Hi,

I've just invested in a dedicated server with Red Hat Linux and don't have a clue what to do next!
The admin control panel 'webmin' installed and am trying to start from there. How and where do I change my admin and root password in it? How do I install PHP4? Is there a more user friendly control panel i can install? Is there a free control panel that my users can use?
How do I add domains, make up hosting account etc.
Basically I need to set up a hosting company using this server and need all the help with it that I can get!!!

Thanks.

usually most hosts put php pre installed on the box, Alteast ours did , and we also use webmin.
In case it is not installed you can just do it from the rpm which you will get on rpmfind.net when you search for php

In webmin under server software packages you can install a s/w from rpm files

It is the only control panel which is free and if you get used to it then it is very powerful too.

basically if all system s/w are properly configured on your box you start off by
1) creating users (in webmin system / users)
2) Next do the Dns (If wou want to do on you own box)
3) Sendmail ( Webmin /servers / sendmail ) if you need mail
here basically you add your domain in sendmail.cw file
as yourdomain.com
and edit the virtusertable to add

@yourdomain.com localuser

4) Next you set apache. For this the file that usually needs to be edited is / etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf
(in most cases)

Most of people run multiple sites on same Ip address

You will find info on http://www.apache.org on how to do this
at http://www.apache.org/docs/vhosts/name-based.html

I would suggest that you directly edit your httpd.conf using the filemanager that is there in webmin .

Regards
Manish Kapadia
Bombay-India

I hope you don't take offense at this, and you're doing things backwards. You should learn a few things about server management before getting a dedicated server. No control panel I'm familiar with can shield you completely from learning a few things about server management, nor, perhaps, should they. It would be a bit like teaching children how to use calculators without ever teaching them mathematics.

I don't claim to be the foremost authority on server management and I have much yet to learn. However, I did know a bit when I got started and have some information on my site specifically geared towards helping others get started. You'll find a list of suggested books you can begin with.

Unfortunately (for those who have sites hosted with them), the availability of low cost servers and control panels with increasing functionality, have led to a spate of people jumping into to hosting without having a clue as to what they are doing and not willing to spend the time learning and preparing themselves.

I suppose that's to be expected when you have people who use Front Page, know nothing about HTML, yet call themselves web page designers. How we have people who know nothing about servers calling themselves hosting companies.

It makes one wonder of they can add if their calculators fail. ;)

Hi :),

To change your pass in webmin you have two, just telnet/ssh to your server, you should be able to change passwds there or login webmin and go to webmin>the 2nd icon> and go to users>upper left hand side>click on root and the 2nd line should be the one, make note you will only enter your pass once, so better make it right or you will lock yourself out of webmin.

php4 is i think installed with it, telnet in your box and look around :) took me 2 weeks to figure everything out.

good luck as what they say, webmin is a very powerful tool, be careful it is also a dangerous tool.


elijaH

I'm not using the server for my web hosting company straight away as I already have servers that are administered for me that are used for the company I co-direct. I bought the server for some hands-on learning and need some help.

Can you please not refer to FrontPage as a novices software aswell. I learnt HTML through using Notepad and then bought FrontPage as a labour saving device once I had learnt everything I had to know.
From owning Notepad, FrontPage and Dreamweaver, I still think that FrontPage is the best, you just need to know how to use it properly.

Thanks for the info elijah.
I think i'm going to have some late nights ahead of me!!

Hi

search yahoo, there are tons of ebooks about un*x ,you should be able to find one for free. i think i have 2 of them here, theyre simple un*x ebooks, if you want it then post your email add and i'll send it as an attachment , they are .pdf's.


elijaH :)

mail@2ninety.com

Thanx

sending it right now :)

Originally posted by 2ninety
I bought the server for some hands-on learning and need some help.
Good for you. There is no substitute for hands on learning and experience. Those books will help.

Incidentally, my comments were not directed at you personally or exclusively. There are other posts on the forum from people who know nothing about dedicated servers and want to host on them.

Can you please not refer to FrontPage as a novices software aswell. I learnt HTML through using Notepad and then bought FrontPage as a labour saving device once I had learnt everything I had to know.
From owning Notepad, FrontPage and Dreamweaver, I still think that FrontPage is the best, you just need to know how to use it properly.
With all due respect, I'll not only refer to FP as I please, it happens that my opinion is shared by many professional web designers. Read comments on alt.www.webmaster if you don't believe me, and you'll find some here as well. There are examples or tales on this forum of people who use FP and don't know HTML.

You may find FP best for you, but Dreamweaver (especially UltraDev) does far much more, without bloated and strange code or causing problems at the server level. I find that far better. Dreamweaver and Ultra Dev (and a few others) are labor saving as well. They also don't mess up other files and directories on the server, unlike FP, and don't require any learning or upgrading to not mess them up.

You may prefer FP for your use, and you have an untenable position if you're stating it is superior to Dreamweaver. It's not even an equal, and that's fact, not opinion.

[Edited by Duster on 02-19-2001 at 05:02 PM]

i also have to agree with Duster, everybody must start from scratch, i mean all of us must learn to walk before we can run.

i dunno if that was the right word/phrase.


elijaH :)

Actualy you can do it in reverse, i have done everything in the wrong order, i learnt how to make web-pages in front page but soon learnt html and moved on to using Dreamweaver. When i first started hosting i had no knowlegde of linux and just a business idea. I soon learnt linux just through my curiosity and not wanting to pay for my server provider to fix it every time something happened to it.

Sure you can, madhosts. Heck, if you have the money to pay someone else to administer a server, you don't have to learn anything about it. However, it seems most of the posts here are from people who will be doing it themselves, and most want to do it as cheaply as possible.

Hard drives are cheap enough that almost anyone can get a new hard drive, load and configure Linux on it as a server, and get started learning, without paying monthly fees for the learning process.

Experience with virtual server accounts, coupled with additional learning, can help prepare some people for a dedicated server.

elijah,

"all of us must learn to walk before we can run." Yes, that is the perfect phrase for this situation. The other part of it is that we have to crawl before we learn to walk.

Everyone learns things differently. I learn by doing HANDS ON more then I learn by reading out of a book. I'll reference the book but doing HANDS ON for me works. Guess I am not a book worm ~

I think people here don't like Micro$oft .. Seems to be the norm, around here anything Micro$soft makes a rumble or war NT vs Lunix so on and so on.

Things to remember though is time management. Is it worth learning the admin side or outsource it. Same thing for software and so on and so on. The smart choice is use what you know and outsource what you don't know or learn as you go with your extra time. (don't rush it) Mistakes are going to be made, things in books are not covered. (Everyone steps in dog poop)

Use what you know to the best of your knowledge and improve on what you don't when you have time to. Your over all skills will improve as you go.

There are a couple other software choices. Plesk and Cpanel I would get plesk if I was you, 1 Domain license is FREE so you can learn on it and then purchase the license when your ready to launch your server, you'll already know the ins and outs of the software. The license is like $550.00 for unlimited. and I think $299.00 for up to 10 domains.

A combination of hands on and reading works well for me and, I suspect, for many others. After all, there's a limit to how much one can learn poking around. Also, hands on allows one to put into practice what was just read. Even if it were possible to learn everything without readin gany book, it would be a grossly inefficient waste of time.

As regards server management, Linux has several advantages over Windows. That aside, Windows is too complex to learn server management on. Things like memory management and others create challenges thankfully lacking in Linux and other 'nix systems.

Plesk does look excellent although I cant really pay out £300 on a couple of PHP scripts on a learning process! I'd most likely end up needing the Unlimited edition even if i only host my own sites!
If their are any 'good samaritans' out there with a copy of plesk for 10 users or unlimited for Red Hat Linux Version 1.6, and you could email me the .zip or .tar i would be very gratefull! (email address: robkerry84@hotmail.com)

Thanks.

Thats pretty much illegal and i dont think any one who has spent there hard earned money on the software is going to give it out to someone.

Originally posted by 2ninety
If their are any 'good samaritans' out there with a copy of plesk for 10 users or unlimited for Red Hat Linux Version 1.6, and you could email me the .zip or .tar i would be very gratefull! (email address: robkerry84@hotmail.com)

Thanks.

ROB! You *must* be kidding??? *sigh*

doing this would amount to software piracy.

If you still want it just mail plesk and ask if they will give it to you. they are the only people who can probably help you with what you want.

Regards
Manish

you're kidding right ? :) if its freely distributable then i can send you a copy of it BUT unfortunately its Not :) they have a free 1 user version.

Hope you understand the situation and our position regarding this thing. :)

btw: some guy from another forum was asking me if he can have a copy of whistler, i told him as much as i would like to i canNot due to the softwares license aggreement.




elijaH

Yes, the software is available on Plesk's website. The license key is the key :)

Well Ive seen it all now 2ninety.com get a dedicated server promote there hosting in the signature and openly admit they don't know what to do with it.

Great way of attracting customers.

steve

Originally posted by 2ninety
I'm not using the server for my web hosting company straight away as I already have servers that are administered for me that are used for the company I co-direct. I bought the server for some hands-on learning and need some help.

I'm guessing you missed this part?

Thanks for backing me up Chicken.
My Posts have nothing to do with 2ninety.com, I'm just trying to sort out my own server. I have highly qualified and experienced technicians looking after 2ninety's servers.

I like your sig Chicken!
Has any one heard of the hosting company.........
Just kidding!

Oh, just a quick question. I know most .htaccess commands although I cant find one that turns a directory (other than the cgi-bin) so that it can execute cgi's.
Any thoughts?

Any Plesk Experts Out There?

Right, i've installed Plesk (1 user edition) onto my server (running Red Hat Linux) and i've added my one allowed domain. What now?
How can I configure what services to have on the services (activating PHP4, CGI, FrontPage 2000, MySQL???)
How do I configure how many POP3's, and how much webspace it's allowed?
How do I create and SMTP server?

Thanks for any more help, some of you have been great!

Some of the info might be at:
http://www.plesk.com/faq/index.php

I've looked briefly at Plesk and I thought it was inder Create Host (or something to that extent, can't quite remember).