UNIT - 1

Introduction to System and Network Administration

Learning Objectives: At the end of the topic,
the students will be able to:
Learn the foundation of network and system
administration
Know the scope, duties and responsibilities of network
and system administrator
Know the network operation system that support
system administration
Distinguish the support of each network operating
system
1. Overview
Network and system administration is a branch of
engineering that concerns the operational management
of human–computer system.
It is unusual as an engineering discipline in that it
addresses both the technology of computer systems and
the users of the technology on an equal basis.
The terms network administration and system
administration exist separately and are used both
variously and inconsistently by industry and by
academics.
2. System Administration
System administration is the term used traditionally by
mainframe and Linux engineers to describe the
management of computers whether they are coupled by
a network or not.
Today, System Administration is the design,
installation, configuration, operation, and support of
these servers to support the operation need of
information technology infrastructure of an organization.
System Administrator
Generally it is planning, installing, and maintaining
computer systems involving servers and clients that
works together in a network environment using
operation system like Windows 2012 Server or Linux
platform.
A system administrator, or sysadmin, is a person who
is responsible for the upkeep, configuration, and reliable
operation of computer systems; especially multi- user
computers, such as servers.
 Duties of a system administrator
1. User administration (setup and maintaining account)
2. Maintaining system
3. Verify that peripherals are working properly
4. Quickly arrange repair for hardware in occasion of hardware failure
5. Monitor system performance
6. Create file systems
7. Install software
8. Create a backup and recover policy
9. Monitor network communication
10. Update system as soon as new version of OS and application software comes out
11. Implement the policies for the use of the computer system and network
12. Setup security policies for users.A sysadmin must have a strong grasp of computer
security (e.g. firewalls and intrusion detection systems)
 Duties of a system administrator
(continue)
1. Install patches
2. Review system logs
3. Report malicious or suspicious activity on systems to ISO immediately
4. Report sensitive information stored on systems to ISO
5. Maintain user access administration
6. Disaster recovery planning
7. Physical security
8. Disable unnecessary services on servers
9. Generate/Retain system backups
10. Identify secondary system administrator(s)
11. Comply with password requirements
12. Access control
13. Environmental protection (i.e., protection from possible exposure to water damage, excessive heat, etc.)
14. Security training will be required every three (3) years
3. Network Administration
Network administration means the management of
network infrastructure devices (routers and switches).
A network administrator is an individual that is
responsible for the maintenance of computer har
dware and software systems that make up
a computer network including the maintenance
and monitoring of active data network or converged
infrastructure and related network equipment
3. Network Administration
The actual role of the network administrator will vary
from place to place, but will commonly include activities
and tasks such as network address assignment,
management and implementation of routing protocols
such as ISIS, OSPF, BGP, routing table configurations
and certain implementations of authentication (e.g.:
challenge response, etc.). It can also include
maintenance of certain network servers: file servers,
VPN gateways, intrusion detection systems, security,
etc.
4. Ethical issues in SA/NA

Because computer systems are human–computer

communities, there are ethical considerations involved
in their administration. Even if certain decisions can be
made objectively, e.g. for maximizing productivity or
minimizing cost, one must have a policy for the use and
management of computers and their users.
5.What is a Network Operating System?

Network operating system refers to software that

implements an operating system of some kind that is
oriented to computer networking. For example, one that
runs on a server and enables the server to manage data,
users, groups, security, applications, and other
networking functions.The network operating system is
designed to allow shared file and printer access among
multiple computers in a network, typically a local area
network (LAN), a private network or to other networks
Windows Server
Windows Server is a brand name for a group of
server operating systems released by Microsoft. It includes
all Windowsoperating systems branded "Windows Server",
but not any other Microsoft product.The first Windows server
edition to be released under that brand was Windows Server
2003. However, the first server edition of Windows was
Windows NT 3.1Advanced Server, followed by Windows NT
3.5 Server,Windows NT 4.0 Server, and Windows 2000 Serv
er; the latter was the first server edition to
include Active Directory, DNS Server, DHCP Server, Group
Policy, as well as many other popular features used
today.
Windows Server
Windows Server 2012 R2 is the sixth version
of Windows Server family of operating systems. It was
released on October 18, 2013. According to Windows
Server 2012 R2 datasheet published on May 31, 2013, there
are four editions of this operating system:
Foundation, Essentials, Standard and Datacenter. Unlike
its predecessor,Windows Server 2012 can switch between
"Server Core" and "Server with a GUI" installation options
without a full reinstallation. Server Core - an option with a
command-line interface only - is now the recommended
configuration
.
Solaris
Solaris is a Unix operating system originally
developed
by Sun Microsystems. It superseded their
earlier SunOS in 1993. Oracle Solaris, so named as of
2010, has been owned by Oracle Corporation since the
Sun acquisition by Oracle in January 2010
Linux Server
A Linux server is a high-powered variant of
the Linux open sourceoperating system that's designed
to handle the more demanding needs of business
applications such as network and system administration,
database management and Web services.
Linux servers are frequently selected over other server
operating systems for their stability, security and
flexibility advantages. Leading Linux server operating
systems include CentOS, Debian,Ubuntu
Server, Slackware and Gentoo
.
MAC OS x Server
MacOS Server, formerly Mac OS X Server and OS X
Server, is a separately sold operating system add-on
which provides additional server programs and
management and administration tools for macOS.
Prior to version 10.7 (Lion), OS X Server was a separate
but similarUnix[3] server operating system from Apple In
c. architecturally identical to its desktop
counterpart OS X.With the release of version 10.7
(Lion), Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server were
into one release and re-branded as OS X.
combined