Linuxconf 1.6 Introduction This is the seventh release of Linuxconf, a new admin tool for Linux. After more than two years of development at Solucorp, we are quite proud of it. It is available from sunsite.unc.edu as /pub/Linux/system/Admin/linuxconf-1.6.src.tar.gz /pub/Linux/system/Admin/linuxconf-1.6.bin-aout.tar.gz /pub/Linux/system/Admin/linuxconf-1.6.bin-elf.tar.gz 1. What is Linuxconf Linuxconf is a new admin tool for Linux. It goes much further than the simple set of user interface dialogs and script based utilities. It is a fully integrated utility which help you maintain a working Linux system without difficulties. Linuxconf knows how to manage quite a few things in your system. 2. Why is it "hot" Linuxconf is both a configurator and an activator. It is the one which decide if ... · A daemon must be started. · A configuration command must be executed. · A daemon must be killed/restarted. · A daemon must be signaled (kill -HUP ...). · A network interface must be (re)configured. · A network route must be set/remove. · A volume must be (re)mount. Linuxconf act based on configuration files. It knows about most Linux configuration files and can compare their status with what is running currently. Based on this query, Linuxconf can bring your system "current". Whether you use Linuxconf's user interface or edit the configuration files by hand is unimportant. The following command linuxconf --status will give you a report of what has to be done to bring the system "current". linuxconf --update will do it for you! Rebooting is simply not an option anymore. This is really its main goal. Every time you quit Linuxconf, it will probe all configuration files and make sure your workstation is "current". If it is not, it will tell you what have to be done and do it (you are allowed not to do it). 3. Linuxconf takes control very early One component of linuxconf is called "askrunlevel". It takes control very early. A call to /sbin/askrunlevel must be placed at the end of your /etc/rc.d/rc.S file (or equivalent such as /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit on redhat systems). This utility allows you to select a proper runlevel (logical operation mode) or to completly reconfigured your system even before the boot sequence is finished. From this utility, you are allowed to ... · Start Linux in graphical mode (xdm) and fully activate the networking. · Go graphic, without networking. · Run as an X terminal. · Start in text mode, full networking. · Text mode, no network. · Configure the workstation. Linuxconf allows you to configure the workstation even before it is fully booted. This is a winner as it saves you from false start boot (often with an invalid network configuration). 4. What Linuxconf knows so far Linuxconf knows how to configure and managed the following things. · System time, time zone, CMOS clock. · LILO management. · Basic networking configuration (IP numbers and net mask) of the four Ethernets adaptors. · Static routing. Default route. · Filesystems (/etc/fstab). · Routed daemon. · NIS client (ypbind). · NFS server. · PPP client configuration and activation. · Users and groups. · The named daemon. Yes Linuxconf provides a friendly interface to configure and maintain a DNS. Check this out! · Sendmail. Check this out! · Fire-walling (Packet filtering). · RARP setup. · IP Alias setup. · UUCP management. Further, Linuxconf provides a friendly interface to configure theses files and more. · /etc/fstab · /etc/host.conf · /etc/hosts · /etc/networks · /etc/resolv.conf 5. Command line mode Linuxconf provide a command line mode allowing better integration with shell scripts. Here is a sample · netconf --runlevel local | client | server · netconf --status · netconf --update · netconf --connect pppaccount · dnsconf --set host ip-number ... · dnsconf --unset host The dnsconf utility should be easily integrated with the DHCP daemon, allowing full synchronization with the DNS. 6. Web mode You can point your favorite web browser to any linuxconf's managed linux station and fully configure it. This is a major feature for remote administration. 7. Current state Linuxconf is now usable and already a big time saver. Linuxconf install over any standard Slackware system includind the latest 3.0 and redhat (3.0.3) systems. Just UN-tar linuxconf-1.3.bin- aout.tar.gz (or bin-elf) in the root and execute /install/doinst.sh. Read carefully what is written. Linuxconf may work with other distribution (it should in fact). I have no experience with other than Slackware (2.x and 3.0) at this point, so I can only recommend Linuxconf to really experienced users (Using something different than Slackware or redhat). This is the seventh public release. Many glitches has been cured. Linuxconf is now fully translatable. All strings has been moved from the source files and put in a dictionnary. 8. Documentation Linuxconf has online help (context) for most screen. (49 out of 69 help screen are done). This represent a lot of work. Comments and some help are welcome. 9. Technology Linuxconf is written in C++. It currently has a ncurses interface. It scores at around 38,500 lines of code. It currently compiled with GCC 2.6.2 and GCC 2.7.2. For GCC 2.6.2, define the environement variable OLDGCC export OLDGCC=on 10. Future Many more things are expect to be included in Linuxconf. Here are few of them. · Graphical user interface.. · Inittab, and getty management. · inetd.conf · Samba management. · sudo management. · bootp, DHCP. · httpd server configuration (Apache in progress). 11. Mailing list A mailing list has been setup to discuss bugs and features of Linuxconf. Join the list by sending a message to linuxconf-request@solucorp.qc.ca Send a message to the list using the following address. linuxconf@solucorp.qc.ca 12. Licensing Linuxconf is distributed under the GNU GPL license. See the file LICENSE included in the distribution. Like most other Linux components, there are very little restrictions about usage and redistribution. We would like to hear from distribution maintainer. Linuxconf is certainly a key candidate to ease Linux acceptance. Comments are welcome! 13. Author Linuxconf was written at Solucorp by Jacques Gelinas (jacques@solucorp.qc.ca). Solucorp is installing Linuxconf to customer site for some time now. Solucorp is a consulting company doing work in the following fields. · Linux! · Networking (Internet services, fire-walling). · Multi-platform software development.