Introduction to UNIX

SFCC Computing Dept

Paul Lecoq - Instructor

Ofice 18-112A 533-3793

 -9:30-10:30 Monday & Friday Bldg 18, room 218   Thursday, Bldg 18 Room 211

 Plus at least 6 hours outside of class per week

This course introduces the fundamentals of the UNIX Operating System.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

You are expected to be able to do this before completing this Course

You will learn the basic principles of multi-tasking / multi-user operating systems such as UNIX. You will understand and use the commands, utilities, and filters and will be able to create shell scripts for UNIX. You will understand what a system or network administrator does within a UNIX environment and how UNIX handles such services as Web servers.

BACKGROUND & DISCUSSION

What is an UNIX and how can you use it?

UNIX has been the Operating System of choice for minicomputers for many years. Over the past several years the increased speed and computing in the PC field have made it possible to run UNIX on the PC platform. But UNIX isn't for the casual computer user. With its mini-level power comes a rather unforgiving nature.

INSTRUCTIONS:

What you are expected to do in this class?

Your success in this class has to do with how much time you spend at the keyboard working on the operating system. I, as the instructor, can't check every step of your progress. You will have to try the assignments in the book and those I give you. A Midterm and a Final exam will sample your knowledge but watching you perform with commands, filters, scripts, etc. will provide a better measure of your success.

Read the book, do the exercises, and let me know how well you are doing.
The text in the bookstore is recommended, however any good UNIX book will suffice.  Those of you expecting to use LINUX may choose one of the several good LINUX books that come with CDROM LINUX distribution disks.

EVALUATION CRITERIA:

How well have you done?

Since this is a hands-on experience class the primary means of evaluating your understanding will be for me to watch you manipulate UNIX in class. The assignments are meant to focus your learning on specific important subjects but just because I haven't assigned a subject explictly doesn't mean that you shouldn't know it. If it is in the reading assignment or lectures, it is important.

The Exams will sample the depth of your understanding in representative areas. But don't forget that whatever we work on this quarter will soon be obsolete so the most important thing for you to do will be to learn how to learn.


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Learning Objectives ---- You are expected to be able to do this before completing this Course

UNIX has been the Operating System of choice for minicomputers for many years. Over the past several years the increased speed and computing

Back

What is UNIX and how can you use it?
UNIX has been the Operating System of choice for minicomputers for many years. Over the past several years the increased speed and computing in the PC field have made it possible to run UNIX on the PC platform. But UNIX isn't for the casual computer user. With its mini-level power comes a rather unforgiving nature. UNIX is largely a Command Line Interpreter (CLI) based operating system as opposed to the Graphic User Interface (GUI) one finds in Microsoft Windows.

Until Windows NT and Windows 95, Microsoft Windows was not fully preemptive multi-tasking. That is, All windows applications had to participate in multi-tasking, adding to their complexity. UNIX, on the other hand has always been preimptive, meaning that UNIX applications didn't have to be specially written for the multi tasking environment.

Unix has always been multi-user too and has been fully integrated into seamless networking for many years.

Unix security is better than Windows 3.X and 95 but not as good as NT.

Unix's market share is very small with regard to desktop computing but it is rather large in the Server field and virtually 100% in the workstation market.

Unix is not terribly user friendly but it is powerful.

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What you are expected to do in this class?

Your success in this class has to do with how much time you spend at the keyboard working on the operating system. I, as the instructor, can't check every step of your progress. You will have to try the assignments in the book and those I give you. A Midterm and a Final exam will sample your knowledge but watching you perform with commands, filters, scripts, etc. will provide a better measure of your success.

Read the book, do the exercises, and let me know how well you are doing.

  • You are to follow the reading assignments in the table below without being reminded as the course goes on. Don't expect me to remind you.
  • You will convince yourself that you can answer the questions and do the basic exercises at the end of each assigned chapter.
  • You will do additional assignments as indicated in the table below.
  • You will have one Midterm exam and one final exam.
  • If you have had extensive UNIX or network experience and find the assignments unchallenging you may submit a contract to me to do other, more challenging, projects in their place as long as the substitute projects cover all the required material. See me about this.

Weekly schedule of events.

Complete reading before week noted!

Assignments are due the beginning of the week shown.

Week
Subject----------------
 Reading Assignment------

1

Sep17
Overview - everything in microcosm
 Chap 1,2 ------

2

Sept 24
Multi-User, Multi-Tasking operating systems
Command syntax Files, directories & 
subdirectories
 		 Chap 3,4 none

3

Oct 1
Filters & Utilities, a first look
Mailing with Mail and PINE
 Chap 5,6
Chap 19		 1- E-Mail

4

Oct 8
Help, Process control,Printing, History
Using networks and the Internet
Using the 4-PI computers
 Chap 7-9
Chap 20,21		 2-Cmds/Utilities

5
Oct 15
Fri off
UNIX Editors
vi, what else?
 Chap 2
Chap 3 (Review)		 3 File Structures
4.Linux - GUIs

6

Oct 22
UNIX scripts
 
 		 5-File Editing
6-Use the World-
Wide Web

7

Oct 29
More scripts
 		 Chap 22 7-Scripts #a

8

Nov 5
LANs and WANs
UNIX Networks
 Chap   8-Scripts #b

9

Nov 13
Monday off
System Administration
X Windows & GUIs
 Chapt 11,12 9-Admin scripts

10
Nov 19
Thanksg.
Advanced UNIX features
 		 Chap 14, 15, 16 10-Networks

11

Nov 26
Work like the dickens to catch up
 ----------- 11 - Linux Report
12
Dec 3
Work like the dickens to catch up
 -- 12-Final report
Final exam in room 211
* Each asterisk stands for one day missed that week for holidays or other reason.

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How do you know when you are done? How well have you done?

Since this is a hands-on experience class the primary means of evaluating your understanding will be for me to watch you manipulate UNIX in class. The assignments are meant to focus your learning on specific important subjects but just because I haven't assigned a subject explictly doesn't mean that you shouldn't know it. If it is in the reading assignment or lectures, it is important.

The Exams will sample the depth of your understanding in representative areas. But don't forget that whatever we work on this quarter will soon be obsolete so the most important thing for you to do will be to learn how to learn.

Worst Case Grading criteria

Two exams 300
About six formal assignments 300
Total 600
Exams - ~80% for 4.0 50% for 0.0

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Assignment 1 ---------E- Mail

Send and receive e-mail to and from me { paull@riscy.sfcc.spokane.cc.wa.us and at epaull@hotmail.com}

Create a mailing list including several classmates and send mail via the list.

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Assignment 2 ---------Comands and utilities

In this assignment you may pair up with someone and demonstrate your ability to use the commands and utilities from chapters 1 through 5. for much of this you will not be able to make a hard copy record. Consequently, your partner will verify your competence. Turn in a report cosigned by your partner of each of the functions you perform.

Perform the following:

  1. Demonstrate your proficiency in the commands of chapters 2 through 5.

    2. ls, cat, pg, more,cp, rm, who, finger,mesg, talk, write,echo, date, mv, lp, head, tail, sort, uniq, & dif.etc.
  2. Use grep to find a line containing a string
  3. Document how you have used these commands..
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Assignment 3---------File structures

Again, much of this is to be verified by your partner. Turn in a report of what you have accomplished, cosigned by your partner.
  1. From your root directory, create a file structure similar to that below. demonstrate your ability to move about within that file structure. Copy files from your root into some of these directories. Show that you can delete files and directories.
  2. Create some hidden files in your directory tree (begin with a ".") Show that you know how to display a directory listing that shows these files.
  3. Change the permissions of some of the files to allow others only read privs. Verify that this now applies by asking your partner to try to change it.
  4. Use { ls | lp } to make a hard copy of your directories.
  5. Document what you have learned from directories in a written report.
myroot
       mybin
               proprietary
               general
      mydocs
               personal
               private
      myscripts

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Assignment 4.  Linux & its GUIs

In the beginning there was just unix.  Then came X Windows.  Now there are several systems for accessing unix in creative visual ways.
You are to explore on the Wold Wide Web to find out what kinds of access methods there are to Unix/Linux.  Can you find out much about something called KDE?

Document your research with a two part paper.  First describe X Windows and how it is used, then tell about GUI front ends for Unix/Linux.


Assignment 5.    File editing

Experiment with the vi editor until you are comfortable with it.
Use vi to create an instruction sheet for vi.  In this instruction sheet you will be telling beginning Unix students how to:

  1. Open a new file and put text into it.
  2. Close a file, saving the contents
  3. Open an existing text file
  4. Understand the command and insert modes
  5. delete text
  6. insert text
A couple of pages should do it.
Print the instructions and turn in a copy
 

Assignment 6.  -------World Wide Web Use the World Wide Web to gather information on two of the following topics.  Compile what you find into two written reports of at least four pages each using the vi editor.  With my concurrance, chose one of your topic to give an oral report in class.  (five to ten minutes)
       LINUX
      Unix based Web servers
      Unix networking
      Scripting for Unix systems managers

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Assignment 7. -------Shell scripts -A

To be defined in class

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Assignment 8. -------Shell scripts -B

To be defined in class

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Assignment 9. -------Admin scripts -C

To be defined in class

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Assignment 10. -------Networks

Do whatever reading and research is necessary to compile a description of the ways that Unix/Linux boxes can communicate.  Bring your notes to class and be prepared to discuss unix networking in depth.  Include information about how the following relate to unix networking:
 
 
TCP/IP Internet Telnet ftp
NFS World Wide web encryption e-mail
IP addresses bandwidth

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Assignment 11. -------Admin Report

You should probably be working on this most of the quarter.
Do whatever reading and research is necessary to determine what a unix admistrator and a network administrator in a unix shop have to know and have to do.  Compile your notes into a readable collection and be ready to discuss and defend what you have collected.

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Assignment 12. -------Final Project

Based upon the admin report you did in assignment 11, create a list of important administrative scripts needed to make a unix network function properly.
Implement at least half a dozen such scripts.

Questions?  Ask them.  I'll be happy to help you figure all of this out.

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