Build:Tutorial:Configuring a RHEL System

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Required materials

  • Fully loaded Intel x86-based system
  • RHEL 3.0 AS

Install Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3.0 AS

  1. Gather preconfiguration information.
    • Administrator password.
    • Final network information (IP address, netmask, gateway, DNS servers).
  2. Connect hardware.
    • Network cable to network jack on network serving addresses via DHCP and using a small private network with Internet access.
    • Power cable.
  3. Power on the system and place the first RHEL 3.0 AS CD into the disc drive.
  4. Hit enter at the first text-based prompt. This will start a graphical mode installation.
  5. At the Welcome screen, click Next.
  6. Select your language and click Next.
  7. Select your keyboard layout and click Next.
  8. Ensure the proper mouse configuration is offered and click Next.
  9. Select Automatically partition and click Next.
  10. Ensure Remove all partitions on this system is selected and the main drive is selected, then click Next. You will be prompted for whether you are sure you want to remove all partitions on this drive. Click Yes.
  11. You will have the opportunity to review the selected disk setup. Click Next.
  12. At the Boot Loader screen, click Next.
  13. At the Network Configuration screen, click Next.
  14. At the Firewall screen, select SSH and click Next.
  15. At the Additional Language Support screen, click Next.
  16. Ensure the proper time zone is selected and click Next.
  17. Enter the root password once, then again in the confirmation dialog, and click Next.
  18. At the Package Installation Defaults screen, select "Customize the set of packages to be installed" and click Next.
  19. Ensure the following package sets are selected:
    • Desktops
      • X Window System
      • GNOME Desktop Environment
    • Applications
      • Editors
      • Graphical Internet
      • Text-based Internet
      • Authoring and Publishing
    • Servers
      • Server Configuration Tools
      • Web Server
    • Development
      • Development Tools
      • X Software Development
      • GNOME Software Development
      • Legacy Software Development
    • System
      • Administration Tools
      • System Tools
  20. After selecting the correct packages to install on the system, click Next.
  21. At the About to Install screen, click Next.
  22. As the system prompts you to enter other RHEL AS 3.0 CDs, do so and click Ok.
  23. At the Graphical Interface Configuration screen, select the appropriate video card, memory, and click Next.
  24. At the Monitor Configuration, click Next.
  25. At the Customize Graphics Configuration screen, click Next.
  26. At the Congratulations screen, click Exit. The system will automatically restart.

Configure the System

  1. Allow the system to boot fully to a graphical welcome screen.
  2. At the Welcome screen, click Next.
  3. At the License Agreement screen, click Yes and Next.
  4. At the Date and Time screen, click "Enable Network Time Protocol" and enter "pool.ntp.org" in the Server box. Click Next.
  5. At the Red Hat Login screen, enter your RH login and password, and click Next.
  6. At the Activate screen, click "Use one of my existing, active subscriptions." Enter the system name in the "Connect your system" area of the screen and click Next. Names can be found here.
  7. At the System User screen, enter in user information and click Next.
  8. At the Additional CDs screen, click Next.
  9. At the Finish Setup screen, click Next.

Update the Operating System

  1. The system will present you with a login screen. Login using the user account information you entered at the System User screen.
  2. Configure the Red Hat Network Alert Notification Tool.
    1. Click the up2date icon in the lower right portion of the screen.
    2. At the first Red Hat Network Alert Notification Tool screen click Forward.
    3. At the Terms of Service screen click Forward.
    4. Ensure the proper configuration is present in the Proxy Configuration screen and click Forward.
    5. At the Configuration Complete screen click Apply.
  3. Click the up2date icon in the lower right portion of the screen.
  4. In the Red Hat Network Alert Notification Tool click the "Launch up2date..." button.
  5. Enter the system's root password when prompted by the up2date tool.
  6. At the Red Hat Network Configuration screen, ensure the correct network settings are present and click OK.
  7. When prompted whether to install the Red Hat, Inc. GPG public key, click Yes.
  8. At the Welcome to Red Hat Update Agent screen, click Forward.
  9. At the Channels screen, click Forward. Up2date will download the necessary RPM headers.
  10. At the Packages Flagged to be Skipped screen, select all packages so that the system receives necessary kernel updates and click Forward.
  11. At the Available Package Updates screen, select all packages and click Forward.
  12. Possibly a Packages Required to Solve Dependencies screen will appear. If so, click Forward.
  13. The system will download all necessary updates. Go run up and down Stevens Creek Trail. When you return, have a coffee. It will still be updating.
  14. Once the process of downloading the updates has finished, click Forward.
  15. At the Installing Packages screen, click Forward.
  16. At the All Finished screen, click Finish.
  17. At the Red Hat Network Alert Notification Tool window, click Close.
  18. Restart the system.

Disable Unneeded Services

  1. Log in as root.
  2. Disable gpm, cups, atd, apmd, and hpoj:
for s in gpm cups atd, apmd, hpoj; do service $s stop; chkconfig --del $s; done

Disable X

  1. Log in as root.
  2. Edit /etc/inittab so the standard runlevel is 3.
  3. Set the current init level to 3.
    • telinit 3

Configure VNC

  1. Log in as a system user.
  2. Set your VNC password.
    • vncpasswd
  3. Log in as root.
  4. Edit /etc/sysconfig/vncservers so that it contains the line:
    • VNCSERVERS="0:myusername"
  5. Enable vncserver as a system service.
    • chkconfig --level 345 vncserver on
  6. Start vncserver so it creates the user's xstartup file.
    • service vncserver start
  7. Stop vncserver.
  8. Edit ~myusername/.vnc/xstartup so that the top two lines (the last of the two exec'ing xinitrc) are run.
  9. Start vncserver.
    • service vncserver start
  10. Add port 5900 to the server's iptables configuration by editing /etc/sysconfig/iptables.
  11. Restart iptables.
    • service iptables restart

System Startup Test

At this stage of the tutorial, the system has been completely configured except for its final network settings. Use this opportunity to restart the server without any assistance to ensure its settings are correct and that the proper services are started at reboot.

  1. Log in as root.
  2. Reboot the system.
    • shutdown -r now
  3. After restart, verify SSH and VNC.

Finalize Network Settings

Edit /etc/sysconfig/network to contain the expected fully-qualified hostname of the system. 

NETWORKING=yes
HOSTNAME=myhostname.mydomain

Edit /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 to contain the network configuration that will be used by this system. 

DEVICE=eth0
ONBOOT=yes
BOOTPROTO=none
IPADDR=192.168.1.100
NETMASK=255.255.255.0
USERCTL=no
PEERDNS=no
GATEWAY=192.168.1.1
TYPE=Ethernet
NETWORK=192.168.1.0
BROADCAST=192.168.1.255
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