Personal Fedora 8 Installation Guide
Mauriat Miranda (http://www.mjmwired.net/contact/)
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Published: 7 November 2007 (updated: 16 November 2007)
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This guide a personal configuration of Fedora 8. This page is to provide some common installation tips that people may find useful. Keep in mind this works for me, so take care in doing proper backups to critical files whenever trying something.
Installation Media
Fedora 8 is provided in either a single CD-ROM or DVD-ROM for installation. Multiple disk installations are not directly provided by Fedora.
The DVD-ROM disk is preferred and recommended method of installation. Booting the DVD will start the installer which will allow Fedora to be installed on your computer or for you to upgrade an existing Fedora on your machine.
The CD-ROM disks are "LiveCD's" which can be booted and will run a basic Fedora 8 in memory while also providing a simpler method of installation (not as complete at the DVD method). The default LiveCD ships with Gnome (ex: Fedora-8-Live-i386.iso). There is a specific LiveCD that ships with KDE (this is specifically marked). Both provide an installer however they come with significantly less software than the DVD. Also they require more memory in order to be useable. The LiveCD may be useful for demonstration.
Previously Fedora provided multiple CD's which included everything the DVD did. This has been discontinued.
Note: To upgrade an existing Fedora installation you cannot use a Live disk.
Physical Installation
It is highly recommended you read the Fedora Release Notes and official Installation Guide before installing Fedora.
An additional recommendation is to read Common Problems before installing.
Obtain the Fedora 8 DVD image from a Fedora mirror (or use the torrent) and burn to DVD. (For more information on how to download Fedora CD's or DVD).
Boot from the DVD. If you choose to use a LiveCD please note that the following steps may differ slightly.
I did a Custom Install of Fedora 8.
- Partitioning
- If you have an empty hard drive or wish to delete the entire contents of your drive, then let the installer automatically partition or remove everything and partition.
- If you wish to dual-boot or save some contents on your drive, then select custom partitioning. I recommend at least 3 partitions: an 10GB / main partition, a 10GB /home partition and a 1GB
partition. The main partition is where your applications will be installed. The /home partition will hold all your personal data (larger is better). The should be at least as large as your physical memory (if you wish to support things like ACPI hibernate).
- Boot Loader
- If you have a blank harddrive or wish Fedora to be your Primary Operating System, then leave the default options here. This also works for dual booting with other systems (ex: Windows).
- If you wish to preserve Windows as your primary operating system, then install Grub on the / partition, NOT the MBR. To do this, select Configure Advanced Boot Loader Options and install to First sector of boot partition. I use Bootpart from Windows 2000/XP to load Linux. An alternative to Bootpart is the NT OS Loader + Linux mini-HOWTO (also Grub Win2K Howto). I recommend this so you do not corrupt your Windows installation in a Dual-Boot environment. [NOTE] There is an example configuration available. This does take more work, and the default option on the MBR will also work.
- Network Setup
The networking options will default to dynamically configure the network using DHCP. This will work for most high speed internet users. NOTE: IPv6 - If you select Edit under Network Devices you can disable IPv6 for Fedora. This should not be necessary, however it may be helpful to disable here and re-enable later if you know you have problems with IPv6. - General Package Selection
The primary options for installation are the following. You can select these and skip individual package selection (next step) if you plan to install most of your software. It is recommended you at least pick certain applications.- Office and Productivity - [Highly Recommended]
- Software Development - [Highly Recommended / Required]
- Web Server - [Optional (useful for web developers)]
Add Additional Software Repositories - [NOT Recommended at Install time]. You do have the option of adding helpful repositories during install. This will give access to MANY more applications than included on the CD's or DVD. However this requires a high-speed internet access that is detected by the Fedora Installer. This will also significantly increase the installation time.
If you select Customize now you will be taken to the Individual Package Selection.
- Individual Package Selection - apx 3.9-4.3GB. - It is helpful significantly helpful to grab a some specific important packages. You are free to select whatever you want. The following in my experience are common useful suggestions:
- Desktop Environments
- [Highly Recommended] - Select both GNOME Desktop Environment and KDE (K Desktop Environment)
- Applications - The default selection of applications is sufficient.
- Development
- [Required] - Development Libraries and Development Tools.
- [Recommended] - Select GNOME Software Development, KDE Software Development and X Software Development.
- [Optional] - Java Development and Fedora Eclipse are not necessary unless you are a (Java) developer. This is NOT the same as Sun's Java software.
- Servers
- [Highly Recommended] - Add Server Configuration Tools.
- [Required] - Add Windows File Server (required to share files with Windows computers).
- Base System
- [Optional] - Remove Java if you wish, you will still have to install Sun Java software later.
- [Highly Recommended] - Add System Tools. This includes fuse and ntfs-3g for Read/Write NTFS access.
- [NOT Recommended] - Do NOT select Virtualization. If you do require Xen virtualization please install it later.
- Desktop Environments
Install the selected packages and reboot.
For users who opted to install grub on the first sector of the / partition instead of the MBR, you will be required to setup NTLDR to boot Linux.
For the first boot:
Display Settings -- Display settings are automatically detected and set. The resolution and scan rate may be significantly different than your typical settings. Just follow through the first boot process and set the proper resolution later once you login.
- Firewall - It is recommended you learn to use your firewall regardless of your internet connection or if you have a hardware router/firewall (D-Link, Netgear, etc.). This can easily be modified.
- Security Enhanced Linux Setting - SELinux requires extra settings and configuration to get certain applications to work properly. SELinux will always provide some security but will also add some nuisances. (It is easier to disable SELinux now and enable it later, than the opposite.) However, I recommend people try SELinux first. Use SELinux = Enforcing most common problems are well documented.
- Date and Time - Network Time Protocol - Enable this ONLY if you have an active working internet connection that is on (ex: broadband, T1, DSL). Do not enable NTP Broadcast unless you have other linux machines on your network.
- Hardware Profile - Fedora used smolt to provide basic non-intrusive information on your specific installation. While this may be helpful to Fedora developers, it may seem like a privacy issue. It is recommended you understand what information is being sent before you allow it to do so. I personally do not sent profile information.
- Create User - Create 1 user account for yourself. Always use that account DO NOT use root as your personal account. This is a cause of many mistakes, and root is not intended for personal use.
Top Resources
Setup sudo
07 November 2007
Fedora, like all other Linux distributions, has a root user and has individual users. The root is the "superuser", somewhat similar to "Administrator" in Windows.
Use the personal account you created at First Boot for daily use root only for administration/configuration. To run as 'root' use su or sudo commands. However sudo requires setup. As root run:
echo 'loginname ALL=(ALL) ALL' >> /etc/sudoers
Where 'loginname' is your user account.
Use 'ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD:ALL' if you don't want to be prompted a password.
If you are prompted for a password with 'sudo' it is the user password, not root.
Example:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ su
Password: <--- Enter root password
[root@charon mirandam]# echo 'mirandam ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD:ALL' >> /etc/sudoers
[root@charon mirandam]# exit
exit
The following is an example of how sudo lets you execute root commands:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ du -sh /root
du: `/root': Permission denied <--- Fails!!!
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo du -sh /root
163M /root <--- Works!!!
NOTE: Every command provided on this page will work if you remove sudo from the command. However this requires you must be logged in as 'root'. An alternative to using sudo is to use su to login as root, before executing a command.
Top Resources
Setup yum
07 November 2007
http://fedora.redhat.com/docs/yum/en/
Fedora uses yum to install and update its software. When connected to the internet it will automatically determine application dependancies.
Fedora Repositories
Fedora has 2 repositories enabled by default: fedora (the same packages that come on any combination of the CD's or DVD's) and updates (updated packages, newer than fedora).
These repositories 'sign' their RPM files to make sure they are valid when downloaded. Import the GPG keys to these repositories:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo rpm --import /etc/pki/rpm-gpg/*
Third Party Repositories
For applications that are against Fedora policies (MP3, DVD, MPEG, Binary Drivers, etc), a third party repository should be used. For the purpose of this guide, (most) all needs are met by the Livna repository. (Note: the Livna repository is NOT compatible with the Freshrpms repository.)
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo rpm -ivh http://rpm.livna.org/livna-release-8.rpm
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo rpm --import /etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-livna
NOTE: Installation Prompt
After yum downloads the application or update requested it will prompt to install. This is good for learners or to keep track of what is happening. Applications can possibly be UN-installed in a update as well. If you wish yum to automatically install downloads and make changes, run yum with the -y (answer "yes") option.
# sudo yum -y install application_name
NOTE: Full System Updates
If you run the following, EVERY SINGLE RPM that has an available update through ANY repository will be updated.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum update
Generally speaking this is highly recommended the FIRST time you install Fedora (if you have high speed internet). After that, full system updates are probably less necessary. Keep in mind that updates, may update all their dependancies, which can lead to long download times. Often a new update may break something that already worked. Please understand what you are doing before running continuous updates.
Top Resources
Install Nvidia Driver
07 November 2007
Fedora recommends users install a 3rd-party RPM packaged driver instead of using the installer from Nvidia's website. Currently Livna provides a well packaged driver.
For yum only:
First, setup Livna Repository
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo rpm -ivh http://rpm.livna.org/livna-release-8.rpm
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo rpm --import /etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-livna
Install the nvidia driver through Livna:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install kmod-nvidia
If a kernel update is installed at the same time, then a reboot will be required. If not, then simply log out completely of Gnome or KDE and the Nvidia driver should load. The Nvidia logo will flash quickly once.
Top Resources
GCC Compatibility
07 November 2007
Fedora 8 ships and uses GCC 4.1. Some applications that were compiled with an older GCC (ex: 3.2) will require compatibility libraries. Make sure to have the following RPM's installed.
These are NOT included with the Fedora 8 DVD and must be downloaded online (ftp, yum, etc).
compat-libstdc++-33
compat-libstdc++-296
With 'yum', run:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum -y install compat-libstdc++-33 compat-libstdc++-296
Top Resources
Install GCC 3.4
07 November 2007
This is an optional step.
Fedora 8 includes GCC 4.1 compiler. Some applications will NOT compile in GCC 4.1. You can install GCC 3.4 to allow compiling applications which do not yet support GCC 4.1. Make sure to have the following RPM's installed.
These are NOT included with the Fedora 8 DVD and must be downloaded online (ftp, yum, etc).
compat-gcc-34
compat-gcc-34-c++
With 'yum', run:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install compat-gcc-34 compat-gcc-34-c++
To use either, run gcc34 or g++34. I have more information on using alternate compilers.
Top Resources
Install Realplayer
07 November 2006
Download RealPlayer 10.0 GOLD from: http://www.real.com/linux/.
Select: "Advanced Installation RedHat Package"
Before installing RealPlayer, make sure to have the compat-libstdc++-33 compatibility libraries installed.
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo yum install compat-libstdc++-33
Install RealPlayer:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo rpm -ivh RealPlayer10GOLD.rpm
Preparing... ########################################### [100%]
1:RealPlayer ########################################### [100%]
RealPlayer/HelixPlayer Forums: https://helixcommunity.org/forum/?group_id=154
NOTE: If the RealPlayer browser plugin does load in Firefox or Mozilla, run the following command:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo /usr/bin/mozilla-plugin-config -i -f
Top Resources
Install MP3 Players
07 November 2007
Fedora ships without any form of MP3 playback. In order to add MP3 playback you must install from a 3rd party. The following requires the use of the Livna repository.
XMMS: simple, older GUI, minimalistic features (but still popular)
- Installation through yum:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install xmms xmms-mp3 xmms-faad2
- Plugin settings: Options > Preferences >
Audio I/O Plugins > Input Plugins
Disable: MPEG Layer 1/2/3 Placeholder Plugin [librh_mp3.so]
==> UNCHECK [ ] Enable Plugin - More detailed instructions from Fedora Core 5 Guide
Audacious: (A fork of Beep Media Player - BMP). XMMS rebuilt to be a little bit more modern. Still basic but much better than XMMS.
- Installation through yum:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install audacious audacious-plugins-nonfree*
NOTE: There is a '*' at the end.
Rythmbox/Gstreamer - A simple audio application similar to iTunes layout.
- Most of Rythmbox and the Gstreamer system should be installed when installing Gnome (mentioned above). The missing components are just the MP3 (and other media) plugins.
- Installation through yum:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install gstreamer-plugins-ugly gstreamer-plugins-bad
Amarok - A modern feature rich media player application.
- It is helpful to have KDE installed first as this will reduce the download.
- Installation through yum:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install amarok amarok-extras-nonfree
- Amarok Engine: Amarok requires you to select an "engine" which can play different media. The current support engines are Xine/Gstreamer and RealPlayer/HelixPlayer. If you installed the gstreamer-plugins-ugly or amarok-extras-nonfree the Xine engine will be default. (Recommended)
Top Resources
Install Media Players
16 November 2007
Fedora ships with a limited set of media player for both audio and video. For audio please read the MP3 player notes. For video and other multimedia (DVD, etc.) we will also be making use of a 3rd party repository: Livna. Make sure to have the Livna repository configured before executing the following. Note that many "dependancies" in libraries, plugins and codecs are shared between these applications and also the MP3 player applications.
The most popular media players (in order) are: MPlayer, Xine and VLC. Each has its own strengths. Install whichever you prefer although the first 2 are recommended.
MPlayer - MPlayer comes in a command line only interface (mplayer) or skinable GUI and it also has a powerful encoding tool MEncoder (also great for ripping or compressing audio/video). Additionally there is a highly functional web plugin allowing for many popular formats in Firefox/Mozilla (WMV, QuickTime, etc.).
- Installation through yum with Livna enabled:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install mplayer mplayer-gui mplayer-skins mplayer-fonts mplayerplug-in mencoder
- Binary Codecs: Please install the Binary Codecs for further support of formats that MPlayer does not directly support.
- PulseAudio Issues: If you see the following error:
[AO_ALSA] Unable to find simple control 'PCM',0.
Run gmplayer, Right-Click, goto Preferences > Audio > Available drivers:, Select pulse - Browser Plugin Issues: Please run the following if the MPlayer browser plug-in does not load:
[mirandam@charon ]$ sudo /usr/bin/mozilla-plugin-config -i -f
Xine - Xine is similar to MPlayer in many ways however lacking the command line application and encoder. However has fully supported DVD playback with proper navigation.
- Installation through yum with Livna enabled:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install xine xine-lib-extras xine-lib-extras-nonfree libdvdcss
- Binary Codecs: Please install the Binary Codecs for further support of formats that Xine does not directly support.
Binary Codecs - The MPlayer projects maintains a package full of binary codecs for which no directly open source option exists, some of these files include Windows DLL's. These are shared by both Xine and MPlayer. NOTE: There is significant variation depending on your architecture (i386, x86_64, ppc). The 32bit i386 works the best.
- Navigate to: http://www.mplayerhq.hu/MPlayer/releases/codecs/
- Select the package (.tar.bz2) matching your version of Fedora. Many 32-bit users will use: all-20071007.tar.bz2
- Install the codecs:
[mirandam@charon Download]$ sudo mkdir -p /usr/lib/codecs
[mirandam@charon Download]$ sudo tar -jxvf all-20071007.tar.bz2 --strip-components 1 -C /usr/lib/codecs/
VLC - VLC is a simpler media player with an easy to use interface. It also supports DVD playback. While most needs should be met with Xine and MPlayer some prefer VLC.
- Installation through yum with Livna enabled:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install vlc
Top Resources
Install Microsoft Truetype Fonts
11 November 2007
| http://corefonts.sourceforge.net/ You have to build the RPM using the above site. For convenience I have created the RPM (please do not link directly to this file): [mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo yum --nogpgcheck localinstall msttcorefonts-2.0-1.noarch.rpm Fedora encourages the use of the Liberation Fonts. These should be installed by default (and included on the DVD), however if not, please run: [mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install liberation-fonts |
width="300" scrolling="no" height="250" frameborder="0" name="iframe0" allowtransparency="true" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" vspace="0" hspace="0" src="http://ypn-js.overture.com/d/search/p/ypn/jsads/?Partner=7022769530&type=17342&adwd=300&adht=250&ctxtUrl=http%3A//www.mjmwired.net/resources/mjm-fedora-f8.html&bc=FFFFFF&cc=FFFFFF&lc=0000FF&tc=000000&uc=999999&refUrl=http%3A//www.mjmwired.net/resources/mjm-fedora-f7.html&du=3&cb=1196692926436"> |
Top Resources
Disable Unneeded Services/Daemons
07 November 2007
Information regarding services and their functions can be found on: Services in Fedora 8 (http://www.mjmwired.net/resources/mjm-services-f8.html).
For information on how to manage services in Fedora please read: Managing Services in Fedora (http://www.mjmwired.net/resources/mjm-fedora-manage-services.html).
Top Resources
Macromedia Flash Plugin
07 November 2007
The Macromedia (Adobe) Flash plugin is available from Adobe's website. Users can install the RPM directly or use Adobe's YUM repository (recommended). Please note the plugin will not work directly on 64-bit browsers without some re-configuration.
For yum users:
Install the Adobe YUM repository, and install through yum:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo rpm -ivh http://linuxdownload.adobe.com/adobe-release/adobe-release-i386-1.0-1.noarch.rpm
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo rpm --import /etc/pki/rpm-gpg/RPM-GPG-KEY-adobe-linux
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo yum install flash-plugin
For manual installation: For users without yum:
Go to Adobe Flash Player Download Center Linux (x86) and select:
Option 2: .rpm. Download the .rpm file (RPM, 2,545 K) and save it to disk.
Install:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo rpm -ivh flash-plugin-9.0.48.0-release.i386.rpm
Installation on Fedora 64-bit
The following steps are required for Fedora 64-bit users:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo mkdir -p /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo yum install nspluginwrapper.{i386,x86_64} pulseaudio-lib.i386
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo yum install flash-plugin
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo mozilla-plugin-config -i -g -v
The following was adapted from the Fedora 8 Release Notes.
Top Resources
Install Java Plugin
11 November 2007
With the release of Fedora 8, there are potentially 3 different options for Java: the offical Sun Java, the full opensource GNU gcj and OpenJDK (based off of Sun Java).
The standard installation of Fedora 8 will install IcedTea which is based on OpenJDK. This is much more complete than GNU gcj, but may not behave exactly as Sun's Java. More information is provided in the Fedora 8 Release Notes.
IcedTea will most likely be installed with Fedora 8. However if not it can be installed using YUM:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install java-1.7.0-icedtea java-1.7.0-icedtea-plugin
With IcedTea installed, Java application and Web applets should automatically work!
NOTE: If the IcedTea browser plugin does load in Firefox or Mozilla, run the following command:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo /usr/bin/mozilla-plugin-config -i -f
Using Sun Java Instead
If you still require Sun Java instead of IcedTea you can download and use it in Fedora. While Sun does provides an RPM for installation, it is NOT recommended to be used.
Download the Java package from:
http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp
Select: Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 6 Update 3 (the JDK is for developers)
On the next page, accept the license agreement, and make sure to select:
Linux self-extracting file jre-6u3-linux-i586.bin 18.23 MB
To install:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sh jre-6u3-linux-i586.bin
(hit 'space' till the end, then type 'yes')
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo mv -f jre1.6* /opt/jre1.6
When running the java command, Fedora will prefer to use IcedTea or GNU gcj, in order to use Sun Java use the 'alternatives' command:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo /usr/sbin/alternatives --install /usr/bin/java java /opt/jre1.6/bin/java 20000
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo /usr/sbin/alternatives --install /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libjavaplugin.so /
libjavaplugin.so /opt/jre1.6/plugin/i386/ns7/libjavaplugin_oji.so 20000
Note: If you wish to switch back to IcedTea re-run the above 2 alternative commands using 15000 instead of 20000.
Note: The compat-libstdc++-33 compatibility libraries are required for the Java Sun browser plugin to work.
NOTE: There is a bug in the Sun Java plugin. In order to work around this do the following:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ cd /opt/jre1.6/lib/i386/xawt/
[mirandam@charon xawt]$ sudo cp libmawt.so libmawt.so.orig
[mirandam@charon xawt]$ sudo sed -i 's/XINERAMA/FAKEEXTN/g' libmawt.so
As many people have suggested, downgrading to a older version of libX11 also works.
To update: If you update the JRE package, simply delete the /opt/jre1.6 directory and copy the newer download to /opt/jre1.6
Top Resources
Install Adobe Acrobat
11 November 2007
To view PDF files, Fedora includes evince, however this application is very basic and may not work with all PDF's.
Download Acrobat from: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2_allversions.html
Select:
Operating system: Unix/Linux
Version: Linux (.rpm)
Your language.
The latest version of Adobe Acrobat is 8.1.1 and the download size is between 40-60MB depending on your language. Not all languages are supported under Linux.
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ su -c 'rpm -ivh AdobeReader_enu-8.1.1-1.i486.rpm'
Password:
Preparing... ########################################### [100%]
1:AdobeReader_enu ########################################### [100%]
Note: Do NOT use sudo when installing the RPM. Either install it when logged in as root or use the su -c command.
Acrobat Browser Plugin
The browser plugin may be automatically installed in multiple different locations including ~/.mozilla/plugins, /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins and /usr/lib/firefox-x.x.x.x/plugins. I deleted everyone except /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins
[mirandam@charon ]$ sudo rm -rf /usr/lib/firefox-2.0.0.8/plugins/nppdf.so
[mirandam@charon ]$ sudo rm -rf /root/.mozilla/plugins/nppdf.so
[mirandam@charon ]$ sudo rm -rf ~/.mozilla/plugins/nppdf.so
NOTE: SELinux Issue: The Fedora 8 SELinux policy may prevent the Acrobat browser plugin from loading. To fix this, run the following command:
[mirandam@charon ]$ sudo chcon -t textrel_shlib_t /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/nppdf.so
[mirandam@charon ]$ sudo /usr/bin/mozilla-plugin-config -i -f
However you may need to run this command for a different location depending on the warning given by SELinux.
Top Resources
Setup Samba - Filesharing with Windows
07 November 2007
If you have other Windows computers on your Lan and want to share files with them, you must setup Samba.
To setup Samba you must (1) install samba, (2) add you 'shares', (3) add users, (4) start Samba service.
1. Install Samba
It is best to have Samba installed in the installation process. If not yum users can install using: Add/Remove Software > Servers > Windows File Server. Users without yum can install the following packages from their DVD (or download): samba, samba-common, samba-client.
2. Add Shares
You must edit /etc/samba/smb.conf as root: (use nano instead of gedit if you do not have a GUI)
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo gedit /etc/samba/smb.conf
Set your Windows Workgroup name in [global] section.
Added shares at the end of the file. Example:
[c_drive]
path = /media/c_drive
public = yes
writable = no
[netshare]
path = /data/
public = yes
writable = yes
If 'writable' the location must be writable in Linux first. Additionally permissions must match (for example: drw-rw-rw-).
If home data (all personal files under /home/username) is to be accessible, then set 'browseable = yes' under [homes] (~line 250). This configuration file is very descriptive, read through it to get more ideas or information.
3. Add Users
To access shares, you must be a valid user. Add valid users AND passwords using the smbpasswd command.
This login name WILL be the login name and password you use from Windows to access your Linux computer. The password does NOT need to match your Linux password.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo smbpasswd -a username
New SMB password:
Retype new SMB password:
account_policy_get: (warnings ignore)
Added user username.
(Note: 'username' must be a valid account on the machine)
4. Start Samba Service
Run samba and check for any errors:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo /etc/init.d/smb start
Starting SMB services: [ OK ]
Use chkconfig or serviceconf to enable samba (smb) in both runlevels 3 and 5. This will make sure to run Samba each time Fedora boots.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ /sbin/chkconfig --list smb
smb 0:off 1:off 2:off 3:off 4:off 5:off 6:off
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo /sbin/chkconfig --level 35 smb on
[mirandam@charon ~]$ /sbin/chkconfig --list smb
smb 0:off 1:off 2:off 3:on 4:off 5:on 6:off
Restart Samba for every change to users/passwords or 'smb.conf'
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo /etc/init.d/smb restart
Shutting down SMB services: [ OK ]
Starting SMB services: [ OK ]
--------------
Firewall Users
Run system-config-securitylevel
To allow Samba access to work through your firewall you must set 'Samba' as a 'Trusted service'.
SELinux Users
SELinux has significant control over restricting different parts of Samba. Run system-config-selinux. Please read lines #23 - #51 in /etc/samba/smb.conf for a better explanation. The following is NOT complete.
On the command line you can run:
[mirandam@charon ~]# sudo /usr/sbin/setsebool -P samba_export_all_rw on
For any changes made above to the SELinux settings or smb.conf, it is recommended to restart Samba.
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Mount NTFS Partitions
07 November 2007
Windows uses a different filesystem (NTFS) to store files. However NTFS-3G provides support to read and write NTFS partitions safely. These should be automatically installed with Fedora 8. Additionally Fedora 8 has significantly eased the process of accessing NTFS partitions/drives compared to previous Fedora releases.
Gnome Users - Users of the Gnome desktop environment will find that they can mount NTFS (or any partitions) by clicking on them through the Computer icon on the desktop (root password will be required).
If you do not use Gnome, are having problems with KDE, or do not even use X-windows, the following instructions are still valid.
To setup NTFS access you must (1) install NTFS support, (2) check how many partitions you have, (3) create mount points, (4) mount partitions, and (5) update fstab to mount at next boot.
1. Install NTFS Support
The software required for NTFS support is included in the DVD installation. If not, install using yum:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install fuse fuse-libs ntfs-3g
Users without yum, either download or use your Fedora 8 DVD to install the following RPM's: fuse, fuse-lib and ntfs-3g.
2. Check Your Partitions
Use fdisk to list partitions. Most ATA hard drives will be /dev/sda. Drives may also show up as /dev/sdb depending on your configuration.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo /sbin/fdisk -lu /dev/sda | grep NTFS
/dev/sda1 * 63 33559784 16779861 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda2 33559785 67119569 16779892+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/sda3 67119570 100679354 16779892+ 7 HPFS/NTFS
Usually the first will be a drive "letter": C drive, next D, etc. Hence /dev/sda1 is my C:/ drive used by Windows.
3. Create Mount Points
For every partition in step 2 that you wish to access, you will need a "mount point". A mount point is just a directory. Common directories are: /media/ and /mnt/. Use whichever, but be consistent.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ cd /media/
[mirandam@charon media]$ sudo mkdir c_drive d_drive e_drive
You do not have to use these names, if you prefer to create folders such as 'movies', 'documents', or 'winxp', any name will work (recommended without spaces).
4. Mount Partitions
Using the NTFS-3G we can either mount the NTFS partitions read-only or read-write. For new users, read-only is recommended.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo mount /dev/sda1 /media/c_drive -t ntfs-3g -r -o umask=0222
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo mount /dev/sda2 /media/d_drive -t ntfs-3g -r -o umask=0222
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo mount /dev/sda3 /media/e_drive -t ntfs-3g -r -o umask=0222
Read/Write Access: The above is for read-only access. In order to mount read/write, you must use the -rw -o umask=0000. Example:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo mount /dev/sda1 /media/c_drive -t ntfs-3g -rw -o umask=0000
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: Please run man mount to understand what umask= does.
5. Update /etc/fstab
Every time Fedora boots, the partitions must be mounted. To automatically mount, you must edit /etc/fstab.
Open /etc/fstab in an editor: (use nano instead of gedit if you do not have a GUI)
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo gedit /etc/fstab
Add these lines to the END of the file:
/dev/sda1 /media/c_drive ntfs-3g ro,defaults,umask=0222 0 0
/dev/sda2 /media/d_drive ntfs-3g ro,defaults,umask=0222 0 0
/dev/sda3 /media/e_drive ntfs-3g ro,defaults,umask=0222 0 0
Read/Write Access: The above is for read-only access. In order to mount read/write, you must use the rw,defaults,umask=0000. Example:
/dev/sda1 /media/c_drive ntfs-3g rw,defaults,umask=0000 0 0
Done!
NOTE for FAT32 users
If you have FAT32 or FAT16 partitions, instead of ntfs-3g above you can use vfat to mount your partitions. No extra modules or downloads are required, this is built into the kernel. Just replace vfat for every place we have ntfs-3g when mounting and when editting /etc/fstab. Keep in mind that FAT partitions are read-write supported.
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Install Kernel Headers
07 November 2007
This package provides kernel headers and makefiles sufficient to build modules against the kernel package. The kernel headers maybe necessary if you require to install a driver or some 3rd party software. If a driver requires kernel sources, it may be sufficient to install only the kernel headers.
The kernel headers The Kernel Headers are available through the kernel-devel RPM. This may or may not be installed by Fedora. This package can be installed from your Fedora DVD or online through FTP or yum.
Look on online in either the Fedora repository or Update repository and make sure you match your system, using the uname command. For example:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ uname -rm
2.6.23.1-42.fc8 i686
Select: kernel-devel-2.6.23.1-42.fc8.i686.rpm
If you have updated your kernel (using yum), then it is recommended you use yum to install the package:
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install kernel-devel
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Install Kernel Source
07 November 2007
Installing the kernel source is typically NOT needed unless you wish to re-compile your kernel or for some special development. However in some cases the kernel headers may be required.
There are 3 basic steps involved in installing the kernel source.
- Download the desired kernel source (matching your current kernel if required)
- Installing the SRC.RPM package
- Using rpmbuild to prepare the source into a usable state
NOTE: Following these steps will consume at least 400MB of disk space!
1. Download the Kernel Source
Obtaining Kernel Source (for default Fedora 8 kernel)
The default kernel source can be found through any Fedora mirror. Look in the directory "/source/SRPMS/" under the "/8/" directory . For example: http://download.fedora.redhat.com/pub/fedora/linux/releases/8/Fedora/source/SRPMS/.
kernel-2.6.23.1-42.fc8.src.rpm 31-Oct-2007 00:06 46M
Obtaining Kernel Source (for an updated Fedora 8 kernel)
If you updated your kernel, then the typically the last 2 or 3 releases of the source of the kernel will be available though the Fedora updates. IF YOU REQUIRE you can (try to) match the kernel source with your running kernel.
Look in the update directory on most Fedora mirror sites. For example: http://download.fedora.redhat.com/pub/fedora/linux/updates/8/SRPMS/.
Obtaining Kernel Source through 'yum' (for latest Fedora 8 kernel)
There are yum utilities which will download the LATEST kernel source. If it does not find anything, then there are no updates (yet) use the DEFAULT Fedora kernel source.
[mirandam@charon ~]$ sudo yum install yum-utils
[mirandam@charon ~]$ cd downloads
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ yumdownloader --source kernel
2. Install the Kernel Source
Install the kernel.src.rpm that you chose to download in the previous steps.
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo rpm -ivh kernel-2.6.23.1-42.fc8.src.rpm
1:kernel ########################################### [100%]
Ignore group kojibuilder does not exist or user kojibuilder does not exist warnings.
3. Prepare the Source
To prepare the source to be useable:
[mirandam@charon downloads]$ sudo rpmbuild -bp --target=$(uname -m) /usr/src/redhat/SPECS/kernel.spec
The source files will be properly located in /usr/src/redhat/BUILD/kernel-2.6.23/. There are 2 useful directories:
- linux-2.6.23.ARCH/
This will have the standard kernel.org kernel WITH Fedora patches and updates. The ARCH architecture will match the output of uname -m, usually i686. You may use noarch for the --target= option if you wish. - vanilla/
This will have the standard kernel.org kernel ONLY (no patches or updates).
NOTE: The process Fedora uses to build and configure kernels can be found in greater depth on the Fedora Wiki. The above information is very basic and meant to allow access to the source and not necessarily build it.
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More Information
- Fedora 8 - Services and Daemons in Fedora 8
- Fedora 8 Blog Entries
- Fedora 7 Personal Installation Guide
- Fedora 7 - Services and Daemons in Fedora 7
- Fedora Core 5 on Dell D810 Latitude Laptop
- Managing Services in Fedora
- Installing Alternate GCC Compiler on Fedora
- Fedora Help Forum Posts and Threads
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