Hi,

I'm a new guy to Linux environment. But I really want to setup a server or buy one.

If I setup my own server, what flavor of Linux do you recomment?

If I buy a server, what server would you recomment so that I can setup server easily without knowing any command? I rather prefer GUI friendly to setup the server

Thank you very much!!

Have you done a search on this forum? You'll find a few recommendations (i.e. RedHat, SuSe, Caldera), particularly books on Linux server administration.

However, you will need to know a lot about Linux before you can properly manage it as a server, since a lot of the time you will need to get your hands dirty and delve into /dev/null, /etc/rc.d/init.d/httpd etc. and run commands from the command line.

I mean, using a GUI to manage a server is OK for most aspects, but if you want to be known as a Linux guru or if you want to remotely manage your Linux server you must know Linux commands off the command line.

Good luck, and welcome aboard!

I prefer Debian or Mandrake distro

Hi

It seems like a stupid question to ask but I'm very desperate. Do you have any good recommendation for any book on Linux? I want to learn Linux so bad but I don't know any good books to read yet!!

Thanks

Have a look at these threads :

http://www.webhostlink.com/showthread.php?threadid=1954

http://www.webhostlink.com/showthread.php?threadid=2487

and most definitely this thread :

http://www.webhostlink.com/showthread.php?threadid=1309

Teach Yourself Linux in 24 hours

kvhoang,

With all due respect, it sound slike you are nowhere near ready to administer your own server. I have information on my site especially for beginners at server management. Take a look at the description of the person who may be ready for it.

It sounds like your only experience is with GUI interfaces, probably Windows, which means you're not even close to being ready. Desperate is one thing, stupid is another.

You simply cannot administer a Linux server without knowing some commands. GUI is for desktops, dummies, and people who won't or can't learn command line execution.

Linux is quite stable and it does come with your choice of 2 GUI interfaces, but that's for desktops. For server administration, you cannot avoid learning some commands and understanding how things work.

As far as Linux, Red Hat has about 70% of the market and seems to be the prevailing choice on server installations. Red Hat linux Unleashed is a good book on the subject.

My favourite book is Red Had Unleashed by Sam Books. I find it to be the most comprehensive book I've found so far.

I currently have 5 books on Linux and apache.
many thanks to Duster for his suggestions.

1. Red Hat Linux 6 Unleashed
David Pitss & Bill Ball et al.
ISBN 0672316897

2. Essential System Administration - O'Reilly
Eleen Frisch
ISBN 1565921275

3. DNS and Bind - O'Reilly
Paul Albitz & Cricket Liu
ISBN 1565925122

4. Apache The Definitive Guide - O'Reilly
Ben Laurie & Peter Laurie
ISBN 1565925289

5. Apache Pocket Reference - O'Reilly
Andrew Ford
ISBN 1565927060

I highly recommend them all.

Thank you very much for all of your replies.

Especially for Duster, I thank you for your honest comment. I do have to start to learn some Linux before doing any server setup!!

Again, thank you all!!