Customizing and Upgrading Linux

305 Pages·2001·4.239 MB·English

by  Linda McKinnon, Al McKinnon

TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
Customizing and
Upgrading Linux
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
Customizing and
Upgrading Linux
Second Edition
Linda McKinnon
Al McKinnon

Gearhead Press
Wiley Computer Publishing
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
Publisher: Robert Ipsen
Editor: Ben Ryan
Consulting Editor: Donis Marshall
Managing Editor: Angela Smith
Text Design & Composition: D&G Limited, LLC
Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as
trademarks. In all instances where John Wiley & Sons, Inc., is aware of a claim, the product
names appear in initial capital or ALL CAPITAL LETTERS. Readers, however, should contact
the appropriate companies for more complete information regarding trademarks and
registration.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Copyright © 2002 by Linda McKinnon and Al McKinnon. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York
Published simultaneously in Canada.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or
otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copy-
right Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization
through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222
Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA01923, [phone], fax [phone]. Requests to the
Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley
& Sons, Inc., 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY10158-0012, [phone], fax (212) 850-
6008, E-Mail: PERMREQ @ WILEY.COM.
This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to
the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not
engaged in professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is
required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.
The Gearhead Press trademark is the exclusive property of Gearhead Group Corporation.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
ISBN: 0-471-20885-X
Printed in the United States of America.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
A Note from Gearhead Press
Gearhead Press is dedicated to publishing technical books for experienced
Information Technology professionals—network engineers, developers, sys-
tem administrators, and others—who need to update their skills, learn how to
use technology more effectively, or simply want a quality reference to the latest
technology.
Gearhead Press emerged from my experience with professional trainers of
engineers and developers: people who truly understand first-hand the needs of
working professionals. Gearhead Press authors are the crème de la crème of
industry trainers, working at the companies that define the technology revolu-
tion. For this reason, Gearhead Press authors are regularly in the trenches with
the developers and engineers who have changed the world through innovative
products. Drawing from this experience in IT training, our books deliver supe-
rior technical content with a unique perspective that is based on real-world
experience.
Now, as an imprint of John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Gearhead Press will continue
to bring you, the reader, the level of quality that Wiley has delivered consis-
tently for nearly 200 years.
Thank you,
Donis Marshall
Founder, Gearhead Press
Consulting Editor, Wiley Computer Publishing
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
Gearhead Press Books in Print
(For complete information about current and upcoming titles, go to www
.wiley.com/compbooks/)
Books in the Gearhead Press Point to Point Series
Migrating to Microsoft Exchange 2000
by Stan Reimer
ISBN0-471-06116-6
Installing and Configuring Web Servers Using Apache
by Melanie Hoag
ISBN 0-471-07155-2
VoiceXML: 10 Projects to Voice Enable Your Website
by Mark Miller
ISBN 0-471-20737-3
Books in the Gearhead Press In the Trenches Series
Windows 2000 Automated Deployment
by Ted Malone and Rolly Perraux
ISBN 0-471-06114-X
Robust Linux: Assuring High Availability
by Iain Campbell
ISBN 0-471-07040-8
Programming Directory Services for Windows 2000
by Donis Marshall
ISBN 0-471-15216-1
Programming ADO.NET
by Richard Hundhausen and Steven Borg
ISBN 0-471-20187-1
Designing .NET Web Services Using ADO.NET and XML
by Richard Hundhausen and Steven Borg
ISBN 0-471-20186-3
Wireless and Mobile Development for Microsoft .NET Platforms
by Steve Juntunen
ISBN 0-471-21494-9
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
Making Win32 Applications Mobile: Porting to Windows CE
by Nancy Nicolaisen
ISBN 0-471-21618-6
Programming Windows CE Wireless Applications
by Barry Shilmover and Derek Ball
ISBN 0-471-21469-8
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!
Contents
Acknowledgments xiii
About the Authors xv
Introduction xvii
Chapter 1 Preparing for Installation: Chronicling Your Equipment 1
Do Not Be Afraid; Just Do Your Homework 1
What Type of System Do You Have? 2
Discovering and Chronicling Your System’s Equipment 4
Chapter 2 Hard Disk Partition Planning and Preparation 7
Swap Space Options 7
How Much Swap Space Is Required? 9
Hard Disk Partitioning 11
Master Boot Record and the Partition Table 14
The Boot Process 14
Linux and LILO 16
ix
TEAM LinG - Live, Informative, Non-cost and Genuine!