BSD Hacks

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BSD Hacks

100 Industrial Tip & Tools

By Dru Lavigne

Publisher: O'Reilly Media

Released: May 2004

Pages: 448

In the world of Unix operating systems, the various BSDs come with a long heritage of high-quality software and well-designed solutions, making them a favorite OS of a wide range of users. Among budget-minded users who adopted BSD early on to developers of some of today's largest Internet sites, the popularity of BSD systems continues to grow. If you use the BSD operating system, then you know that the secret of its success is not just in its price tag: practical, reliable, extraordinarily stable and flexible, BSD also offers plenty of fertile ground for creative, time-saving tweaks and tricks, and yes, even the chance to have some fun.

"Fun?" you ask. Perhaps "fun" wasn't covered in the manual that taught you to install BSD and administer it effectively. But BSD Hacks, the latest in O'Reilly's popular Hacks series, offers a unique set of practical tips, tricks, tools--and even fun--for administrators and power users of BSD systems.

BSD Hacks takes a creative approach to saving time and getting more done, with fewer resources. You'll take advantage of the tools and concepts that make the world's top Unix users more productive. Rather than spending hours with a dry technical document learning what switches go with a command, you'll learn concrete, practical uses for that command.

The book begins with hacks to customize the user environment. You'll learn how to be more productive in the command line, timesaving tips for setting user-defaults, how to automate long commands, and save long sessions for later review. Other hacks in the book are grouped in the following areas:

Customizing the User Environment
Dealing with Files and Filesystems
The Boot and Login Environments
Backing Up
Networking Hacks
Securing the System
Going Beyond the Basics
Keeping Up-to-Date
Grokking BSD

If you want more than your average BSD user--you want to explore and experiment, unearth shortcuts, create useful tools, and come up with fun things to try on your own--BSD Hacks is a must-have. This book will turn regular users into power users and system administrators into super system administrators.

Chapter 1 Customizing the User Environment
1. Introduction
2. Get the Most Out of the Default Shell
3. Useful tcsh Shell Configuration File Options
4. Create Shell Bindings
5. Use Terminal and X Bindings
6. Use the Mouse at a Terminal
7. Get Your Daily Dose of Trivia
8. Lock the Screen
9. Create a Trash Directory
10. Customize User Configurations
11. Maintain Your Environment on Multiple Systems
12. Use an Interactive Shell
13. Use Multiple Screens on One Terminal
Chapter 2 Dealing with Files and Filesystems
1. Introduction
2. Find Things
3. Get the Most Out of grep
4. Manipulate Files with sed
5. Format Text at the Command Line
6. Delimiter Dilemma
7. DOS Floppy Manipulation
8. Access Windows Shares Without a Server
9. Deal with Disk Hogs
10. Manage Temporary Files and Swap Space
11. Recreate a Directory Structure Using mtree
12. Ghosting Systems
Chapter 3 The Boot and Login Environments
1. Introduction
2. Customize the Default Boot Menu
3. Protect the Boot Process
4. Run a Headless System
5. Log a Headless Server Remotely
6. Remove the Terminal Login Banner
7. Protecting Passwords With Blowfish Hashes
8. Monitor Password Policy Compliance
9. Create an Effective, Reusable Password Policy
10. Automate Memorable Password Generation
11. Use One Time Passwords
12. Restrict Logins
Chapter 4 Backing Up
1. Introduction
2. Back Up FreeBSD with SMBFS
3. Create Portable POSIX Archives
4. Interactive Copy
5. Secure Backups Over a Network
6. Automate Remote Backups
7. Automate Data Dumps for PostgreSQL Databases
8. Perform Client-Server Cross-Platform Backups with Bacula
Chapter 5 Networking Hacks
1. Introduction
2. See Console Messages Over a Remote Login
3. Spoof a MAC Address
4. Use Multiple Wireless NIC Configurations
5. Survive Catastrophic Internet Loss
6. Humanize tcpdump Output
7. Understand DNS Records and Tools
8. Send and Receive Email Without a Mail Client
9. Why Do I Need sendmail?
10. Hold Email for Later Delivery
11. Get the Most Out of FTP
12. Distributed Command Execution
13. Interactive Remote Administration
Chapter 6 Securing the System
1. Introduction
2. Strip the Kernel
3. FreeBSD Access Control Lists
4. Protect Files with Flags
5. Tighten Security with Mandatory Access Control
6. Use mtree as a Built-in Tripwire
7. Intrusion Detection with Snort, ACID, MySQL, and FreeBSD
8. Encrypt Your Hard Disk
9. Sudo Gotchas
10. sudoscript
11. Restrict an SSH server
12. Script IP Filter Rulesets
13. Secure a Wireless Network Using PF
14. Automatically Generate Firewall Rules
15. Automate Security Patches
16. Scan a Network of Windows Computers for Viruses
Chapter 7 Going Beyond the Basics
1. Introduction
2. Tune FreeBSD for Different Applications
3. Traffic Shaping on FreeBSD
4. Create an Emergency Repair Kit
5. Use the FreeBSD Recovery Process
6. Use the GNU Debugger to Analyze a Buffer Overflow
7. Consolidate Web Server Logs
8. Script User Interaction
9. Create a Trade Show Demo
Chapter 8 Keeping Up-to-Date
1. Introduction
2. Automated Install
3. FreeBSD from Scratch
4. Safely Merge Changes to /etc
5. Automate Updates
6. Create a Package Repository
7. Build a Port Without the Ports Tree
8. Keep Ports Up-to-Date with CTM
9. Navigate the Ports System
10. Downgrade a Port
11. Create Your Own Startup Scripts
12. Automate NetBSD Package Builds
13. Easily Install Unix Applications on Mac OS X
Chapter 9 Grokking BSD
1. Introduction
2. How'd He Know That?
3. Create Your Own Manpages
4. Get the Most Out of Manpages
5. Apply, Understand, and Create Patches
6. Display Hardware Information
7. Determine Who Is on the System
8. Spelling Bee
9. Leave on Time
10. Run Native Java Applications
11. Rotate Your Signature
12. Useful One-Liners
13. Fun with X

Title:

BSD Hacks

By:

Dru Lavigne

Publisher:

O'Reilly Media

Formats:

Print
Ebook
Safari Books Online

Print:

May 2004

Ebook:

February 2009

Pages:

448

Print ISBN:

978-0-596-00679-2

| ISBN 10:

0-596-00679-9

Ebook ISBN:

978-0-596-10447-4

| ISBN 10:

0-596-10447-2

Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. The image on the cover of BSD Hacks is a pitchfork. A pitchfork (also known as a garden or spading fork) is a versatile agricultural hand tool. It can be used for a range of tasks, including aerating soil, pitching hay, and mixing compost. In addition to its practical uses, the pitchfork is also symbolic; for example, it is often included in depictions of the Devil, and it is a central feature of Grant Wood's American Gothic. A pitchfork can have two, three, or four curved prongs, but most pitchforks manufactured today (such as the one depicted in the cover image) have four. Genevieve d'Entremont was the production editor and copyeditor for BSD Hacks. Reg Aubry proofread the book. Matt Hutchinson and Claire Cloutier provided quality control. Judy Hoer wrote the index.

Hanna Dyer designed the cover of this book, based on a series design by Edie Freedman. The cover image is a photograph from the Stockbyte Work Tools CD. Emma Colby produced the cover layout with QuarkXPress 4.1 using Adobe's Helvetica Neue and ITC Garamond fonts.

David Futato designed the interior layout. This book was converted by Joe Wizda to FrameMaker 5.5.6 with a format conversion tool created by Erik Ray, Jason McIntosh, Neil Walls, and Mike Sierra that uses Perl and XML technologies. The text font is Linotype Birka; the heading font is Adobe Helvetica Neue Condensed; and the code font is LucasFont's TheSans Mono Condensed. The illustrations that appear in the book were produced by Robert Romano and Jessamyn Read using Macromedia FreeHand 9 and Adobe Photoshop 6. This colophon was written by Genevieve d'Entremont.

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Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

oreilly BSD Hacks

4.8

(based on 6 reviews)

REVIEWS

Reviewed by 6 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-6

5/18/2006

(1 of 2 customers found this review helpful)

4.0

Great, but missing some important bits

By Michael Soulier

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly BSD Hacks:

I just recently got into looking at FreeBSD, as a full-time Linux developer. This book is good on both platforms, as many of the tips work on any Unix.

I constantly found myself wondering how to do the same tasks I'm used to from Linux on FreeBSD, and this book did help me greatly for that.

Unfortunately, I did find it lacking, missing some very important areas for me, at home on an ADSL connection.

running PPPoE

running NAT

setting up ipf (rc.conf, and the kernel module)

replacing sendmail

I found these conspicuously missing, which is why I'm only giving the book four stars.

I also found that some simple concepts about ports were not properly explained

Using portupgrade on a single package

Using portupgrade to replace one package with another

Fixing the multiple installed packages of different versions problem

Luckily, the FreeBSD community, the handbook, and some other community websites filled in these gaps. Still, these are important hacks that should have been covered.

A great read, and quite handy. Just missing some not-so-obvious but very important details.

9/16/2004

5.0

Backbone

By mindmerge

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly BSD Hacks:

This book is fantastic. This is one of those books that sets O'Reilly apart from other publishers. BSD Hacks is easy to read, extremely informative and very low on fluff!

My particular favorite hacks:

- Protecting Password with Blowfish Hashes (hack 29)

- Strip the Kernel (hack 54)

- Tune FreeBSD for Different Applications (hack 69)

- Traffic Shaping on FreeBSD (Hack 70)

Many more good hacks, this is a must have. BSD books have not been plentiful in the past years in comparison to other OS's. This book more than makes up for that lack of attention.

This book helps to form the strong backbone of the hacks body of books. Thank you Dru, and thank you O'Reilly for this series that cuts straight to the point.

8/21/2004

5.0

Great Book For All

By stakys

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly BSD Hacks:

Hi, every BSD lover must have this book! It's really powerfull (informative) and well understandable for all of us.

My final words would be: MUST HAVE IT!!!

8/13/2004

5.0

WOW!

By BSD Fanatic

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly BSD Hacks:

Finally! A book written for BSD sysadmins by a BSD sysadmin. Absolutely worth every single penny. Dru tells the reader how to setup Snort, ACid, mysql, Apache *AND* PHP in a simple concise manner. And that is just ONE HACK! An incredible amount of material. This one goes on the bookshelf. I'm a Dru fan now.

8/12/2004

5.0

ehhh...

By drew

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly BSD Hacks:

i'm a big fan of the "hacks" books. and this book isn't too shabby, though i liked linux server hacks a bit better.

then again, at 25 bizzles a pop, you can't afford to not have this gem in your collection.

just buy it ya cheap bastards.

3/25/2004

5.0

BSD Hacks Review

By Marcelo Araujo

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly BSD Hacks:

Difinity and exclusive book

Powered BSD System

Displaying reviews 1-6

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Chapter 1 Customizing the User Environment

Introduction

Get the Most Out of the Default Shell

Useful tcsh Shell Configuration File Options

Create Shell Bindings

Use Terminal and X Bindings

Use the Mouse at a Terminal

Get Your Daily Dose of Trivia

Lock the Screen

Create a Trash Directory

Customize User Configurations

Maintain Your Environment on Multiple Systems

Use an Interactive Shell

Use Multiple Screens on One Terminal

Chapter 2 Dealing with Files and Filesystems

Introduction

Find Things

Get the Most Out of grep

Manipulate Files with sed

Format Text at the Command Line

Delimiter Dilemma

DOS Floppy Manipulation

Access Windows Shares Without a Server

Deal with Disk Hogs

Manage Temporary Files and Swap Space

Recreate a Directory Structure Using mtree

Ghosting Systems

Chapter 3 The Boot and Login Environments

Introduction

Customize the Default Boot Menu

Protect the Boot Process

Run a Headless System

Log a Headless Server Remotely

Remove the Terminal Login Banner

Protecting Passwords With Blowfish Hashes

Monitor Password Policy Compliance

Create an Effective, Reusable Password Policy

Automate Memorable Password Generation

Use One Time Passwords

Restrict Logins

Chapter 4 Backing Up

Introduction

Back Up FreeBSD with SMBFS

Create Portable POSIX Archives

Interactive Copy

Secure Backups Over a Network

Automate Remote Backups

Automate Data Dumps for PostgreSQL Databases

Perform Client-Server Cross-Platform Backups with Bacula

Chapter 5 Networking Hacks

Introduction

See Console Messages Over a Remote Login

Spoof a MAC Address

Use Multiple Wireless NIC Configurations

Survive Catastrophic Internet Loss

Humanize tcpdump Output

Understand DNS Records and Tools

Send and Receive Email Without a Mail Client

Why Do I Need sendmail?

Hold Email for Later Delivery

Get the Most Out of FTP

Distributed Command Execution

Interactive Remote Administration

Chapter 6 Securing the System

Introduction

Strip the Kernel

FreeBSD Access Control Lists

Protect Files with Flags

Tighten Security with Mandatory Access Control

Use mtree as a Built-in Tripwire

Intrusion Detection with Snort, ACID, MySQL, and FreeBSD

Encrypt Your Hard Disk

Sudo Gotchas

sudoscript

Restrict an SSH server

Script IP Filter Rulesets

Secure a Wireless Network Using PF

Automatically Generate Firewall Rules

Automate Security Patches

Scan a Network of Windows Computers for Viruses