Chapter 1

Introduction to Linux
 Objectives

• Understand the purpose of an operating system

• Outline the key features of the Linux operating
system
• Describe the origins of the Linux operating system
• Identify the characteristics of various Linux
distributions and where to find them
• Explain the common uses of Linux in industry today

2
 Operating Systems

• Computers have two fundamental components:

– Hardware: Physical components inside a computer
– Software: Set of instructions or programs that
understand how to use the hardware of the computer
in a meaningful way

3
 Operating Systems (continued)

• Hardware components include:

– Processor (CPU)
– Physical memory (RAM)
– Storage Devices: Hard disk, floppy disk, and
CD-ROM drives, USB
– Multimedia Devices: Sound and video cards
– Circuit boards
– Peripheral Devices: Printers, Modems,Cameras

4
 Operating Systems (continued)
• Two different types of programs are executed on a
computer:
– Applications
– Operating system (OS) software
– Device Driver: Software containing instructions
that the OS uses to control and interact with a
specific type of computer hardware eg. Printers
– User Interface(GUI): An application program that
allows the user to interact with the OS and other
application programs

5
Operating Systems (continued)

Figure 1-1: The role of operating system software

6
Operating Systems (continued)

Figure 1-2: A Linux graphical user interface

7
 Operating Systems (continued)

• System services: Applications that handle

system-related tasks such as:
– Printing
– Scheduling programs
– Network access

8
 The Linux Operating System

• OS used to run a variety of applications on a variety of

different hardware
• Has the ability to manage thousands of tasks at the
same time
• Allows multiple users to access the system
simultaneously
– Multiuser and multitasking OS

9
 Versions of the
Linux Operating System

• The Core component of Linux is called the Linux

kernel
– The kernel is written almost entirely in the C
programming language
• Linux can have many more software to modify its
appearance, but the kernel is common to all Linux

10
 Licensing In Linux

• Open Source Software (OSS):

– Programs distributed and licensed so that the
source code is available to anyone who wants to
examine, utilize, or improve upon it
– Format and structure of source code follows rules
defined by the programming language in which it
was written

11
 Licensing Linux (continued)

• Implications of OSS:
– Developed very rapidly through widespread
collaboration
– Bugs (errors) are noted and promptly fixed
– Features evolve quickly based on users’ needs
– Perceived value of the software increases because it
is based on usefulness, not on price

12
Licensing Linux (continued)

Table 1-2: Software types

13
 Types of Open Source Licenses

• GNU Public License (GPL): Stipulates that the

source code of any software published under its
license must be freely available
• Artistic license: OSS license allowing source code
to be distributed freely, charged only at discretion of
original author

14
 Types of Closed Source Licenses

• Most closed source software is sold commercially

– e.g., Microsoft or Electronic Arts software
• Freeware: Distributed free of charge; source code
is not available
• Shareware: Initially free, but requires payment after
a period of time or usage

15
 Linux Advantages:
Risk Reduction
• Changes in the market or customer needs may
cause companies to change software frequently
– Can be costly and time-consuming
• Support for closed source software may end
– Vendor may go out of business
– Software version may be retired
• OSS products offer the opportunity to maintain and
change the source code

16
 Linux Advantages:
Meeting Business Needs

• Common software available for Linux includes:

– Scientific and engineering software
– Software emulators
– Web servers, Web browsers, and e-commerce
suites
– Desktop productivity software
– Graphics manipulation software
– Database software
– Security software

17
 Linux Advantages:
Stability and Security

• Customers using a closed source OS must rely on

the OS vendor to fix any bugs
– Waiting for a hot fix may take weeks or months
• Bugs and security loopholes in OSS programs can
be identified and fixed quickly
– Because Code is freely available and scrutinized by
many developers

18
 Linux Advantages: Flexibility for
Different Hardware Platforms

• Partial list of hardware (CPU)platforms on which

Linux can run:
– Intel – M68K
– Itanium – PA-RISC
– Mainframe (S/390) – SPARC
– Cirrus Logic ARM – Ultra-SPARC
– DEC Alpha – PowerPC (Macintosh)
– MIPS

19
 Linux Advantages:
Ease of Customization

• Ability to control the inner workings of an OS

– To use Linux as an Internet Web server, compile the
kernel to include only the support needed to be an
Internet Web server
• Results in a much smaller and faster kernel

20
 Linux Advantages:
Ease of Obtaining Support

• Linux documentation can be found on the Internet

– Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
– HOWTO documents
• Linux Newsgroups
• Linux User Group (LUG): Open forum of Linux
users who discuss and assist each other in using
and modifying the Linux OS

21
 Linux Advantages:
Cost Reduction

Table 1-3: Calculating the total cost of ownership

22
 The History of Linux

Figure 1-4: Timeline of UNIX and Linux development

23
 UNIX

• Evolved from Multiplexed Information and

Computing Service (MULTICS)
• The first true multitasking, multiuser OS
• Written in the C programming language
– Portable OS
• OS from which Linux originated

24
 UNIX (continued)

• Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD)

– Version of the original UNIX source code
• Common flavors of UNIX today include:
– Sun Microsystems’s Solaris
– Hewlett-Packard’s HP-UX
– IBM’s AIX UNIX

25
 The Hacker Culture

• Hacker: Someone wanting to expand their

computing knowledge through experimentation
• Cracker: Someone who illegally uses computers for
personal benefit or to cause damage
• GNU Project: Free OS project started by Richard
Stallman

26
 Linux

• First developed by Linus Torvalds in 1991

– Published under the GNU license
• A second year University student at 21 years.
• Linux kernel developed collaboratively and
centrally managed
• Development rapidly because of the internet that
facilitated collaborations.
– Linux is simply a by-product of OSS development

27
 Linux Distributions

• Red Hat and SuSE

• Distributions may appear different on the surface,
but run the same kernel
• Most distributions ship with a GUI that can be
further customized to suit needs of the user
– Core component of this GUI is X Windows

28
 Linux Distributions (continued)

• GUI environment: X Windows in combination with a

window manager and desktop environment
• Two competing GUI environments in Linux:
– GNU Object Model Environment (GNOME)
– Kommon Desktop Environment (KDE)

29
Linux Distributions (continued)

Figure 1-5: The GNOME Desktop

30
 Linux Distributions (continued)

• Package manager: Software system that installs

and maintains software
• Tarball: Compressed archive of files containing
scripts that install software to the correct location
on the system

31
Linux Distributions (continued)

Table 1-4: Common Linux distributions

32
Linux Distributions (continued)

Table 1-4 (continued): Common Linux distributions

33
 Common Uses of Linux

• May be customized to provide services for a variety

of companies in a variety of situations
• Workstation services: Services used on a local
computer
• Server services: Services made available for other
computers across a network

34
 Internet Servers: Mail Services

• Mail transfer agent (MTA): An e-mail server

• Mail delivery agent (MDA): Service that downloads
e-mail from an MTA
• Mail user agent (MUA): Program that allows e-mail
to be read by a user

35
 Internet Servers:
Routing and FTP Services

• Routing: Provides interconnection between

separate networks
– Core service necessary for Internet to function
– Linux provides support for routing and is easily
customizable
• File Transfer Protocol (FTP) Services: Most
common and efficient method for transferring files
over the Internet

36
 Internet Servers:
Firewalls and Proxy Services

• Firewall: Protects companies from outside intruders

on the Internet
– Linux has firewall support built into the kernel
• Proxy server: requests Internet resources such as
Web sites and FTP sites on behalf of the computer
inside the company

37
 Internet Servers:
Web Services and News Services

• Web services: Web servers host information (text,

pictures, music, binary data, and video)
– Can also process programs known as Common
Gateway Interface (CGI) scripts and provide secure
connections
• News services: News servers allow users to post
messages in forums called newsgroups
– Most Web servers do not provide means for users to
communicate

38
 Internet Servers: DNS Services

• Computers communicating on a network need to

be uniquely identified
– Each computer is assigned an Internet Protocol (IP)
address
• Long string of numbers
• Allows computers to identify and reference each other
• Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN): Masks IP
addresses with user-friendly names

39
 File and Print Servers

• Linux is well-suited for centrally sharing resources

– More economical to share files and printers over a
network
– Inherently fast and light
– A distribution specific to a certain task can be
installed on the central server

40
 Application Servers

• Application server: Intermediary between a client

computer and a database
• Database: Organized collection of data that is
arranged into tables of related information
• Database Management Systems (DBMS): Set of
programs designed for creation, modification,
manipulation, maintenance, and access of
information from databases

41
 Supercomputers

• Clustering: Combining several smaller computers

to act as one large supercomputer
– Beowulf clustering: Most common Linux method of
clustering
• Scalability: Computers that can increase workload
as number of processors increases

42
 Scientific/Engineering Workstation

• Scientific and engineering community often needs

customized programs
• OSS programs can be used or modified
– OSS software for physics, astrophysics, biophysics,
biocomputation, data mining, etc.

43
 Office Workstation

• Workstation software designed for end users in

office and home environments
– Text editors and word processors
– Graphics editing software
– Desktop publishing software
– Financial software
– Office productivity suites

44
 Summary

• Linux is an OS
• Kernel and additional software are freely developed
and improved upon by a large community of
software developers
• Published under the GPL; is called Open Source
Software (OSS)
• Companies find Linux a stable, low-risk, and
flexible alternative to other Oss
• Mostly used OS in the Internet for web and email
servers
45
 Summary (continued)

• Comes in different distributions, all having a

common kernel, but packaged with different OSS
applications
• Wide variety of documentation and resources exist:
Internet Web sites, HOWTOs, FAQs, newsgroups,
and LUGs
• Extremely versatile OS that provides a wide range
of workstation and server services

46
 Practice Questions
1. Distinguish between a device Driver and a user Interface
2. Draw a block diagram to illustrate the relationship between Computer
Users, The application programs , the operating system and the
Computer hardware.
3. Describe any four services that can be offered by Linux,
4. Who developed Linux and when?
5. Distinguish between opens source development and closed source
development.
6. Discuss the contribution of OSS to the development of Linux.
7. Develop an account from the Internet of all the distributions of Linux.
8. Discuss Factors that has led to the fast development of Linux.
9. Output all your answers to the questions above using Linux presentation
application LibreOffice Impress.

47
 Practice Questions

1. All 20 students in a class must do three cats each out of 10% and
an end of exam contributing the remaining marks.
(a)You are required to use the the LibreOffice Calc application to
produce a summary report of the class performance showing
students first and second name, the three cats, exam and the
grade which is worked out based on the criteria below.
X>=70: A, 60=<X<=69: B, 50=<X<=59: C,40=<X<=49: D, X<40:F
(b) On the same worksheet generate a bar chart showing each
student( First name only) grade score .
(C) Generate a PDF docs of the results.

48