Estrella Mountain Community College

Cornerstone Charter School Classroom 5
CIS238DL Linux System Administration 3 Credits
Semester Spring 2006 Section 8044
Fridays 8:00 AM - 11:45 AM

Course Syllabus

Instructor: Mrs. Gender
E-mail Address College: gender@lug.estrellamountain.edu

E-mail Red Hat Academy Lab Technician: rhacademy@emcmail.maricopa.edu
LUG Resource Website: http://www.lug.estrellamountain.edu
College Website: http://www.estrellamountain.edu
Red Hat Academy Coordinator Phone number: Randy Larson (623.935.8077)

Office Telephone Number: 602.595.2198

Office Hours: Thursday 8:00AM − 11:00AM


 

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Managing Linux Operating Systems including sophisticated manipulation of file structures, backup systems, printing processes,

troubleshooting, user account management, hard disk maintenance and configuration, process monitoring and prioritizing,

kernel customization, and system resource control. Preparation for industry certifications such as the SAIR/GNU LCP

and LCA certificates, CompTIA's Linux+, RHCT, RHCE, and LPIC. Prerequisites: CIS126AL, CIS126BL and CIS126CL; or

CIS126DL or Permission of Instructor

 

TEXTBOOKS, RESOURCES, AND REQUIRED MATERIALS

Required: All course material, including reading, assessments and labs are available online at: https://academy.redhat.com/

(RHN Account is required for login. Please see the web site instructions for creating RHN accounts.)

You must have an RHN account to access all the online Red Hat Academy materials.

 

Note: Students may purchase the online content from the Estrella Mountain Follet Bookstore. These materials are

exactly what is available online. It is NOT necessary to purchase a printed copy; however, for convenience students

may elect to purchase a printed copy.

COURSE COMPETENCIES

1.       Demonstrate understanding of Linux File System standards. (I)

2.       Utilize automated backup procedures (I, IV, V, VI)

3.       Manage and control system resources such as memory and CPU usage through a variety of techniques. (I, IV, VI)

4.       Configure printing system to local and remote network printers including print job filtering and management. (I, IV, VI)

5.       Create and implement a security policy including an emergency security plan. (I, II, III, V, VI)

6.       Design fault-tolerant systems and network environments. (I, V, VI)

7.       Customize system security through the use of user system profiles, user and group accounts, and file and directory privileges. (II, III, V, VI)

8.       Create partitions and file systems, and will manipulate access to them through the use of mount points and automated mounting techniques. (II, IV, VI)

9.       Recompile the kernel of the Linux operating system from source code and explain the benefits. (II, III)

10.    Utilize "su" and "sudo" commands to access administrative system privileges. (III)

11.    Monitor system functions and security through the use of a variety of system logs. (III)

12.    Add to repertoire of system prompt commands used to control the Linux operating system. (I, II, III, IV, V, VI)

13.    Utilize a variety of command line and GUI applications to perform a variety of user and administrative tasks. (V).

14.    Implement a variety of troubleshooting techniques to prevent and deal with a variety of system problems including core dumps. (VI)

 

COURSE OUTLINE

I. Theory of Operation

A. Identify and outline the file system hierarchy standards.

B. Identify the cron daemon's (task scheduling utility) implementation in file system backup.

C. Define system tuning and the effect that process has on the system.

D. Outline the print process and the role of the BSD printing model.

E. Identify common physical network problems and the measures taken to troubleshoot those vulnerable areas.

F. Outline the emergency measures taken when network vulnerabilities are breached.

G. Identify key system resources.

H. List the different levels of RAID storage (Redundant Array of Independent Disks).

II. Base System

A. Identify the key files used in configuring user profiles, and the configurations possible with those files.

B. Outline the process of adding and removing users.

C. Identify the role of run levels as well as the specified roles of the reserved run levels 0, 1, and 6.

D. Define the role of the file system table configuration file (fstab) in mounting and unmounting file systems and devices.

F. Identify the common reasons for recompiling the kernel; outline the guidelines followed prior to recompiling.

III. Shells and Commands

A. Outline the permissions necessary for the use of the switch user (su) command.

B. Define the message of the day (motd) and its role in user communication.

C. Identify MS-DOS tools and their use in a Linux system.

D. Define the role of the make command in the compilation of source code; define the function of the touch command and its effect on system logs.

E. Outline the functions of system status, system message logging, and performance analysis.

IV. System Services

A. Identify and describe the function of common user commands.

B. Determine utilities used for archiving, and the differences between the programs.

C. Describe the function of the file system check command (fsck) and determine the program's default run time.

D. Identify the commands used for process management and the options that accompany those commands.

E. Outline printer configuration options.

F. Explain the function of the background line printer daemon and the foreground line printer requester.

G. Outline the use of package managers when utilizing software packages.

V. Applications

A. Compare and contrast backup applications.

B. Utilize and configure mail exchange programs.

C. Install and configure Web server daemons.

D. Describe the role of benchmarks in assessing CPU and system architecture as well as compiler design.

E. Compare and contrast File Transfer protocol (FTP) clients and servers.

F. Describe the integration of Secure Shell (SSH) into a network.

G. Describe and contrast common GUI configuration tools.

VI. Troubleshooting

A. Use a variety of troubleshooting tools, procedures, and techniques for administering a variety of systems within the Linux architecture.

B. Outline measures taken to prevent and control core dumps.

C. Prepare rescue environment utilities

 

LINUX SOFTWARE OPERATING SYSTEMS

Students will refer to Cornerstone's Student Handbook on computer usage.

 

STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT - IMPORTANT ABILITIES

Communication and Critical Thinking are currently being integrated into a wide variety of Estrella Mountain courses.

By integrating these abilities into a variety of courses you benefit twice. You learn course content, and you

develop those all-important abilities to enhance your success in academic and professional pursuits. Universities and

employers look for students who have these abilities. At Estrella Mountain Community College, Communication and Critical

Thinking are defined as follows:

COMMUNICATION
A student who effectively communicates:
1. Responds to an audience
2. Demonstrates a clear sense of purpose
3. Organizes information
4. Delivers information using appropriate language

CRITICAL THINKING
A student who thinks critically processes, synthesizes, and applies information to solve problems by:
1. Identifying the problem
2. Developing and implementing strategies
3. Evaluating information
4. Reaching conclusions
5. Responding to the problem

ASSIGNMENTS, LABS, PROJECTS AND EVALUATION

This course is set up as a graded (A, B, C, etc.) course. This course may be taken as a P/Z or credit/no credit course.

If you wish to take it P/Z or credit/no credit, you must inform the instructor on the first day of class.

To receive a passing grade you must make a "D" or higher. 

Course grades will be determined on a percentage of total points possible:
90% to 100% = A
80% to 89% = B
70% to 79% = C
60% to 69% = D

Assignment Points

Six Quizzes = 20 points each quiz Total = 120 points.

Six Lab Tests = 50 points each test. Total = 300 points. 

 

Total Points = 420 points

Grading Scale 373-420 Points = A
Grading Scale 336-372 Points = B
Grading Scale 294-335 Points = C
Grading Scale 252-293 Points = D

CLASS ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION POLICY

 

Attendance is taken at every face to face class meeting. You are expected to attend class on time for each scheduled class session.

If you are going to be absent from a class session, you are expected to call or email your instructor explaining your absence in advance

of your absence when possible or immediately following your absence. Each student is responsible for obtaining information and assignments

given during a missed class meeting prior to the next class meeting.

 

COURSE WITHDRAWALS

To properly withdraw from a class, students must inform the Admissions and Records Office in Komatke Hall, after obtaining the instructor's
signature on a Class Reschedule Change Form. Consult the schedule of classes for refund information. Note: It is not the instructor's responsibility
to withdrawal students from any course;
however, I am more than willing to assist you in filling out the proper forms for any course.

ACADEMIC HONESTY

Academic honesty is highly valued at Estrella Mountain Community College and Cornerstone High School. A student must always submit work that
represents his or her original words or ideas. If any words or ideas are used that do not represent the student's original words or ideas, the student
must cite all relevant sources. The student should also make clear the extent to which such sources were used. Words or ideas that require citations
include, but are not limited to, all hardcopy or electronic publications, whether copyrighted or not, and all verbal or visual communication when the
content of such communication clearly originates from an identifiable source. You must review and understand the copyright policy for the Maricopa Community Colleges.
For more information, please refer to the Student Handbook, Section 2.3.11.

ESTRELLA MOUNTAIN LINUX USERS GROUP (LUG)

This course qualifies any student who is interested in joining the officially sponsored Estrella Mountain Linux Users Group.
Please consult the online Linux Users Group web site for more information.

 

RED HAT COURSE MATERIALS

All Red Hat Academy course materials are copyrighted by Red Hat, Inc. Any student who wishes to access "official Red Hat
Academy Online Material" must be registered in the appropriate EMCC Linux College credit course. Students are permitted to print
course materials from the Red Hat Academy online site for their own personal use. Red Hat prohibits the distribution by any
individual and possession of non registered EMCC Linux students of Red Hat Academy electronic Portable Data Format (PDF) course
materials; the only exception is Red Hat Certified Technician (RHCT) faculty, who are permitted electronic copies of any Red Hat Academy
curriculum related to classroom use. Students must agree to the copyright statement upon entering the Red Hat Academy website. 

DISCLAIMER
All provisions in this syllabus are subject to revision by the instructor. Such revisions, if any, will be announced in class. The student is
responsible for making note of all such announcements concerning syllabus revisions and assignments, and, in the case of absence or
tardiness, to contact the instructor to determine if any such announcements, revisions, or assignments were made while the student was absent from class.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

 

Students with disabilities who believe that they may need accommodations in this class must contact the Disability Resources and Services
office (KOMB-119) at 623.935.8935, 623.935.8928 TTY or Ramona Shingler