The Virtual Bookcase Reviews of 'UNIX System Administration Handbook (BkCD ROM) (2nd Edition)':
Reviewer amazon.com wrote:The third edition of Unix System Administration Handbook stands as a fantastic Unix book, perhaps one that's destined for legend. It's arguably the best general Unix book around. Don't delay in getting it, and don't spend too much time flinching at the price; it's worth it. If you work with Unix--in any of its flavors--you'll use this book, and frequently. How, then, to begin the song of praises for the book? Let's start with its comprehensiveness. The authors--a whole passel of them, but miraculously consistent in style--deal with every subject that's central to the Unix universe. Their diligence extends even to detailed coverage of subjects (like the Domain Name System (DNS)) that many authorial squads omit. System administrators need to understand it all--it's good to see everything covered in one book. Of course, you still will need more focused texts for really complicated situations, but the coverage here will carry you a long way. Although you probably will want to read this book cover to cover eventually, you might first look at the index, which typically will guide you to a couple of sections. First, an overview of the subject that interests you will explain what the service or feature is meant to do, what it isn't meant to do, and how (in fairly general terms) it does its job. You'll find four sections--one each on the relevant configuration facts of the four emphasized Unix variants. These sections aren't presented as explicit sequences of steps (which invariably leave the reader asking, "But, what if... " anyway), but as narratives that are interspersed with commands and configuration file listings. The approach works well, and it's made even better by the syntax summaries and conceptual diagrams that pop up now and then. --David Wall Topics covered: Administration of Unix systems, with specific reference to Solaris 2.7, HP-UX 11.00, Red Hat Linux 6.2, and FreeBSD 3.4. Administration is a broad subject, and the authors touch on most of its aspects, including user and file operations (basic and advanced), hardware configuration, and kernel tweaking. Networking coverage includes basic connectivity, routing, server software, DNS, and security. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Reviewer Rob Slade wrote:
UNIX has several strikes against it as far as administration goes. It has been
traditionally an experimental and developmental system, changing and growing
slowly but constantly over the past quarter-century. Those who have used it
for most of that time have been more concerned with utility than management.
No single vendor has had overall control, nor been forced to answer to business
administration needs. The various strains of UNIX differ most widely at the
system level, precisely the spot where administrative most work is conducted.
The authors of this work have therefore taken on a massive and messy task. And
succeeded admirably. The content is thorough, the organization logical, and
the coverage comprehensive. Part one covers the basics of the boot process,
root, the filesystem, processes, users, devices, backup, logs, and the kernel.
Part two deals with networking, primarily related to TCP/IP. The last part is
a miscellany of news, printing, disk management, maintenance, accounting,
performance, UUCP, daemons and policies.
Too often, one must choose between technical understanding and writing ability.
That is not the case with this book. The writing is logical and lucid, and the
explanations clear. The technical material is sound, and spiced just enough
with irreverent comment to make it interesting without becoming offensive.
If you are being dragged into the system administration quagmire, here is your
lifeline.
copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995
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