Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): A roadmap for LPI-302

Your guide to LPI-302 exam-preparation articles on developerWorks

Skill Level: Advanced Sean Walberg, P. Eng (sean@ertw.com) Network Engineer Independent author

02 Feb 2011 Updated 30 May 2010 Use this roadmap to find IBM developerWorks articles that help you learn and review the fundamentals of supporting Linux in a mixed UNIX/Microsoft environment. If you are also pursuing professional certification as a Linux systems administrator, these articles can help you study for the Linux Professional Institute Certification exam LPI-302. This roadmap is organized according to the 21 objectives in the LPI-302 exam, which is required to get the LPIC-3 specialization in mixed environments. Build your own feed
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About this series

Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) is like many other certifications in that different levels are offered, with each level requiring more knowledge and
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experience than the previous one. The LPI-302 exam is an elective specialty exam in the third level of the LPIC hierarchy and requires an advanced level of Linux system administration knowledge. To get your LPIC level 3 (LPIC-3) certification, you must pass the two first-level exams (101 and 102), the two second-level exams (201 and 202), and the LPIC-3 core exam (301). After you have achieved this level, you can take the elective specialty exams. As of November 2010, these specialty exams are: 302. Mixed environments 303. Security 304. Virtualization and high availability 306. Web and intranet (in development) 305. Mail and messaging (in development) Passing any of these exams earns you the appropriate designation on top of your LPIC-3 credentials. This series prepares you for the Mixed environment specialty exam, which focuses entirely on managing Linux clients and servers in a heterogeneous Linux and Microsoft environment. This is done almost entirely through the tools that the Samba project provides, so to pass the 302 exam, you must master the installation, configuration, and troubleshooting of Samba. It is rare to find a large company that doesn't have some amount of Windows infrastructure, so this series will prove to be helpful even if you aren't planning to take the LPI-302 Mixed environments exam.

LPI-302 Topic 310: Concepts, architecture, and design

Table 1. LPI-302 Topic 310 objectives and weights
developerWorks article Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): Concepts LPI exam objective summary 310.1 Concepts Demonstrate familiarity with the fundamental concepts surrounding Server Message Block (SMB)/Common Internet File System (CIFS), file sharing, and print services in a mixed environment. You should understand the various components and functions of the SMB and CIFS protocols and where to find Samba's configuration files. Weight: 1 310.2 Samba roles Demonstrate awareness of Samba's security modes and the key roles of the Samba daemons. Tasks include managing the Samba daemons, identifying their roles, and
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Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): Samba roles

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describing the different Samba security modes. Weight: 1 Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): Trivial Database files 310.3 Trivial database files Understand the structure of the trivial database (TDB) files that Samba uses to store its information and know how to troubleshoot problems. You should be able to back up and restore TDB files, identify corruption within a TDB file, and show and change the contents of a TDB file using the various tools that come with Samba. Weight: 2

LPI-302 Topic 311: Compile and install Samba

Table 2. LPI-302 Topic 311 objectives and weights
developerWorks article Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): Configure and build Samba from source LPI exam objective summary 311.1 Configure and build from source Understand the steps required to compile Samba from source and resolve external dependencies. Tasks include identifying the key packages and content required, identifying and resolving any external dependencies (such as libraries), describing the Samba software structure, and identifying common Samba compilation options. Weight: 1

Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed 311.2 Install and upgrade Samba environments): Install and upgrade Install and upgrade a Samba installation from both Samba compiled source and binary packages. Tasks include installing Samba from source, installing Samba from packages on both Red Hat- and Debian-derived distributions, and being able to upgrade an existing installation while retaining current configuration settings. Weight: 1

LPI-302 Topic 312: Samba configuration and usage

The remaining developerWorks articles for Topic 312, based on the current (November 2010) exam 302 objectives, are coming soon. Table 3. LPI-302 Topic 312 objectives and weights
developerWorks article Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): Configure Samba LPI exam objective summary 312.1 Configure Samba Configure the Samba daemons for a wide variety of purposes. You are expected to understand the structure of the configuration files along with the variables and configuration parameters used within the files. You must be able to configure logging and use other tools to troubleshoot and debug problems with Samba. In addition,

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you must be able to list the key TCP and User Datagram Protocol ports that SMB and CIFS protocols use. Weight: 6 Learn Linux, 302 (Mixed environments): File services 312.2 File services Create and configure file shares in a mixed environment. Tasks include managing file shares, planning a file server migration, scripting tasks related to managing file shares, and using Samba command-line tools to use and test file shares. Weight: 4 312.3 Print services Create and manage print shares in a mixed environment. Create and configure printer sharing between Windows machines and Samba servers, including distributing print drivers to clients. Configure the print$ share, especially with regards to security. Integrate Samba and Common UNIX Printing System and manage print accounting. Weight: 2 312.4 Domain control Set up and maintain primary and backup domain controllers and manage client access to the domain. You are expected to be able to create and maintain both the primary and backup domain controllers and to add clients to the domain. Other tasks include configuring logon scripts, roaming profiles, and system policies. Weight: 4 312.5 SWAT configuration Install, configure, and use the Samba Web Administration Tool (SWAT). Tasks include installing and configuring SWAT, understanding SWAT's features, and knowing how to use SWAT to configure Samba. Weight: 1 312.6 Internationalization Demonstrate knowledge of internationalization character codes and code pages. You should be able to use and understand the benefits of internationalization character codes and code pages; patch and build the appropriate code conversion libraries; and learn how to manage users, groups, and computers in a non-English environment. Weight: 1

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LPI-302 Topic 313: User and group management

The three developerWorks articles for Topic 313, based on the current (November 2010) exam 302 objectives, are coming soon. Table 4. LPI-302 Topic 313 objectives and weights
developerWorks article LPI exam objective summary

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313.1 Managing user accounts and groups Manage user and group accounts in a mixed environment. Key tasks include managing user and group accounts through various tools and understanding user and group mapping. You should also know how to force ownership of file and directory objects. Weight: 4 313.2 Authentication and authorization Understand the various authentication mechanisms and configure access control. Tasks include setting up a local password database, understanding the smbpasswd file format, and synchronizing passwords between Samba and other systems. You are also expected to know about alternative back-end password storage systems, integrate Samba with Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), and understand access control lists. Weight: 8 313.3 Winbind Install and configure the Winbind service. Tasks include installing and configuring a Linux server to get directory information from a Windows domain, including integration with Pluggable Authentication Module and the nscd daemon, and mapping between local UNIX user IDs and Microsoft security IDs. Weight: 2

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LPI-302 Topic 314: Working with CIFS, NetBIOS, and Active Directory
The four developerWorks articles for Topic 314, based on the current (November 2010) exam 302 objectives, are coming soon. Table 5. LPI-302 Topic 314 objectives and weights
developerWorks article Coming soon LPI exam objective summary 314.1 CIFS integration Demonstrate your understanding of the CIFS protocol in a mixed environment. Tasks include understanding SMB/CIFS concepts, mounting remote CIFS shares from a Linux client, and describing the features and benefits of CIFS. Weight: 3 314.2 NetBIOS and WINS Demonstrate familiarity with Network Basic Input/Output System (NetBIOS)/Windows Internet Naming System (WINS) concepts and an understanding of network browsing. At a high level, you must understand WINS and NetBIOS concepts and be able to describe the way in which name resolution and browsing work. You should be

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able to describe the roles of the local master browser versus the domain master browser and how to configure Samba as a WINS server. Weight: 7 Coming soon 314.3 Integration with Active Directory Integrate Linux servers into an environment containing Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS). Tasks include listing remote AD DS users through LDAP, configuring Samba using the Active Directory Services security mode, and describing the Domain Name System requirements of AD DS. Weight: 2 314.4 Working with Windows clients Configure a Linux client to interact with remote Windows clients, and configure Windows clients to access file and print services from Linux servers. You should understand how Windows clients work, including how to use a Windows client to browse the network and use file and print resources. In addition, you must be able to use the Windows net and Linux smbclient utilities to perform various tasks related to file and print sharing. Weight: 4

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LPI-302 Topic 315: Security and performance

The three developerWorks articles for Topic 315, based on the current (November 2010) exam 302 objectives, are coming soon. Table 6. LPI-302 Topic 315 objectives and weights
developerWorks article Coming soon LPI exam objective summary 315.1 Linux file system and share/service permissions Demonstrate your understanding of file permissions on a Linux file system in a mixed environment. You should be familiar with all aspects of UNIX and Windows file and directory control and know how to manage those permissions from the command line and within Samba. Weight: 3 315.2 Samba security Secure Samba at both the firewall level and within the Samba configuration files. Tasks include controlling who has access to a Samba server and a Samba share and identifying the best approach to secure each. You must understand the security-related parameters in the Samba configuration. Weight: 2 315.3 Performance tuning Use cluster services for load balancing and high availability, and tune Samba settings for better server and

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network performance. Tasks include measuring Samba performance, optimizing Samba memory usage, and improving file-transfer speeds. In addition, you should be familiar with the various Linux and Samba command-line utilities for viewing network configuration and performance. Weight: 1

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Resources
Learn At the LPIC Program site, find detailed objectives, task lists, and sample questions for the three levels of the LPI's Linux systems administration certification. In particular, look at the LPI-302 detailed objectives and the tasks and sample questions. Review the entire LPI exam prep series on developerWorks to learn Linux fundamentals and prepare for systems administrator certification based on LPI exam objectives prior to April 2009. Exam Preparation Resources for Revised LPIC Exams provides a list of other certification training resources maintained by LPI. In the developerWorks Linux zone, find hundreds of how-to articles and tutorials, as well as downloads, discussion forums, and a wealth of other resources for Linux developers and administrators. Stay current with developerWorks technical events and webcasts focused on a variety of IBM products and IT industry topics. Attend a free developerWorks Live! briefing to get up-to-speed quickly on IBM products and tools, as well as IT industry trends. Watch developerWorks on-demand demos ranging from product installation and setup demos for beginners, to advanced functionality for experienced developers. Follow developerWorks on Twitter, or subscribe to a feed of Linux tweets on developerWorks. Get products and technologies Evaluate IBM products in the way that suits you best: Download a product trial, try a product online, use a product in a cloud environment, or spend a few hours in the SOA Sandbox learning how to implement Service Oriented Architecture efficiently. Discuss Get involved in the My developerWorks community. Connect with other developerWorks users while exploring the developer-driven blogs, forums, groups, and wikis.

About the author

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Sean Walberg, P. Eng Sean Walberg is a network engineer and the author of two books on networking. He has worked in several different verticals, from health care to media.

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