CT 231 - LINUX INSTALLATION AND ADMINISTRATION

COURSE SYLLABUS
WINTER 2010

1. Course Information

Title - LINUX INSTALLATION AND ADMINISTRATION - CT 231

Credit Contact Hrs. 3/4

Required Prerequisites: CT 230 - INTRODUCTION TO UNIX/LINUX

Online Hybrid Class

Tuesday Lab 264- Optional Lab- 10:25 to 11:20 Am (CST)

2. Instructor Information

Name: Karl Linderoth

Office Location: 402H HATC Bldg & Lab 264 Office at West Campus
Office Phone: 786-5802, Ext 1166 / #3021 at West Campus
Office Hours: MTWRF - 8:00 - 4:30
E-Mail: linderok@baycollege.edu

Mailing Address: 2001 North Lincoln Road, Bay College, Escanaba, MI 49829

CT program website- www.baycollege.edu/~linderok

OFFICE HOURS:

Fridays- alternating starting with January 15th at West Campus. Anytime by email.

3. Materials:

Text: “Essential System Administration”, Frisch- O’Reilly- 0-596-00343-9

Reference Materials
3-Ring Notebook
-VMWare or Virtual Box and Fedora 7 image
2 blank 1.44mb floppies, Flashdrive
4. Course Description

In this course, we will take an in depth look at Linux, focusing on proper installation and
administration of the operating system. Also, we will examine the theoretical concepts
common to the Linux system that have increased its popularity. Our exploration of
Linux will take the form of a practical hands-on approach.

5. General Education - Associate Degree Competencies

This course supports the following General Education competencies:

.COMPUTER SKILLS
4. Graduates will demonstrate functional knowledge of basic hardware components of input, output,
process, and storage.

5. Graduates will effectively use Internet services and application software as required for success in
their program.

6. Graduates will demonstrate the ability to access, retrieve, evaluate, and apply networked systems to
be successful in their program.

6. Performance

1. Discuss the importance of the Free Software Foundation, GNU General

Public License and the spirit and strength of Unix/Linux.

2. Implement NSTISS concepts of data backup, disaster planning and recovery,

offsite data backup, and team member responsibilities.

3. Demonstrate ability to implement personnel security practices and

procedures, such as employee security and access, security training, and
access controls.

4. Demonstrate knowledge to plan hardware issues, prepare, and create a

system inventory in preparation for installation of Linux.

5. Demonstrate ability to implement software security controls, such as change

control, documentation, access privileges, and concept of least privilege.

6. Demonstrate their ability to install a Linux OS, start, and troubleshoot a new
Linux installation.

7. Demonstrate their ability to work with files and directories, manage software
packages, understand the internal Linux operations and the initialization
process.
8. Demonstrate their ability to work with a graphical environment and configure
access to graphics hardware.

9. Demonstrate their use of the shell command-line environment, customize

their shell and work with the common text editors for modifying text files.

10. Explain the role of an System Administrator and work with some basic
system administration tools.

11. Demonstrate their ability to work with basic administration utilities used to
manage users, processes, and file system in Linux.

12. Explain the importance of protecting the data on a Linux system from
downtime, plan for potential trouble and manage the key aspects of a Linux
system to avoid downtime.

13. Demonstrate their ability to manage the system resources so users can
complete their work effectively and be able to locate and alleviate bottlenecks
that restrict system performance.

14. Discuss how programs write messages to the log files, how to configure
them to meet their needs and how to maintain the log files to help keep a
Linux system secure and running smoothly.

15. Demonstrate their ability to create shell scripts that automate system
administration tasks that normally would be done at the command-line and
how to schedule them to be run at predefined times.

16. Demonstrate how to set-up and manage printing on a Linux system and print
to remote computers and printers.

17. Demonstrate how to back-up data stored on a Linux system, plan an

effective back-up strategy for different types of system, and understand the
different hardware components, back-up media and software utilities
available for the Linux systems.
7. TENTATIVE SCHEDULE ( THIS SCHEDULE IS PROVIDED AS A GUIDE, NOT A
CONTRACT).

Week of Discussion Activity/Topic Preparation (plus instructor

assigned)

1/12 Load Linux

1/19 PPT 1 – Start up and Shut down

1/26 PPT 2 – Managing Users

2/2 PPT 2- Managing Users

2/9 PPT 3 Syslog EXAM – 1,2,3

2/16 PPT 4- Managing System Resources

2/23 PPT 5- DHCP Mid Term- 4,5

3/2 Spring Break- No Class, Labs closed

3/9 PPT6- DNS

3/16 PPT6- DNS

3/23 PPT7- SAMBA

3/30 PPT7- SAMBA Exam- 6, 7

4/6 PPT8- CRON

4/13 PPT9- IPTables

4/20 PPT9- IPTables

4/27 Final Exams

8. INSTRUCTOR POLICIES:

Attendance: Students are expected to do all assigned work. Should a student no be able to complete
work, he/she is expected to talk to the instructor about material that was missed. Absences that the student
knows prior to the class should be discussed with the instructor prior to missing the class.
Missed Assignments: Instructor gives a 1 week grace period for Online Hybrid Assignments. Any late
assignment after one week will be counted as half credit.

Participation: Students are expected to participate in Discussion Board posts. Taking notes is not
required, but highly encouraged. The instructor retains the right to use the book, handed out material and
lecture notes for the exams.

Cheating: Cheating or copying other student’s work will not be tolerated and will result in an automatic
failure of the course.

Group Assignments: Groups will be randomly assigned for lab and quizzes. These student grades will
calculated as a single quiz or lab.

Incomplete: Instructor usually does not give incomplete grades.

Course Withdrawal: Course withdrawal is the student’s responsibility. The proper paperwork must be
processed in a timely manner or failure to do so will result in the student receiving an “F” at the end of the
term.

Students with Disabilities: Students with disabilities who require special accommodations should identify
themselves at the beginning of the term if there is expectation to take the disability into consideration.

9. STUDENT EVALUATION AND GRADING % OF GRADE

The student’s grade is based on the total number of points accrued for the semester
and are in the following ranges.

TESTS 30%
HOMEWORK/LABS/EXERCISES 40%
FINAL EXAM 20%

10. GRADING SCALE

100-90% A
89-80% B
79-70% C
69-60% D
Less that 59% F
11. STUDENT ACADEMIC ASSISTANCE:

Bay de Noc Community College provides tutoring services through the Special Populations Program
located in the Learning Resource (LRC). One-on-one tutoring sessions are available to Bay College
students at no charge for the service. Also, students with a disability that is an obstacle to their
success in completing their academic requirements may contact the Student Success Office for
assistance. If you fall behind in your studies or are having problems with maintaining an acceptable
grade, please contact the Special Populations office at extension 1128.

12. ASSESSMENT

All Bay College students will be expected to participate in assessment

activities during their course of study at the college. These activities
may include participating in assessment of General Education outcomes,
classroom assessment for specific course lessons, or assessment of skills
needed for a specific program. The assessments will help instructors
and the college make decisions to improve instruction and student
learning.

13. Weather-related Information:

Weather-related information is now available on our phone system. When a student calls the
college, following the "Hello and welcome to Bay de Noc Community College," the prompt is:
"If you are calling for weather or class closing information, press 7."

14. Academic Dishonesty: DON'T DO IT! Cheating, plagiarism will not be tolerated and will
result in failure of the class. Formally, the following is the policy of Bay College:

It shall be the policy of Bay de Noc Community College Board of Trustees that the college
provide opportunities for students to gain the knowledge, skills, judgment, and wisdom they need
to function in society as responsible citizens. Plagiarism, falsifying data, and other forms of
academic dishonesty are inconsistent with the college's goals and mission. Students are expected
to pursue their education at Bay College with honor and integrity. A copy of the entire Academic
Integrity Policy is available to students upon request.

15. Federal Student Aid Statement

"Federal Student Aid (FSA) funds are awarded to a student under the assumption that the student
will attend school for the entire period for which assistance is received. A student who
withdraws after beginning attendance, but prior to completing 60% of the semester, will have
their eligibility for FSA grants or loan funds recalculated. The student may be required to return
any unearned funds."