Linux Server (Webmin)

For users who often study Linux, Linux is a mature and stable network operating system, but Linux gives everyone the impression that there are a lot of command characters and black display. Although the Linux desktop version has made great strides, the interface is already comparable to that of Windows.

However, for Linux servers, few administrators may be willing to install X-Windows programs. therefore, most Linux servers are based on character interfaces. for a system administrator who has just been familiar with Unix, it is impossible to correctly and efficiently complete various key system configurations.

Even a very experienced Unix Administrator is often troubled by the format of some complex configuration files. Therefore, having a GUI management tool on Unix has always been a good wish for the majority of Unix enthusiasts. Of course, the premise is that you do not need to install X-Windows programs. the emergence of Webmin has implemented our ideas. let's take a look at the powerful functions of this program.

Introduction:

Webmin is a Web-based Unix system management tool. The Administrator accesses various management functions of Webmin through a browser and completes corresponding management actions. Currently, Webmin supports the vast majority of Unix systems. In addition to various versions of linux, these systems include AIX, HPUX, Solaris, Unixware, Irix, And FreeBSD.

1. The machine environment is as follows:

 
 

  
  
[root@localhost ~]# uname -r  
  
  
2.6.18-028stab057.4  
  
  
[root@localhost ~]# cat /etc/redhat-release  
  
  
CentOS release 5 (Final)  
  
  
[root@localhost ~]# ip ad sh  
  
  
1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 16436 qdisc noqueue  
  
  
link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00  
  
  
inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo  
  
  
inet6 ::1/128 scope host  
  
  
valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever  
  
  
3: venet0: <BROADCAST,POINTOPOINT,NOARP,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc noqueue  
  
  
link/void  
  
  
inet 127.0.0.1/32 scope host venet0  
  
  
inet 172.20.51.154/32 brd 172.20.51.154 scope global venet0:0 
 
 

When installing webmin, the system must have Perl support. If ssl is enabled, openssl and perl-net-ssleasy must be supported.

Ii. Check module:

 
 

  
  
[root@localhost ~]# rpm -qa |grep perl  
  
  
mod_perl-2.0.2-6.1  
  
  
perl-Net-SSLeay-1.32-1.el5.rf  
  
  
perl-5.8.8-10  
  
  
perl-BSD-Resource-1.28-1.fc6.1  
  
  
perl-DBI-1.52-1.fc6  
  
  
perl-DBD-MySQL-3.0007-1.fc6  
  
  
perl-String-CRC32-1.4-2.fc6  
  
  
[root@localhost ~]# rpm -qa |grep openssl  
  
  
openssl-0.9.8b-8.3.el5 
 
 

Iii. Installation module:
[Root @ localhost ~] # Rpm-ivh perl-Net-SSLeay-1.32-1.el5.rf.i386.rpm
This rpm package can be downloaded at http://dag.wieers.com/rpm/packages/perl-net-ssleay/

Iv. Decompress webmin
[Root @ localhost ~] # Tar xvfz webmin-1.450.tar.gz

5. Install webmin

 
 

  
  
[root@localhost ~]# cd webmin-1.450  
  
  
[root@localhost webmin-1.450]# ./setup.sh  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
*            Welcome to the Webmin setup script, version 1.450        *  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Webmin is a web-based interface that allows Unix-like operating  
  
  
systems and common Unix services to be easily administered.  
  
  
Installing Webmin in /root/webmin-1.450 ...  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Webmin uses separate directories for configuration files and log files.  
  
  
Unless you want to run multiple versions of Webmin at the same time  
  
  
you can just accept the defaults.  
  
  
Config file directory [/etc/webmin]: /usr/local/webmin  
  
  
Log file directory [/var/webmin]: /usr/local/webmin/log  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Webmin is written entirely in Perl. Please enter the full path to the  
  
  
Perl 5 interpreter on your system.  
  
  
Full path to perl (default /usr/bin/perl):  
  
  
Testing Perl ...  
  
  
Perl seems to be installed ok  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Operating system name:    CentOS Linux  
  
  
Operating system version: 5  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Webmin uses its own password protected web server to provide access  
  
  
to the administration programs. The setup script needs to know :  
  
  
- What port to run the web server on. There must not be another  
  
  
web server already using this port.  
  
  
- The login name required to access the web server.  
  
  
- The password required to access the web server.  
  
  
- If the webserver should use SSL (if your system supports it).  
  
  
- Whether to start webmin at boot time.  
  
  
Web server port (default 10000):  
  
  
Login name (default admin): root  
  
  
Login password:  
  
  
Password again:  
  
  
Use SSL (y/n): y  
  
  
Start Webmin at boot time (y/n): y  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Creating web server config files..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Creating access control file..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Inserting path to perl into scripts..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Creating start and stop scripts..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Copying config files..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Configuring Webmin to start at boot time..  
  
  
Created init script /etc/rc.d/init.d/webmin  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Creating uninstall script /usr/local/webmin/uninstall.sh ..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Changing ownership and permissions ..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Running postinstall scripts ..  
  
  
..done  
  
  
Attempting to start Webmin mini web server..  
  
  
Starting Webmin server in /root/webmin-1.450  
  
  
..done  
  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
  
Webmin has been installed and started successfully. Use your web  
  
  
browser to go to  
  
  
https://localhost.localdomain:10000/  
  
  
and login with the name and password you entered previously.  
  
  
Because Webmin uses SSL for encryption only, the certificate  
  
  
it uses is not signed by one of the recognized CAs such as  
  
  
Verisign. When you first connect to the Webmin server, your  
  
  
browser will ask you if you want to accept the certificate  
  
  
presented, as it does not recognize the CA. Say yes.  
  
  
[root@localhost webmin-1.450]# 
 
 

Vi. Test Run
If you select the default setting and enable SSL during installation, you can enter https: // ip: 10000 directly. Here, the ip address is 172.20.51.154, therefore, enter https: // 172.20.51.154: 10000
Enter your username and password to try it out. The preceding section describes how to manage a Linux Server (Webmin) through images and texts.

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