Essential Server Setup Guide

1. Users and Documents Free Powerpoint Templates

2. Contents • Server Users and Directories • Server Administrators • Document Hierarchy • Directory Indexing • File and Directory Names • Transferring Files

3. Lab 3.1 – Server Users and Directories • A server connected to the Internet will be useful to others on the Net only if it provides some services. • Common Services • HTTP • SMTP email • telnet • FTP

4. Document Directories • Web server responsibilities • Provide access to HTML documents from the server • Will enable a single directory for publishing Web documents • Any files put in this directory or any subdirectories will be available via a browser- Document Root Directory

6. Server Users • Generally has accounts for any local users that need to do things on it • Are actually people doing work on the server • Task is to update and edit Web pages • A user account consists of a • Usernames • password

7. User Directories • Once you log into a server with your username and password, you typically start in your home directory • Profile scripts/login scripts • Scripts that run when you log in to customize your environment

8. Lab 3.2 – Server Administrator • Duties of System Administrator • Install and configure server OS • Set up daemons/services (UNIX/NT) • Install and configure web server • Keep server software up to date • Patches (UNIX) • Service packs (NT)

9. System Administrator Duties • Backup and recovery • To disk or tape • Full and incremental backups • Accounts and quotas • Maintain users and their accounts • Decide level of resources for users • Network software configuration • Monitoring security

10. Servers and Daemons • Servers • Web server is a program that, using the client/server model and the World Wide Web's Hypertext Transfer Protocol ( HTTP ), serves the files that form Web pages to Web users (whose computers contain HTTP clients that forward their requests). • Daemons • A daemon is a type of program on Unix-like operating systems that runs unobtrusively in the background, rather than under the direct control of a user, waiting to be activated by the occurrence of a specific event or condition

11. Patches and Service Packs • Another duty of the system administrator is to keep the server software up to date • Patches are often released for UNIX systems that fix bugs and security problems and provide other enhancement

12. Backup and Recovery • A good system administrator • Ensure that everything on the serve is being backed up regularly • Backups should occur regularly and automatically

13. Accounts and Quotas • The system administrator also needs to maintain user accounts • Involves: • in creating accounts for new users • deleting accounts of users that no longer need access • Maintaining the integrity of user accounts

14. Other System Administrator Responsibilities • Installing and upgrading hardware and software • Network configuration (changing IP address, etc) • Configuration testing • Monitoring system security and availability • Analyzing log files

15. Lab 3.3 Document Hierarchy • The files and directories on your server are organized in a file system. • File system determines: • Where files are stored on a computer’s hard drive • How many letters a filename can contain • The security of files stored on the computer

16. Some of the common file system

17. File System Attributes • Goal – to provide a means to store and retrieve files • FAT doesn’t support long filename • Used naming convention called 8.3 naming convention • Must be at most 8 characters with an optional 3-character suffix naming convention

18. Directories and Folders • Some OS, such as Windows, support the notion of drive letters • Eg. C:\, • UNIX doesn’t support drive letters, it is a strict hierarchy • Eg. Start with /

19. Directories and Folders • Directory • A special file on the file system • Stores other files • Called folders on some OS • Subdirectory • A directory within another directory • All directories created under the root directory • Root directory • Uppermost folder, used to store all the files on the file system

20. Path • To a file is a list of all the parent directories above it • Pathname • A name representing a path • Typically the directory name separated by slashes (/) or backslashes (\)

21. Absolute pathname • A description of a file or directory based off the root directory • /usr/local/httpd/htdocs • Relative pathname • Is used to reference files based on the current directory • Cd/usr/local/httpd • Cd htdocs

22. Uniform Resource Locators • Describe how to find a web resource http://www.vortexwidgets.com/support/industrial.html Servername:www.vortexwidgets.com Path: support Filename: industrial.html • Use relative URLs in your own web pages • Make it easy to move to another directory

23. Lab 3.4 Directory Indexing • Many times while surfing the Web, you have probably requested a URL without actually specifying a filename • By typing in only the name of a site, you are not actually specifying a file to retrieve • The server determines what file to retrieve based on directory indexes.

24. Directory Indexing • If no file name in a URL: • Directory browsing enabled • If index document, return default document • Otherwise return list of files • Directory browsing disabled • If index document, return default document • Otherwise return nothing

25. How web servers view directories • Several options are available when choosing how your Web server views directories • No directory browsing permitted • Directory browsing permitted, but no default documents enables • Indexes enabled

26. Lab 3.5 File and Directory Names • Good file names • Make your site easier to maintain • Easier to navigate • Help to develop the site • Two of the important things to remember: • Develop a layout for your directories • To create a naming scheme for files

27. Good Filename Practice • Don’t’ use spaces in names • Use underscores (_) or dash (-) instead • Don’t use special characters • %#@$?& • Keep filenames short but descriptive • Use a standard naming convention

28. Good Filename Practice (2) • Use consistent filename extensions • .html , .gif • Don’t use extensions with directory names • Use lowercase letters in all filenames • UNIX is case sensitive • Windows is (mostly)not case sensitive

29. Lab 3.6 Transferring Files • If you’re lucky enough to be local to your Web server, transferring files may seem like a trivial task • Copying files may used either floppy disk, zip drive, Hard drive, etc

30. File Sharing • If your serve is on a local network, you might be able to mount the server’s drives or partitions on your client machines • Windows – Microsoft Windows Networking • UNIX – Network File System

31. File Transfer Protocol (FTP) • Popular method of accessing files on the Internet • Provides a standard, error-free way to transfer files to and from different machines on a network • Are supported on most OS • FTP servers require a username and password for log in

32. Some FTP Command

33. HTTP PUT • HTTP has a PUT method for sending files to a Web Server • The PUT method is similar to the more widely used POST method • But while POST is used to send data and queries to the server, PUT is used exclusively for sending files.

34. Frontpage • An easy to use HTML editor • Best feature is its seamless integration with the Web Server • Synchronisation between development PC and web server • BUT • Not all ISPs support this type of usage • Works best with Microsoft web server • Proprietary

35. Frontpage extensions • Allowing users to save HTML files their local drives • Its real power, however, is when it is used with a server that supports FrontPage Extensions • Are a group of files and CGI programs that are added to the Web server • Allow the FrontPage client to connect to the server and take a snapshot of a Web site. • Allow client to modify Web pages on the server • Provide authentication

36. -The End-