because it includes desktop productivity applications and server software. Fedora Extras is a collection of software that is compatible with and extends the functionality of Fedora Core.

Fedora is developed and supported by a large community of developers, testers, package maintainers, documentation writers, marketers, and advocates. Many leading community members are also employees of Red Hat, Inc., which provides servers, build systems (the computers that compile and test the thousands of packages included with Fedora) and some funding for the project. In return, Red Hat gains the opportunity to receive feedback on new software and features before incorporating them into its commercial product line, called Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

What compatibility do you need?

If you want (or need) to run Windows games or a specific Windows application, Fedora may not be the right OS for you—although Wine will let you run some Windows applications when you’re in a pinch. Two commercial products based on Wine are available: Cedega, for Windows games, and CrossOver Office, for Microsoft Office and other business applications.

What level of stability do you need?

A new Fedora release is made approximately every four to nine months, and only the current and next-to-current releases are actively maintained by the project (beyond this time frame, security and bug fixes are supplied by the Fedora Legacy project).

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The Fedora software exists in two parts: Fedora Core, a Linux distribution that includes base applications for desktop and server systems, and Fedora Extras, a repository of additional applications that can be added easily to a Fedora Core system.

The first step is to obtain a copy of the Fedora Core software itself.

The Fedora Core installer is a bare-bones configuration of Linux designed specifically for the installation process. Once the installer is running, it configures and installs the Fedora Core software on your system.

There are, therefore, two parts to the software: the software used to boot up the system for the installation session, and the software that is installed on your system. These may be on the same media, or they may be separated into boot media and installation media.

Determining your architecture

Before selecting the media and obtaining the software, you must determine which architecture (machine type) you are using. Fedora Core is available for three different architectures:

i386: All Intel-compatible 32-bit systems with a standard BIOS, including all Intel 32-bit Celeron, Pentium, Centrino, and Core systems; AMD 32-bit Athlon, Duron, and Turion systems; and VIA CPUs such as the C3 and Eden processors. Older processors such as 80386, 80486, and K6 processors will also work. Fedora Core may be installed on Apple Mac systems with an Intel processor by using Apple’s Boot Camp software (included in Mac OS X 10.5 and available in beta form for Mac OS X 10.4).
x86_64: All AMD-compatible 64-bit systems, including Opteron, Athlon 64, Duron 64, and Turion 64 systems, and Intel 64-bit Pentium 4, Xeon, and Core 2 systems. These systems can also run the i386 version but will do so in 32-bit mode.

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Installing Fedora Core is a simple and straightforward task on most modern computers.

To install Fedora Core, you’ll need the installation media and your computer. If you are going to use a local area network or broadband Internet connection, it’s recommended that you have it connected during the installation process.

A Fedora installation will usually take 15 to 90 minutes, depending on the speed of your computer and the amount of optional software you choose to install.

Be sure to check the system requirements in the release notes at http://fedora.redhat.com/docs/release-notes/ or in the root directory of the Fedora Core DVD or CD disc 1.

On your system, if you have any data that you want to preserve, back it up before installing Fedora Core, and test the integrity of the backup copy.

Preparing for dual-boot

If your system already has Windows installed, and you intend to continue to use Windows, you will need to free up some space on the hard disk for Fedora Core. See Lab 10.1, “Resizing a Windows Partition ,” for instructions on shrinking a Windows disk partition (or deleting one that is unused).

There is an alternative to repartitioning your disk: you can install an additional disk drive in your system and use that drive for Fedora, or use an external USB or FireWire drive.

Starting the installation

Insert your installation media (DVD, CD, or USB stick, or plug your system into a network with a PXE network boot server) and turn your system on. If it does not boot from the installation media, change your system BIOS settings to boot from it.

The first thing you will see is the boot screen shown in Figure 1-1.

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Fedora Linux provides a solid desktop computing environment—including a graphical user interface, communication tools, and office applications—that goes well beyond the traditional definition of an operating system. This chapter focuses on using Fedora in the desktop role.

Where possible, the labs in this book include instructions for performing tasks using both the graphical user interface and the command line. If you are not familiar with entering Linux commands, see Lab 4.1, “Using the Command Line.”

Fedora Core provides two attractive and easy-to-use graphical user interfaces (GUIs): KDE and GNOME. Each of these GUIs should be a comfortable adjustment for the majority of Windows and Mac users because basic operations are similar. However, there are some capabilities that are unique to Linux, and learning to use these features will enable you to take full advantage of the Fedora GUIs.

Fedora Linux can boot into graphical mode or text mode, depending on the default runlevel (see Lab 4.5, “Using Runlevels”); when installed using the graphical installation program, Fedora’s default is to present the graphical login display shown in Figure 2-1.

Figure 2-1: Fedora default login screen

In the middle of the screen are four clickable controls:

Language: Displays a dialog enabling you to select the default language for the session. This will not change the messages on the login display, but it will change the default for messages after you successfully log in. Where possible, messages will appear in this selected language, but when no translation for the selected language is found, messages will appear in the default language for the application (usually English). After you enter a username and password, you will be given the choice of making the selected language the permanent default for that username, or using it only for one session.

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Fedora Core provides two attractive and easy-to-use graphical user interfaces (GUIs): KDE and GNOME. Each of these GUIs should be a comfortable adjustment for the majority of Windows and Mac users because basic operations are similar. However, there are some capabilities that are unique to Linux, and learning to use these features will enable you to take full advantage of the Fedora GUIs.

Fedora Linux can boot into graphical mode or text mode, depending on the default runlevel (see Lab 4.5, “Using Runlevels”); when installed using the graphical installation program, Fedora’s default is to present the graphical login display shown in Figure 2-1.

Figure 2-1: Fedora default login screen

In the middle of the screen are four clickable controls:

Language: Displays a dialog enabling you to select the default language for the session. This will not change the messages on the login display, but it will change the default for messages after you successfully log in. Where possible, messages will appear in this selected language, but when no translation for the selected language is found, messages will appear in the default language for the application (usually English). After you enter a username and password, you will be given the choice of making the selected language the permanent default for that username, or using it only for one session.
Session: Permits you to select the session type: GNOME (the default) or a fail-safe session. If you install additional software for other desktop environments, such as KDE or Xfce, they will also appear on this menu.
Restart

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Fedora’s version of the GNOME desktop provides a convenient and attractive desktop environment, but by customizing it for the way you work you can increase your comfort and productivity.

Almost all of the Fedora GNOME desktop, as well as desktop options that are not part of GNOME or KDE, can be configured using the System→Preferences menu; other portions of the desktop can be configured by right-clicking on a GNOME component.

This lab looks at the GNOME settings most commonly used to customize the desktop.

Most GNOME settings take effect immediately; you do not need to click an Apply button for a change to take effect.

Customizing the desktop appearance using themes

The GNOME desktop and the Metacity window manager (the default GNOME window manager) use themes to configure appearance. Each theme is a combination of configuration information, images, and software that provides a particular visual effect and behavior.

Three types of component themes are used on the desktop:

Application (or control) themes: Configure the appearance of the controls: elements used by applications to build the graphical user interface, such as buttons, sliders, scrollbars, and text-entry fields.
Window border themes: Used by the Metacity window manager to control the appearance of the window borders, title bar, and title bar buttons.
Icons: Control the appearance of icons on the panel, desktop, application toolbars, and Nautilus file manager.

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Fedora’s KDE defaults are altered from the original upstream developers’ version—even more so than GNOME is modified from its upstream version. For this reason, some die-hard KDE fans don’t like working on a Fedora system.

Like GNOME, KDE can be tweaked, fiddled, and configured to look and work just the way you want.

Most KDE configuration is performed through the KDE Control Center, which is found on the K menu. The Control Center is shown in Figure 2-9.

If you do not have KDE installed, you can install it; see Lab 5.3, “Using Repositories.”

Figure 2-9: KDE Control Center

Along the lefthand side of this window, there is a collapsible menu of configuration categories; each category contains several subcategories, which can be revealed or hidden by clicking on the +/- icon in front of the category name. Each subcategory is handled by a separate configuration module. When you click on a configuration category, the configuration module for that category is shown on the righthand side of the window.

You can also configure some desktop components by right-clicking on them. For example, right-clicking on the desktop and selecting Configure Desktop will bring up a subset of the Control Center options, which is useful for changing the appearance of the desktop.

Unlike GNOME, KDE settings are not usually automatically applied; you must click on the Apply button before your changes take effect.

An alternative, express way to change basic KDE desktop settings is to select Settings→Desktop Settings Wizard (or enter the command kpersonalizer), which will walk you through the process of setting the most common desktop options.

Customizing the desktop appearance using themes

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Fedora’s Anaconda installer detects and configures most display hardware optimally. However, there are some situations where it’s necessary to override the default configuration to set up a desired display resolution and color depth.

Fedora’s display configuration program is called system-config-display.

If you have a working graphical display, you can start this program by selecting System→Administration→Display from the panel menus (System Settings→Display in KDE). You’ll need to enter the root password when prompted.

If you don’t have a working graphical display, or you’ve booted into character mode (see Lab 4.5, “Using Runlevels”), you can start this program from the command line:

$ system-config-display
You are attempting to run "system-config-display" which requires administrative
privileges, but more information is needed in order to do so.
Password for root: 
                  secret

The graphical display will be started in a very basic mode so that the graphical configuration dialog can be displayed.

system-config-display uses the existing display configuration as a starting point. If the existing configuration does not work at all, you may need to delete it to force system-config-display to start from scratch:

# rm /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Whether started from the menu or the command line, the window shown in Figure 2-15 will be displayed.

Figure 2-15: system-config-display window

This dialog has three tabs:

Settings: Selects the default resolution and color depth for the system. The maximum display resolution is limited by the monitor setting on the Hardware tab; the color depth should almost always be set to “Millions of Colors,” which enables 24-bit color.

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In order to print from your Fedora system, you have to configure at least one print queue to manage documents waiting to be printed. For printers directly connected to your computer, this process is fully automatic, and for other printers (such as those on your network), it is very simple.

Select the menu option System→Administration→Printing (in KDE, it is Administration→Printing). You will be prompted to enter the root password, and then the printer configuration window will appear, as shown in Figure 2-16. If any print queues have been previously defined, they will be listed on the left side of the window, grouped according to connection type; if you click on one of these printers, the configuration details for that printer will appear on the right.

Figure 2-16: Printer configuration window

Add a new print queue

USB and parallel printers, as well as network printers that use the Internet Print Protocol (IPP), will be detected and configured automatically; you can adjust the printer configuration by editing the values in the main printer-configuration window (Figure 2-16) and then clicking Apply.

Other printers must be configured manually. Click on the New Printer icon to access the window shown in Figure 2-17.

Figure 2-17: New Printer window

Enter the name of the printer, which should be short and contain no spaces. I recommend using the generic printer type followed by a number (e.g., laser3 or inkjet0); even if you only have one printer now, you may add more in the future. If desired, you can add verbose description and location information. Click Forward to proceed to the connection configuration step, shown in Figure 2-18.

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Fedora Core contains drivers for many different types of sound cards. However, it may be necessary to configure the sound path or select from different sound devices before your sound output is usable.

Fedora provides two tools for configuring sound: the Soundcard Detection tool and the audio mixer.

To access the Soundcard Detection tool, select System→Administration→Soundcard Detection (or Administration→Soundcard Detection in KDE). The window shown in Figure 2-21 will appear.

Figure 2-21: Soundcard Detection window

This window offers a minimal set of options: basically, you can select the default device to be used, and you can play a test sound.

To test your sound card, make sure that your speakers are plugged in and turned on, then click the Play button. You should hear a guitar chord played on the right, then the left, and then the right+left channels. If you don’t, try selecting different device tabs (on the left side of the window) and PCM Device settings (at the bottom of the window) until you find a combination that works. Your system may have multiple sound cards (e.g., both a motherboard and PCI sound card), or there may be sound devices on your sound card that are not connected to a sound path that goes to your speakers; they may instead go to a modem, headphone jack, or thin air.

If you still don’t hear anything, then it’s time to break out the Volume Control/Mixer. In GNOME, you can do this either by right-clicking on the volume-control panel applet (the icon that looks like a speaker, shown way back in Figure 2-2) and selecting Open Volume Control, or by selecting the menu option System→Preferences→Volume Control; the window shown on the right in Figure 2-22 will appear. In KDE, select Sound and Video→KMix or, if there’s a volume-control icon in your panel, right-click it and select Show Mixer Window. The KMix window is shown on the left in Figure 2-22.

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Although Fedora ships with a good set of basic fonts, many users find it useful to add more fonts. Fortunately, this is very easy to do, either graphically or from the command line.

Fonts can be easily added or removed by manually copying the font files or by using the file managers: Nautilus (GNOME) or Konqueror (KDE).

Adding and removing fonts using GNOME Nautilus

GNOME’s Nautilus file manager has a special URI for viewing and managing fonts. To access it:

Start Nautilus; use the My Computer or Home desktop icons, the panel bar icons, or any folder in the Places menu.
Select Open Location from the Nautilus File menu, or press Ctrl-L. An Open Location dialog will appear.
Enter fonts:/ in the location text box.

Figure 2-24 shows the Nautilus font display.

Figure 2-24: Font display in GNOME’s Nautilus file manager

The lower- and uppercase letter A of each font are displayed, if the font has those characters. Double-clicking on a font (or right-clicking and selecting “Open with GNOME Font Viewer”) will display some basic information about the font—including the license, file size, and font style—along with an extended font sample, as shown in Figure 2-25.

Figure 2-25: GNOME font viewer

To install fonts into your personal font directory (~/.fonts), simply drag and drop them into the Nautilus font window. The fonts may not show up in the Nautilus display until you log out and log in again, but they will be installed and immediately accessible to applications when they start (if an application is already running, just restart that application to gain access to the new fonts).

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USB is a widely used interface for peripherals. It’s intelligent, fast, hot-pluggable, uses a compact and foolproof connector, and even provides a couple of watts of power for small devices.

Many USB devices fall into the storage class, including cameras, portable music players, and storage card readers. These devices can easily be used with Fedora.

Using USB storage in Fedora Core is easy: simply insert the USB storage device into any available USB port.

If you’re using GNOME, the device will be mounted, an icon will appear on the desktop, and a window will open showing the contents of the device.

When you insert a USB storage device while running KDE, the dialog in Figure 2-31 appears with two options: “Open in New Window” and “Do Nothing.” Choose one of the options and click OK. If you want to skip this dialog next time you insert a storage device, select the checkbox labeled “Always do this for this type of media.”

Figure 2-31: KDE USB Storage action dialog

The action performed when a new USB storage device is detected is configurable in both GNOME and KDE.

Safely removing a USB drive

Before unplugging a USB drive, you should unmount it to prevent data loss. In GNOME and KDE, right-click on the drive’s desktop icon and select the menu option Unmount Volume or Remove Safely. Wait until the activity lights stop blinking and then unplug the drive.

Configuring default actions in GNOME

To configure the action taken when GNOME detects a new USB storage device, select the menu option System→Preferences→“Removable Drives and Media.” The window shown in Figure 2-32 will appear.

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Notebook systems are becoming more like desktop systems with each generation, and many notebooks have CPU, memory, disk, and video capabilities that make them true desktop replacements. But the compact, mobile nature of notebooks requires more complex configurations in order to handle power management, mobile networking, and frequently changing hardware configurations.

Many of the topics in this chapter apply to both desktop and notebook systems (and, to a lesser extent, server systems), but become more complex in a mobile environment.

When you’re on the go, you have to carry your power with you. Notebook power management therefore receives a lot more attention than desktop power management, even though attention to these issues on the desktop can result in significant savings in electrical costs, system wear, and heat production.

For many years, power-management interfaces have been proprietary and required custom software supplied by the hardware vendor in order to function well (even when they purportedly adhered to industry standards). The situation is slowly improving, and Fedora contains good tools for power management on well-behaved systems.

Fedora uses the Advanced Configuation and Power Interface (ACPI) specification to monitor and manage the current power configuration. This approach requires support from the motherboard and CPU as well as the operating system; fortunately, most systems built in the last decade have some level of ACPI support, though many BIOS implementations are nonstandard.

Using gnome-power-manager to conserve power

Fedora’s main power-management tool is gnome-power-manager. You can access the gnome-power-manager configuration window using the menu option System→Preferences→More Preferences→Power Management.

Fedora Core does not include the KDE ACPI modules. However, you can use

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When you’re on the go, you have to carry your power with you. Notebook power management therefore receives a lot more attention than desktop power management, even though attention to these issues on the desktop can result in significant savings in electrical costs, system wear, and heat production.

For many years, power-management interfaces have been proprietary and required custom software supplied by the hardware vendor in order to function well (even when they purportedly adhered to industry standards). The situation is slowly improving, and Fedora contains good tools for power management on well-behaved systems.

Fedora uses the Advanced Configuation and Power Interface (ACPI) specification to monitor and manage the current power configuration. This approach requires support from the motherboard and CPU as well as the operating system; fortunately, most systems built in the last decade have some level of ACPI support, though many BIOS implementations are nonstandard.

Using gnome-power-manager to conserve power

Fedora’s main power-management tool is gnome-power-manager. You can access the gnome-power-manager configuration window using the menu option System→Preferences→More Preferences→Power Management.

Fedora Core does not include the KDE ACPI modules. However, you can use gnome-power-manager in KDE by starting it manually: press Alt-F2 or open a terminal, and type:

$ gnome-power-manager

A second power-management icon will appear in the KDE panel. You can disable KDE’s icon through the Control Center menu option; go to Power Control→Laptop Battery and deselect the checkbox labeled “Show battery monitor.”

gnome-power-manager will automatically be started next time you enter KDE.

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The majority of modern computer system are connected to a network. While server and desktop systems are often configured for one network at installation time and remain plugged into that same network for weeks, months, or years, laptop systems are frequently on the move and may connect to several different networks in one day. Fortunately, Fedora provides a good set of network configuration tools that enable you to easily swing from one network to another like a digital Tarzan.

There are three ways to configure networking on Fedora. Each approach has its advantages and disadvantages:

Graphical configuration tool: The best approach for desktop and server systems that will connect to one or two networks and rarely require changes to the network configuration
NetworkManager: Excellent for laptops that will be connecting to a variety of different networks, but only compatible with certain network hardware
Network configuration commands: Good for experimentation, remote administration, and very complex configurations

Configuring networking graphically

Select the menu option System→Administration→Networking to access the GUI network configuration tool shown in Figure 3-6. Alternatively, you can type the command


                     system-config-network

into a shell (or use the traditional nickname for this program, neat).

Figure 3-6: Network Configuration window

To add a network connection, click on the New icon. The window in Figure 3-7 will appear, enabling you to select the connection type.

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Many laptops use a Synaptics TouchPad (or an Alps GlidePoint, which can use the same driver). By default, a touchpad will emulate a PS/2 mouse, so it should work fine with the default driver, but if you use the Synaptics-specific driver, you can exquisitely fine-tune the touchpad’s extended features.

You will need to manually edit the X server configuration file, /etc/X11/xorg.conf, to make two changes.

It’s a good idea to get into the habit of making a backup of configuration files before modifying them, just in case something goes wrong:

# cp /etc/X11/Xorg.conf /etc/X11/Xorg.conf.backup

First, add an InputDevice line to the ServerLayout section:

Section "ServerLayout"
        Identifier     "Default Layout"
        Screen      0  "Screen0" 0 0
        InputDevice    "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
        InputDevice    "TouchPad0" "AlwaysCore"
        InputDevice    "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
EndSection

Next, add a new InputDevice section (you can add this to any part of the file that is not between Section and EndSection lines):

Section "InputDevice"
        Identifier  "Touchpad0"
        Driver      "synaptics"
        Option      "SHMConfig"        "on"
EndSection

When you restart the X server by restarting the system or pressing Ctrl-Alt-Backspace (save any work first!), the Synaptics driver will be loaded with a default configuration that will permit you to:

Click the left mouse button by tapping one finger in the middle area or by tapping the upper-left corner.
Drag with the left mouse button by tapping and then dragging one finger (touch-release-touch, then drag).
Click the middle mouse button by tapping two fingers in the middle area or by tapping the upper-right corner (this will usually perform a fast-paste of selected text).

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The video circuits of most laptops support two video outputs: one to the built-in LCD panel and one for external devices. The external output is not enabled by default, but you can switch between the internal and external displays using a function key.

More advanced configurations of the two outputs are supported by some video cards. For example, you can configure a single large desktop spanning both displays, or set up the external display to show a subset of what is shown on the internal display.

Output from one card to multiple monitors is supported only by some drivers. The most commonly used ones are the NVIDIA and ATI proprietary drivers, and the open source Radeon driver. All of these drivers have some limitations; for example, the NVIDIA driver, when used on a laptop, will always configure an external monitor as primary (screen 0), and the ATI drivers permit only general monitor positioning (you can specify that one monitor is to the right of another, but you can’t indicate a difference in their vertical alignment).

Configuring dual video on an NVIDIA card

Note that for the changes described in this section to take effect, you will need to restart the X server in one of these ways: changing to runlevel 3 and then back to 5, restarting the system, or terminating the running X server with Ctrl-Alt-Backspace (save your work first!).

First, configure and test your system using the NVIDIA proprietary driver (see Lab 5.3, “Using Repositories”), and then add the highlighted lines to the Device section of your /etc/X11/xorg.conf file:

Section "Device"
        Identifier "Card0"
        Driver     "nvidia"
        VendorName "nVidia Corporation"
        BoardName  "NV34 [GeForce FX 5200]"
        BusID      "PCI:1:0:0"

        Option     "TwinView"
        Option     "SecondMonitorHorizSync"   "31.0 - 80.0"
        Option     "SecondMonitorVertRefresh" "50.0 - 75.0"
        Option     "TwinViewXineramaInfo"     "on"

        Option     "MetaModes"                "800x600,1024x768"
        Option     "TwinViewOrientation"      "LeftOf"
EndSection

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In order to maintain your system effectively, it’s necessary to learn some basic system management skills. This chapter covers these essential skills.

With a small investment in time, you’ll be able to adjust your system configuration, keep the filesystem under control, disable unused services, and identify and stop rogue processes. I’ll cover the basics of performing these operations using both graphical and command-line tools, both locally and remotely.

Many system management tasks can be performed using either of the graphical user interfaces provided with Fedora (i.e., GNOME or KDE). However, most power users prefer the command line for system management work because they find it faster, more consistent between different versions of Linux, and easier to access remotely. The command line is also called a shell prompt, because the commands are processed by a program called a shell; the standard shell on a Fedora system is the Bourne-again shell (bash).

If you are logged in to the system through the graphical user interface, access the command line through the terminal program. Select the menu option Applications→Accessories→Terminal (System→Terminal in KDE), or right-click on the desktop background and select Konsole under KDE.

If you find yourself using the terminal frequently, you can make it easier to launch: right-click on the Terminal option in the application menu and select “Add this launcher to panel.” A new panel icon will appear that will launch a new terminal when clicked.

If you have logged in to the system through a character-mode login screen or an SSH login, you will automatically be presented with a command line.

Understanding the shell prompt

The standard shell prompt looks like this:

[chris@concord2 ~]$

This message is an invitation to enter a command. It shows the name of the user (

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Many system management tasks can be performed using either of the graphical user interfaces provided with Fedora (i.e., GNOME or KDE). However, most power users prefer the command line for system management work because they find it faster, more consistent between different versions of Linux, and easier to access remotely. The command line is also called a shell prompt, because the commands are processed by a program called a shell; the standard shell on a Fedora system is the Bourne-again shell (bash).

If you are logged in to the system through the graphical user interface, access the command line through the terminal program. Select the menu option Applications→Accessories→Terminal (System→Terminal in KDE), or right-click on the desktop background and select Konsole under KDE.

If you find yourself using the terminal frequently, you can make it easier to launch: right-click on the Terminal option in the application menu and select “Add this launcher to panel.” A new panel icon will appear that will launch a new terminal when clicked.

If you have logged in to the system through a character-mode login screen or an SSH login, you will automatically be presented with a command line.

Understanding the shell prompt

The standard shell prompt looks like this:

[chris@concord2 ~]$

This message is an invitation to enter a command. It shows the name of the user (chris), the computer being used (concord2), and the current working directory within the filesystem (~, meaning the user’s home directory). The last character of the prompt, $, indicates that this is a normal user’s prompt, as opposed to the system administrator’s prompt, which ends with #.

Entering commands

To enter a command, simply type it, and then press Enter to execute it. The output from the command will appear after the command (scrolling the screen if necessary), and when the command is done a new prompt will be printed.

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A fully loaded Fedora system includes over 4,700 programs, plus programming interfaces, data files, and graphical tools. To help you learn your way around, over 12,000 files of online documentation are available, with additional documentation available through the Web. Knowing how to access and knowledgeably navigate through this documentation is essential to getting the most out of your Fedora system.

The phrase online documentation refers to both local and Internet-based electronic documentation.

There are five main types of documentation available:

Manpages
info pages
The GNOME Guides and KDE Manuals
HOWTOs and guides from the Linux Documentation Project
Text files distributed with applications

Using manpages

Fedora continues the Unix tradition of providing an online version of what were originally loose-leaf printed manuals. These manuals cover the commands, programming interfaces, and data formats used by the system.

The command used to access these online manuals is called man, so these documents have come to be known as manpages. The majority of Fedora documentation is in this format.

The pages are arranged into sections according to the original binders, using the section numbers described in Table 4-2. The section numbers are used to distinguish different manpages with the same name, such as the manpage for the uname system call (found in section 2) and the uname command (found in section 1). In some cases, a letter or two may be appended to a section number to indicate a subsection (such as

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A large part of system administration involves dealing with files and directories: creating directories, copying files, moving files and directories around, and deleting them. Fedora provides a powerful set of tools for managing files from the shell prompt as well as graphically.

Linux, like most modern operating systems, uses a tree-like hierarchy to store and organize files. To manage files effectively, extend the hierarchy to organize your data.

Understanding Linux directory names

Fedora’s master directory (or folder, as it would be referred to by other operating systems) is called the root directory; it may contain files and directories. Each of those directories may in turn contain other files and directories.

For each user, one directory is designated as the home directory, and that is where that user stores her personal files. Additionally, each process (a running copy of a program) has a current working directory on the system, which is the directory that it accesses by default unless another directory is explicitly specified.

The root directory is always the same system-wide; the home directory is consistent for a particular user, but varies from user to user; and the current working directory is unique to each process and can be changed anytime.

A pathname specifies how to find a file in the file hierarchy. There are three different pathname schemes that can be used, based on the three different starting points (root, home, and current working directory); each scheme specifies the path from the selected starting point to the desired file, separating directory names with the forward slash character (/). These three schemes are summarized in Table 4-4.

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Fedora Core, like most other Linux and Unix systems, stores most of its configuration information in text files. These files can be edited using various system administration tools, but they can also be edited by hand using any standard text editor.

vi is one such text editor. Some people love it, and some people hate it, but it has one advantage over just about every other editor available: it’s universal. If you know how to use vi, you can confidently walk up to just about any Linux or Unix computer in the world and edit text files, so it’s a valuable skill. The other nice fact about Vi is that it’s not very demanding; you can use it in character mode or graphic mode, over a congested remote connection or with a foreign keyboard, and still get the job done. You can get by with less than a dozen commands to start, and then learn more when you need them.

vi is pronounced “vee-eye,” not “vye” or “six.”

To start up the vi editor, simply type its name at a shell prompt, optionally providing the name of a file you wish to edit as an argument:

$ vi 
               
                  filename

The screen will clear, and the specified file will be displayed, as shown in Figure 4-4.

Figure 4-4: Initial vi display

Notice that unused lines are marked with a tilde (~) character.

vi modes

vi uses two distinct modes:

Normal mode, where the text keys issue editing commands. This is sometimes called command mode.

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Table of Contents

What compatibility do you need?

What compatibility do you need?

What level of stability do you need?

Determining your architecture

Preparing for dual-boot

Starting the installation

Customizing the desktop appearance using themes

Customizing the desktop appearance using themes

Add a new print queue

Adding and removing fonts using GNOME Nautilus

Safely removing a USB drive

Configuring default actions in GNOME

Using gnome-power-manager to conserve power

Using gnome-power-manager to conserve power

Configuring networking graphically

Configuring dual video on an NVIDIA card

Understanding the shell prompt

Understanding the shell prompt

Entering commands

Using manpages

Understanding Linux directory names

vi modes