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Back Ground of Linux

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BACKGROUND ON LINUX
Linux is a version of UNIX operating system, the original ancestor of Linux. UNIX is a command-driven operating system in which the user has to type in commands at the computer console in order to operate the computer. It was originally developed in the 1970’s at AT&T as a multitasking system for minicomputers and mainframes.
In 1991, Linus Torvalds, a student at the University of Helsinki, sought to create a new version of UNIX therefore, he joined forces with a group of programmers to create a new operating system called Linux. Linux is a free version of UNIX that continues to be developed by the cooperative efforts of volunteer groups of programmers, primarily on the Internet, who exchange code, report bug, and fix problems in an open-ended environment. As a result, the world now has a powerful, robust, and full-featured operating system that continues to change and grow.
Linux is known as an open source operating system and also called free software because everything about Linux is accessible to the public and is freely available to anyone. Since the Linux source code is available, anyone can copy, modify, and distribute this software. This allows for various companies such as SuSE, Red Hat, Caldera and others to sell and distribute Linux.
File management
Directories can be thought as electronic folders where files, programs, and subdirectories are stored. Unlike Windows, which separates storage drives such as hard disk or floppy disk under the names A:, C:, D:, and so on, Linux incorporates all drives directly in the system’s directory structure . As a result, drives are not accessible through names like “C:”, now they can be accessed by using folders or directories to tell the user where data is located.
The place where the entire directory tree begins is called the root directory. The root directory is identified by a slash (‘ / ’). Root is one of the several users on the Linux system, which also known as a multiuser system. The root is responsible for the entire Linux system, making sure it runs reliably, that infrastructure works, that all programs are up to date, and that none of the users “transgress” the rights of the others . Additionally, the root has the “master key” for the entire Linux system and has access to the main directory and all its subdirectories. Users should only log into the root if it is required for certain functions like creating a new user account or installing new programs. The Linux file system is then subdivided into many branches known as subdirectories. The following Diagram 1.1 shows the standard directory tree in Linux with the home directories of abc, linux, and bill . Table 1.1 provides a short description of these standard directories.

var var bin bin usr usr tmp tmp mnt mnt proc proc opt opt root root sbin sbin home home etc etc lib lib dev dev boot boot gnome gnome kde kde ld.so ld.so St0
St0
sda sda had had vmlinuz vmlinuz share share bill bill linux linux abc abc sbin sbin local local lib lib etc etc bin bin XIIR6
XIIR6

F2c
F2c
Test.c
Test.c
Mail
Mail
bin bin man man lib lib bin bin man man xv xv sterm sterm xdm xdm doc doc man man ftp ftp lib lib bin bin packages packages howto howto faq faq lib lib pub pub bin bin Table 1.1 Overview of Important Directories Directory | Description | / | Root directory, starting point of the directory tree | /home | (private) directories of users | /dev | Device files that represent hardware components | /etc | Important files for system configuration | /etc/init.d | Boot scripts | /usr/bin | Generally accessible programs | /bin | Program needed early in the boot process | /usr/sbin | Programs reserved for the system administrator | /sbin | Program reserved for the system administrator and needed for booting | /sbin/init.d | Boot scripts | /usr/include | Header files for the C compiler | /usr/include/g++ | Header files for the C++ compiler | /usr/share/doc | Various documentation files | /usr/man | System manual pages (man pages) | /usr/src | Source code of system software | /usr/src/linux | Kernel source code | /tmp | Temporary files | /var/tmp | Large temporary files | /usr | Contains all application programs | /var | Configuration files (e.g., those linked from /usr) | /var/log | System log files | /var/adm | System administration data | /lib | Shared libraries (for dynamically linked programs) | /proc | Process file system | /usr/local | Local, distribution-independent extensions | /opt | Optional software, larger add-on program packages (such as KDE, GNOME, Netscape |

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