This course will cover the basics of administering a Linux-based server environment in the manner of the EECS Instructional Servers (hivexx.cs.b.e) and the Open Computing Facility (tsunami.ocf.b.e, etc.). By the end of this course, we expect you to be completely comfortable using GNU/Linux, understand in a broad sense how the system’s various parts work together, e.g. init, filesystems, services, daemons, etc., understand basic networking, have a good sense about maintaining system security, understand system administration essentials in general and have a practical taste of what sysadmins do in industry.
An important skill for system administrators is the willingness to quickly learn about new and unfamiliar technologies, so while we expect many students will be in CS, the only real prerequisite for this course is a desire to learn. We know potential students will have differing backgrounds in terms of CS and sysadmin experience, therefore, we will be teaching this course in two tracks: a beginner’s track which will focus more on introducing new users to Linux, and an advanced track that will cater to students with more experience using Linux. Both tracks will get started fast and move quickly - there’s a lot of material to cover.

Each section will have 10 labs each, of which 8 must be completed in order to pass the class. Attendance is also mandatory, although with advance notice, qualified absences may be excused.

All students interested in the course should attend an infosession, from 8-9pm in the OCF lab (171 MLK), on 9/3 or 9/5. At the infosession, students will have the opportunity to learn more about the course, and complete Lab 0. Permission codes will be emailed to a subset of students who complete lab 0.