Linux-Misc Digest #627, Volume #24               Sun, 28 May 00 13:13:04 EDT

Contents:
  Linux Frequently Asked Questions with Answers (Part 2 of 6) 
([EMAIL PROTECTED])

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Crossposted-To: news.answers,comp.answers
Subject: Linux Frequently Asked Questions with Answers (Part 2 of 6)
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Sun, 28 May 2000 16:50:23 GMT

Archive-Name: linux/faq/part2
URL: http://www.mainmatter.com/
Reply-to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Posting-Frequency: weekly
Last-modified: 05/28/2000

   SRM                     Security              Serbian
   Serial                  Serial Programming    Slovenian
   Shadow Password         Software Building     Software RAID
   Software Release Practice                     Sound
   Sound Playing           Spanish               TclTk
   teTeX                   Text-Terminal         Thai
   Tips                    Turkish               UMSDOS
   UPS                     UUCP                  Unicode
   Unix and Internet Fundamentals                User Group
   VAR                     VME                   Vim Editor
   VPN-Masquerade          Virtual Services      WWW
   WWWmSQL                 Wacom Tablet          XFree86
   XFree86 Video Timings                         X Window User
   
   The following Mini-HOWTO's are available from
   http://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO/mini/:
   
   3 Button Mouse mini-HOWTO
   ADSM Backup mini-HOWTO
   Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Loop (ADSL) mini-HOWTO
   AI-Alife mini-HOWTO
   Advocacy mini-HOWTO
   Alsa Sound mini-HOWTO
   Apache SSL PHP/FI frontpage mini-HOWTO
   Automount mini-HOWTO
   Backup with MSDOS mini-HOWTO
   Battery Powered mini-HOWTO
   Boca mini-HOWTO
   BogoMips mini-HOWTO
   Bridge mini-HOWTO
   Bridge+Firewall mini-HOWTO
   Bzip2 mini-HOWTO
   Cable Modem mini-HOWTO
   Cipe+Masquerading mini-HOWTO
   Clock mini-HOWTO
   Coffee mini-HOWTO
   Colour ls mini-HOWTO
   Cyrus IMAP mini-HOWTO
   DHCP mini-HOWTO
   DPT Hardware RAID mini-HOWTO
   Diald mini-HOWTO
   Ext2fs Undeletion mini-HOWTO
   Fax Server mini-HOWTO
   Firewall Piercing mini-HOWTO
   GIS-GRASS mini-HOWTO
   GTEK BBS-550 mini-HOWTO
   Hard Disk Upgrade mini-HOWTO
   IO Port Programming mini-HOWTO
   IP Alias mini-HOWTO
   IP Masquerade mini-HOWTO
   IP Subnetworking mini-HOWTO
   ISP Connectivity mini-HOWTO
   Install From ZIP mini-HOWTO
   Kerneld mini-HOWTO
   LBX mini-HOWTO
   LILO mini-HOWTO
   Large Disk mini-HOWTO
   Leased Line mini-HOWTO
   Linux+DOS+Win95+OS2 mini-HOWTO
   Linux+FreeBSD mini-HOWTO
   Linux+NT-Loader mini-HOWTO
   Linux+Win95 mini-HOWTO
   Loadlin+Win95 mini-HOWTO
   Mac Terminal mini-HOWTO
   Mail Queue mini-HOWTO
   Mail2News mini-HOWTO
   Man Page mini-HOWTO
   Modules mini-HOWTO
   Multiboot using LILO mini-HOWTO
   NCD X Terminal mini-HOWTO
   NFS-Root mini-HOWTO
   NFS-Root-Client mini-HOWTO
   Netrom-Node mini-HOWTO
   Netscape+Proxy mini-HOWTO
   Netstation mini-HOWTO
   News Leafsite mini-HOWTO
   Offline Mailing mini-HOWTO
   PLIP mini-HOWTO
   Partition mini-HOWTO
   Partition Rescue mini-HOWTO
   Path mini-HOWTO
   Pre-installation Checklist mini-HOWTO
   Process Accounting mini-HOWTO
   Proxy ARP Subnet mini-HOWTO
   Public Web Browser mini-HOWTO
   Qmail+MH mini-HOWTO
   Quota mini-HOWTO
   RCS mini-HOWTO
   RPM+Slackware mini-HOWTO
   RedHat CD mini-HOWTO
   Remote Boot mini-HOWTO
   Remote X Apps mini-HOWTO
   SLIP-PPP Emulator mini-HOWTO
   Sendmail Address Rewrite mini-HOWTO
   Sendmail+UUCP mini-HOWTO
   Secure POP via SSH mini-HOWTO
   Small Memory mini-HOWTO
   Software RAID mini-HOWTO
   Soundblaster AWE mini-HOWTO
   StarOffice mini-HOWTO
   Term Firewall mini-HOWTO
   TkRat mini-HOWTO
   Token Ring mini-HOWTO
   Ultra-DMA mini-HOWTO
   Update mini-HOWTO
   Upgrade mini-HOWTO
   VAIO mini-HOWTO
   Vesafb mini-HOWTO
   VPN mini-HOWTO
   Visual Bell mini-HOWTO
   Windows Modem Sharing mini-HOWTO
   WordPerfect mini-HOWTO
   X Big Cursor mini-HOWTO
   XFree86-XInside mini-HOWTO
   xterm Title mini-HOWTO
   ZIP Install mini-HOWTO
   ZIP Drive mini-HOWTO
   
   The following HOWTO's are not distributed in all formats because SGML
   Tools cannot format their graphics and tables:
   
   The High Availability HOWTO The Graphics mini-HOWTO
   
   In addition, translations of the HOWTO's are available from
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO/translations/ and mirrors
   worldwide. Translations in the following languages are available:
   
   Chinese (zh) Croatian (hr)  French (fr)
   German (de)  Hellenic (el)  Indonesian (id)
   Italian (it) Japanese (ja)  Korean (ko)
   Polish (pl)  Slovenian (sl) Spanish (es)
   Swedish (sv) Turkish (tr)
   
   More of these documents are always in preparation. Please get in touch
   with Timothy Bynum, mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED], the HOWTO
   coordinator, if you are interested in writing one. The file
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/HOWTO/HOWTO-INDEX contains guidelines
   for writing a HOWTO. He has a Web page that lists current HOWTO
   updates and additions at
   http://wallybox.cei.net/~tjbynum/HOWTO/projects.
   
   There is also a LDP HOWTO page at http://howto.tucows.org/.
   
   The Guide Series produced by the Linux Documentation Project is
   available from http://www.linuxdoc.org/. Please read them if you are
   new to Unix and Linux.
   
   And, of course, a number of people have written documentation
   independently of the LDP:
   
     * Linux Administrators Security Guide, by Kurt Seifried.
       http://www.freek.com/lasg/.
     * Newbie's Linux Manual. http://www.linuxdoc.org/nlm/.
     * One-Page Linux Manual. http://www.powerup.com.au/~squadron/.
     * Short beginners' manual for Linux. Also available in Dutch.
       http://www.stuwww.kub.nl/people/b.vannunen/linux-man.php3.
     * Virtual Frame buffer HOWTO, by Alex Buell.
       http://www.tahallah.demon.co.uk/programming/prog.html.
     * X11 & TrueType Fonts, by Peter Kleiweg.
       http://www.let.rug.nl/~kleiweg/.
       
   There is a FAQ for Linux kernel developers at
   http://www.tux.org/html/.
   
   To find out about Linux memory management, including performance
   tuning, see Rik van Riel's Web page at
   http://humbolt.geo.uu.nl/Linux-MM/.
   
   The Linux Consultants HOWTO has a directory of Linux consultants at
   http://www.linuxports.com/.
   
   Gary's Encyclopedia lists over 4,000 Linux related links. Its URL is
   http://members.aa.net/~swear/pedia/index.html.
   
   There is also a FAQ specifically for the Red Hat Linux distribution,
   at http://www.best.com/~aturner//RedHat-FAQ/faq_index.html.
   
   And the Home Page of this FAQ (by default, The Linux FAQ) is the
   Mainmatter Press, http://www.mainmatter.com/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.3. Where Should I Look on the World Wide Web for Linux Stuff?

   In addition to the Linux Documentation Project Home Page
   http://www.linuxdoc.org/, there are many pages that provide beginning
   and advanced information about Linux.
   
   These two pages provide a good starting point for general Linux
   information: Linux International's Home Page, at http://www.li.org/,
   and the Linux Online's Linux Home Page at http://www.linux.org/.
   
   Both of these pages provide links to other sites, information about
   general information, distributions, new software, documentation, and
   news.
   
   The tutorial, Unix is a Four Letter Word..., is located at
   http://www.linuxbox.com/~taylor/4ltrwrd/. It is a general introduction
   to Unix operating systems and is not Linux specific.
   
   Additionally, here is a certainly incomplete list of Web pages devoted
   to Linux:
   
     * AboutLinux.com. http://www.aboutlinux.com/.
     * Adventures in Linux Programming.
       http://members.xoom.com/rpragana/.
     * Dave Central Linux Software Archive.
       http://linux.davecentral.com/.
     * Ext2 File System capabilities (draft).
       http://pocket.fluff.org/~mrw/linux/ext2.txt.
     * Free Unix Giveaway List. http://visar.csustan.edu/giveaway.html.
       Lists offers of free Linux CDs. Also available via E-mail:
       mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED], with the Subject: send
       giveaway_list.
     * Information on Linux in corporate environments.
       http://www.smartstocks.com/linux.html.
     * Jeanette Russo's Linux Newbie Information.
       http://www.stormloader.com/jrusso2/index.html.
     * JustLinux.com. http://www.justlinux.com/.
     * LinuxArtist.org. http://www.linuxartist.org/.
     * Linux Cartoons.
       http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~conradp/linux/cartoons/.
     * linuXChiX.org. http://www.linuxchix.org/.
     * Linux Educational Needs Posting Page.
       http://www.slip.net/~brk/linuxedpp.htm.
     * Linux in Business: Case Studies.
       www.bynari.com/collateral/case_studies.html.
     * Linux Inside. http://linuxinside.org/.
     * Linux Links. http://www.linuxlinks.com/.
     * Linux Memory Management Home Page.
       http://humbolt.geo.uu.nl/Linux-MM/.
     * Linux Newbie Project. http://kusma.hypermart.net/.
     * Linux on the Thinkpad 760ED. http://www.e-oasis.com/linux-tp.html.
     * Linux Parallel Port Home Page.
       http://www.torque.net/linux-pp.html.
     * Linux MIDI & Sound Applications. http://sound.condorow.net/.
     * Linux Start. http://www.linuxstart.com/.
     * Linux Tips and Tricks Page. http://www.patoche.org/LTT/.
     * Linux Today PR. http://www.linuxpr.com/.
     * My Linux Contributions by Richard Gooch.
       http://www.atnf.csiro.au/~rgooch/linux/.
     * Micro Channel Linux Web Page. http://www.dgmicro.com/mca/.
     * Parallel port scanners and SANE.
       http://www2.prestel.co.uk/hex/scanners.html.
     * PegaSoft Portal. http://www.vaxxine.com/pegasoft/portal/
     * SearchLinux. http://www.searchlinux.com/.
     * USB Linux Home Page. http://peloncho.fis.ucm.es/~inaky/uusbd-www/.
     * VLUG: The Virtual Linux Users Group. http://www.vlug.com/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.4. What News Groups Are There for Linux?

   Comp.os.linux.announce is the moderated announcements group; you
   should read this if you intend to use Linux: it contains information
   about software updates, new ports, user group meetings, and commercial
   products. It is the ONLY newsgroup that may carry commercial postings.
   Submissions for that group should be e-mailed to
   mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED].
   
   Comp.os.linux.announce, however, is not archived on DejaNews or Alta
   Vista. The only archive for the news group seems to be
   http://www.iki.fi/mjr/linux/cola.html.
   
   [Axel Boldt]
   
   Also worth reading are the following other groups in the
   comp.os.linux.* hierarchy--you may find many common problems too
   recent for the documentation but are answered in the newsgroups.
   
     * alt.uu.comp.os.linux
     * alt.uu.comp.os.linux.questions
     * comp.os.linux.admin
     * comp.os.linux.advocacy
     * comp.os.linux.alpha
     * comp.os.linux.answers
     * comp.os.linux.development
     * comp.os.linux.development.apps
     * comp.os.linux.development.system
     * comp.os.linux.hardware
     * comp.os.linux.help
     * comp.os.linux.m68k
     * comp.os.linux.misc
     * comp.os.linux.network
     * comp.os.linux.networking
     * comp.os.linux.portable
     * comp.os.linux.powerpc
     * comp.os.linux.questions
     * comp.os.linux.redhat
     * comp.os.linux.security
     * comp.os.linux.setup
     * comp.os.linux.test
     * comp.os.linux.x
     * comp.os.linux.x.video
       
   Remember that Linux is POSIX compatible, and most all of the material
   in comp.unix.* and comp.windows.x.* groups will be relevant. Apart
   from hardware considerations, and some obscure or very technical
   low-level issues, you'll find that these groups are good places to
   start.
   
   Please read ("You Still Haven't Answered My Question!") before
   posting. Cross posting between different comp.os.linux.* groups is
   rarely a good idea.
   
   There may well be Linux groups local to your institution or
   area--check there first.
   
   See also ("I Don't Have Usenet Access. Where Do I Get Information?")
   
   Other regional and local newsgroups also exist--you may find the
   traffic more manageable there. The French Linux newsgroup is
   fr.comp.os.linux. The German one is de.comp.os.linux. In Australia,
   try aus.computers.linux. In Croatia there is hr.comp.linux. In Italy,
   there is it.comp.linux.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.5. What Other FAQ's Are There for Linux?

   There are a number of special-interest FAQ's on different subjects
   that are related to Linux administration and use. Here are a few of
   them:
   
     * A FAQ for new users.
       http://homes.arealcity.com/swietanowski/LinuxFAQ/.
     * GNU Emacs. http://www.lerner.co.il/emacs/faq-body.shtml.
     * GNU Linux in Science and Engineering.
       http://members.home.net/scieng/.
     * Gnus 5.x. http://www.ccs.neu.edu/software/contrib/gnus/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.6. Where Can I Get Linux Material by FTP?

   There are three main archive sites for Linux:
   
     * ftp://ftp.funet.fi/pub/OS/Linux/ (Finland).
     * ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/ (US).
     * tsx-11.mit.edu//pub/linux/ (US).
       
   The best place to get the Linux kernel is
   ftp://ftp.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/. Linus Torvalds uploads the
   most recent kernel versions to this site.
   
   Of the U.S. distributions, Debian GNU/Linux is available at
   ftp://ftp.debian.org/pub/debian/. Red Hat Linux's home site is
   ftp://ftp.redhat.com/, and Linux Slackware's is
   ftp://ftp.freesoftware.com/.
   
   The Small Linux distribution, which can run in 2 MB of RAM, is located
   at http://smalllinux.netpedia.net/.
   
   The contents of these sites is mirrored (copied, usually approximately
   daily) by a number of other sites. Please use a site close to you--it
   will be faster for you and easier on the network.
   
     * ftp://ftp.sun.ac.za/pub/linux/sunsite/ (South Africa)
     * ftp://ftp.is.co.za/linux/sunsite/ (South Africa).
     * ftp://ftp.cs.cuhk.hk/pub/Linux/ (Hong Kong).
     * ftp://sunsite.ust.hk/pub/Linux/ (Hong Kong).
     * ftp://ftp.spin.ad.jp/pub/linux/ (Japan).
     * ftp://ftp.nuri.net/pub/Linux/ (Korea).
     * ftp://ftp.jaring.my/pub/Linux/ (Malaysia).
     * ftp://ftp.nus.sg/pub/unix/Linux/ (Singapore).
     * ftp://ftp.nectec.or.th/pub/mirrors/linux/ (Thailand).
     * ftp://mirror.aarnet.edu.au/pub/linux/ (Australia).
     * ftp://sunsite.anu.edu.au/pub/linux/ (Australia).
     * ftp://ftp.monash.edu.au/pub/linux/ (Australia).
     * ftp://ftp.univie.ac.at/systems/linux/sunsite/ (Austria).
     * ftp://ftp.fi.muni.cz/pub/UNIX/linux/ (Czech Republic).
     * ftp://ftp.funet.fi/pub/Linux/sunsite/ (Finland).
     * ftp://ftp.univ-angers.fr/pub/Linux/ (France).
     * ftp://ftp.iut-bm.univ-fcomte.fr/ (France).
     * ftp://ftp.ibp.fr/pub/linux/sunsite/ (France)
     * ftp://ftp.loria.fr/pub/linux/sunsite/ (France).
     * ftp://ftp.dfv.rwth-aachen.de/pub/linux/sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.germany.eu.net/pub/os/Linux/Mirror.SunSITE/(Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.tu-dresden.de/pub/Linux/sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.uni-erlangen.de/pub/Linux/MIRROR.sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.gwdg.de/pub/linux/mirrors/sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp.rz.uni-karlsruhe.de/pub/linux/mirror.sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.ba-mannheim.de/pub/linux/mirror.sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.uni-paderborn.de/pub/Mirrors/sunsite.unc.edu/(Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.uni-rostock.de/Linux/sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp.rus.uni-stuttgart.de/pub/unix/systems/linux/MIRROR.sunsite/(Ge
       rmany).
     * ftp://ftp.uni-tuebingen.de/pub/linux/Mirror.sunsite/ (Germany).
     * ftp://ftp.kfki.hu/pub/linux/(Hungary).
     * ftp://linux.italnet.it/pub/Linux/(Italy).
     * ftp://ftp.unina.it/pub/linux/sunsite/ (Italy).
     * ftp://giotto.unipd.it/pub/unix/Linux/ (Italy).
     * ftp://cnuce-arch.cnr.it/pub/Linux/ (Italy).
     * ftp://ftp.flashnet.it/mirror2/metalab.unc.edu/ (Italy).
     * ftp://ftp.nijenrode.nl/pub/linux/ (Netherlands).
     * ftp://ftp.LeidenUniv.nl/pub/linux/sunsite/ (Netherlands).
     * ftp://ftp.nvg.unit.no/pub/linux/sunsite/ (Norway).
     * ftp://sunsite.icm.edu.pl/pub/Linux/metalab.unc.edu/ (Poland).
     * ftp://ftp.rediris.es/software/os/linux/sunsite/ (Spain).
     * ftp://sunsite.rediris.es/software/linux/ (Spain).
     * ftp://ftp.cs.us.es/pub/Linux/sunsite-mirror/ (Spain).
     * ftp://ftp.etse.urv.es/pub/mirror/linux/ (Spain).
     * ftp://tp.etsimo.uniovi.es/pub/linux/ (Spain).
     * ftp://ftp.luna.gui.es/pub/linux.new/ (Spain).
     * ftp://ftp.metu.edu.tr/pub/linux/sunsite/ (Turkey).
     * ftp://unix.hensa.ac.uk/mirrors/sunsite/pub/Linux/ (UK).
     * ftp.maths.warwick.ac.uk/mirrors/linux/sunsite.unc-mirror/(UK).
     * ftp://ftp.idiscover.co.uk/pub/Linux/sunsite.unc-mirror/(UK).
     * ftp://sunsite.doc.ic.ac.uk/packages/linux/sunsite.unc-mirror/(UK).
     * (UK)
     * ftp://ftp.io.org/pub/mirrors/linux/sunsite/ (Canada).
     * ftp://ftp.cc.gatech.edu/pub/linux/ (US).
     * ftp://ftp.freesoftware.com/pub/linux/sunsite/ (US).
     * ftp://ftp.siriuscc.com/pub/Linux/Sunsite/ (US).
     * ftp://ftp.engr.uark.edu/pub/linux/sunsite/ (US).
     * ftp://ftp.infomagic.com/pub/mirrors/linux/sunsite/ (US).
     * ftp://linux.if.usp.br/pub/mirror/metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/(Brazil
       ).
     * ftp://farofa.ime.usp.br/pub/linux/ (Brazil).
       
   Please send updates and corrections to this list to the Linux FAQ
   maintainer, mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Not all of these mirror
   all of the other "source" sites, and some have material not
   available on the "source" sites.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.7. I Don't Have FTP Access. Where Do I Get Linux?

   The easiest thing is probably to find a friend with FTP access. If
   there is a Linux user's group near you, they may be able to help.
   
   If you have a reasonably good email connection, you could try the
   FTP-by-mail servers at mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED], or
   mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED].
   
   Linux is also available via traditional mail on CD-ROM. The file
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO/Installation-HOWTO, and the
   file ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO/Distribution-HOWTO
   contain information on these distributions.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.8. I Don't Have Usenet Access. Where Do I Get Information?

   A digest of comp.os.linux.announce is available by mailing the word
   "subscribe" (without the quotes) as the body of a message to
   mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]. Subscribing to
   this list is a good idea, as it carries important information and
   documentation about Linux.
   
   Please remember to use the *-request addresses for your subscribe and
   unsubscribe messages; mail to the other address is posted to the news
   group.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.9. What Mailing Lists Are There?

   The Linux developers now mainly use the Majordomo server at
   mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]. Send a message with the word
   "lists" (without the quotes) in the body to get a list of lists there.
   Add a line with the word, "help," to get the standard Majordomo help
   file that lists instructions for subscribing and unsubscribing to the
   lists.
   
   Please do not post off-topic material to the mailing lists. Most of
   them are used by Linux developers to talk about technical issues and
   future developments. They are not intended for new users' questions,
   advertisements, or public postings that are not directly related to
   the mailing list's subject matter. Comp.os.linux.announce is the place
   for all public announcements. This is a common Internet policy. If you
   don't observe this guideline, there's a good chance that you'll be
   flamed.
   
   There is a linux-newbie list where, "no question is too stupid."
   Unfortunately, it seems that few experienced users read that list, and
   it has very low volume.
   
   There are numerous Linux related mailing lists at
   http://www.onelist.com/. Go to the categories page and choose "Linux."
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.10. Where Are Linux Legal Issues Discussed?

   On the linux-legal mailing list, of course. You can subscribe to it,
   as with many of the other Linux related lists, by sending a message
   with the word "help" in the body of the message to
   mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED].
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.11. Are the News Groups Archived Anywhere?

   The Usenet Linux news groups are archived at http://www.dejanews.com/,
   and http://altavista.digital.com/.
   
   http://www.reference.com/ is unavailable until further notice,
   apparently due to lack of support.
   
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/docs/linux-announce.archive contains
   archives of comp.os.linux.announce. These are mirrored from
   src.doc.ic.ac.uk/usenet/, which also archives comp.os.linux,
   comp.os.linux.development.apps, and comp.os.linux.development.system.
   
   There is an `easy to access' archive of comp.os.linux.announce on the
   World Wide Web at http://www.leo.org/archiv/unix/linux/ which supports
   searching and browsing.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
3.12. Where Can I Find Out About Security Related Issues?

   Look at http://www.rootshell.com/, which has information about
   security problems and software.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4. Compatibility with Other Operating Systems

4.1. Can Linux Share My Disk with DOS? OS/2? 386BSD? Win95?

   Yes. Linux uses the standard MS-DOS partitioning scheme, so it can
   share your disk with other operating systems. Note, however, that many
   other operating systems may not be exactly compatible. DOS's FDISK.EXE
   and FORMAT.EXE, for example, can overwrite data in a Linux partition,
   because they sometimes incorrectly use partition data from the
   partition's boot sector rather than the partition table.
   
   In order to prevent programs from doing this, it is a good idea to
   zero out--under Linux--the start of a partition you created, before
   you use MS-DOS--or whatever--to format it. Type:
   
   $ dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/hdXY bs=512 count=1

   where hdXY is the relevant partition; e.g., /dev/hda1 for the first
   partition of the first (IDE) disk.
   
   Linux can read and write the files on your DOS and OS/2 FAT partitions
   and floppies using either the DOS file system type built into the
   kernel or mtools. There is kernel support for the VFAT file system
   used by Windows 9x and Windows NT.
   
   There is reportedly a GPL'd OS/2 device driver that will read and
   write Linux ext2 partitions.
   
   For information about FAT32 partition support, see
   http://bmrc.berkeley.edu/people/chaffee/fat32.html.
   
   See, ("What Software Does Linux Support?") for details and status of
   the emulators for DOS, MS Windows, and System V programs.
   
   See also, "Can Linux access Amiga file systems? ", "Can Linux access
   Macintosh file systems? ", "Can Linux access BSD, SysV, etc., UFS? ",
   and "Can Linux access SMB file systems? "
   
   There are said to be NTFS drivers under development, which should
   support compression as a standard feature.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.2. How Do I Access Files on My DOS Partition Or Floppy?

   Use the DOS file system, type, for example:
   
$ mkdir /dos
$ mount -t msdos -o conv=text,umask=022,uid=100,gid=100 /dev/hda3 /dos

   If it's a floppy, don't forget to umount it before ejecting it!
   
   You can use the conv=text/binary/auto, umask=nnn, uid=nnn, and gid=nnn
   options to control the automatic line-ending conversion, permissions
   and ownerships of the files in the DOS file system as they appear
   under Linux. If you mount your DOS file system by putting it in your
   /etc/fstab, you can record the options (comma-separated) there,
   instead of defaults.
   
   Alternatively, you can use mtools, available in both binary and source
   form on the FTP sites. ("Where Can I Get Linux Material by FTP?")
   
   A kernel patch (known as the fd-patches) is available which allows
   floppies with nonstandard numbers of tracks and/or sectors to be used;
   this patch is included in the 1.1 alpha testing kernel series.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.3. Does Linux Support Compressed Ext2 file Systems?

   As of recently, it does. Information about them is located at
   http://www.netspace.net.au/~reiter/e2compr/.
   
   There is also a Web site for the e2compr patches The code is still
   experimental and consists of patches for the 2.0 and 2.1 kernels. For
   more information about the project, including the latest patches, and
   the address of the mailing list, look up the URL at
   http://debs.fuller.edu/e2compr/.
   
   [Roderich Schupp]
   
   zlibc is a program that allows existing applications to read
   compressed (GNU gzip'ed) files as if they were not compressed. Look at
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/libs/. The author is Alain Knaff.
   
   There is also a compressing block device driver, "DouBle," by
   Jean-Marc Verbavatz, which can provide on-the-fly disk compression in
   the kernel. The source-only distribution is located at
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/patches/diskdrives/. This driver
   compresses inodes and directory information as well as files, so any
   corruption of the file system is likely to be serious.
   
   There is also a package called tcx (Transparently Compressed
   Executables), which allows you to keep infrequently compressed
   executables compressed and only uncompress them temporarily when in
   use. It is located at ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/utils/compress/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.4. Can I Use My Stacked/DBLSPC/Etc. DOS Drive?

   Until recently, not very easily. You can access DOS 6.X volumes from
   the DOS emulator ("What software does Linux support? "), but it's
   harder than accessing a normal DOS volume via the DOS kernel option, a
   module, or mtools.
   
   There is a recently added package, dmsdos, that reads and writes
   compressed file systems like DoubleSpace/DriveSpace in MS-DOS 6.x and
   Win95, as well as Stacker versions 3 and 4. It is a loadable kernel
   module. Look at
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/filesystems/dosfs/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.5. Can I Access OS/2 HPFS Partitions from Linux?

   Yes, but Linux access to HPFS partitions is read-only. HPFS file
   system access is available as an option when compiling the kernel or
   as a module. See the Documentation/filesystems/hpfs.txt file in the
   kernel source distribution. ("How Do I Upgrade/Recompile My
   Kernel?") Then you can mount HPFS partition, using, for example:
   
$ mkdir /hpfs
$ mount -t hpfs /dev/hda5 /hpfs
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.6. Can Linux Access Amiga File Systems?

   The Linux kernel has support for the Amiga Fast File System (AFFS)
   version 1.3 and later, both as a compile-time option and as a module.
   The file Documentation/filesystems/affs.txt in the Linux kernel source
   distribution has more information.
   
   See ("How Do I Upgrade/Recompile My Kernel?")
   
   Linux supports AFFS hard-drive partitions only. Floppy access is not
   supported due to incompatibilities between Amiga floppy controllers
   and PC and workstation controllers. The AFFS driver can also mount
   disk partitions used by the Un*x Amiga Emulator, by Bernd Schmidt.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.7. Can Linux Access BSD, SysV, Etc. UFS?

   Recent kernels can mount (read only) the UFS file system used by
   System V; Coherent; Xenix; BSD; and derivatives like SunOS, FreeBSD,
   NetBSD, and NeXTStep. UFS support is available as a kernel
   compile-time option and a module.
   
   See, ("How Do I Upgrade/Recompile My Kernel?")
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.8. Can Linux Access SMB File Systems?

   Linux supports read/write access of Windows for Workgroups and Windows
   NT SMB volumes. See the file Documentation/filesystems/smbfs.txt of
   the Linux kernel source distribution, and ("How Do I
   Upgrade/Recompile My Kernel?")
   
   There is also a suite of programs called Samba which provide support
   for WfW networked file systems (provided they're for TCP/IP).
   Information is available in the README file at
   metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/network/samba/.
   
   The SMB Web site is http://www.samba.org/, and there is also a Web
   site at samba.anu.edu.au/samba/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.9. Can Linux Access Macintosh File Systems?

   There is a set of user-level programs that read and write the
   Macintosh Hierarchical File System (HFS). It is available at
   metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/utils/disk-management/.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.10. Can I Run Microsoft Windows Programs under Linux?

   WINE, a MS Windows emulator for Linux, is still not ready for general
   distribution. If you want to contribute to its development, look for
   the status reports in the comp.emulators.ms-windows.wine newsgroup.
   
   There is also a FAQ, compiled by P. David Gardner, at
   ftp://metalab.unc.edu/pub/Linux/docs/faqs/Wine-FAQ/.
   
   In the meantime, if you need to run MS Windows programs, the best
   bet--seriously--is to reboot. LILO, the Linux boot loader, can boot
   one of several operating systems from a menu. See the LILO
   documentation for details.
   
   Also, LOADLIN.EXE (a DOS program to load a Linux, or other OS, kernel
   is one way to make Linux co-exist with DOS. LOADLIN.EXE is
   particularly handy when you want to install Linux on a 3rd or 4th
   drive on a system (or when you're adding a SCSI drive to a system with
   an existing IDE).
   
   In these cases, it is common for LILO's boot loader to be unable to
   find or load the kernel on the "other" drive. So you just create a
   C:\LINUX directory (or whatever), put LOADLIN.EXE in it with a copy of
   your kernel, and use that.
   
   LOADLIN.EXE is a VCPI compliant program. Win95 will want to, "shutdown
   into DOS mode," to run it (as it would with certain other DOS
   protected-mode programs).
   
   Earlier versions of LOADLIN.EXE sometimes required a package called
   REALBIOS.COM, which required a boot procedure on an (almost) blank
   floppy to map the interrupt vectors (prior to the loading of any
   software drivers). (Current versions don't seem to ship with it, and
   don't seem to need it).
   
   [Jim Dennis]
     _________________________________________________________________
   
4.11. Where Can I Get Information about NFS Compatibility?

   This information is partly taken from Nicolai Langfeldt's excellent
   NFS HOWTO, and is current as of 10/1/1999.
   
   Most version 2.2.x kernels need a set of patches to install the knfsd
   subsystem, maintained by H.J. Lu, to communicate efficiently (if at
   all) with Sparc, IBM RS, and Alpha machines, and probably others. This
   package is actually a collection of patches to the kernel sources.

-- 

<a href="coffee://localhost/cream/">stop</a>   http://www.mainmatter.com/




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