 Books:
A User's Report
Elizabeth Zinkann
This month's reviews cover a wider range of topics than usual.
From FreeBSD to intrusion sluething to SQL to mod_perl to
a visual UNIX book, the books for this column include: The FreeBSD
Corporate Networker's Guide by Ted Mittelstaedt (Addison-Wesley),
Intrusion Signatures and Analysis by Stephen Northcutt, Mark
Cooper, Matt Fearnow, and Karen Frederick (New Riders Press); SQL
In A Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference by Kevin Kline with
Daniel Kline (O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.); mod_perl
Pocket Reference by Andrew Ford (O'Reilly & Associates,
Inc.); UNIX: Your Visual Blueprint to the Universe of UNIX
by Michael Bellomo (maranGraphics and Hungry Minds Books, formerly
IDG Books).
The FreeBSD Corporate Networker's Guide
Ted Mittelstaedt
Addison-Wesley
ISBN 0-201-70481-1
401 Pages
$49.95
CD-ROM Included
http://www.awl.com/cseng
This impressive and practical guide to FreeBSD illustrates its
advantages and capabilities and also demonstrates how to use this
reliable and popular system. Mittelstaedt explores the FreeBSD/Windows
co-existence, the Internet protocol perspective, and the FreeBSD
installation and configuration options. He begins with FreeBSD Serving
Windows Networks, which examines the functions of FreeBSD and Windows
within the same system. Following the introduction, the author discusses
DHCP, DNS, and TCP/IP on the Corporate LAN, exploring the TCP/IP
protocol suite's varied services, setup for different platforms,
and application programs. The next chapters describe FreeBSD Installation
and FreeBSD System Administration. (The author mentions an interesting
catch-22 in the Preface:
"You need to know how FreeBSD works before you can install
it properly, but you need an installed FreeBSD system before you
can learn how it works." [Preface, Page xvi]
In Internet Connectivity and Corporate WANs, the author analyzes
Internet Service Providers, Security and Firewalling, and Proxy
Serving and IP Address Translation. The succeeding chapters detail
Web Serving, Fileserving with Samba, Printserving, and Electronic
Mail. The final chapter presents an unusual assortment of topics:
FreeBSD history, its relationship to Linux, FreeBSD Advocacy, The
Microsoft Antitrust Trial, and Some Final Words About Open Source
Software. The enclosed CD-ROM contains the base FreeBSD 4.2 operating
system for Intel architecture plus Xfree86 3.3.6 for FreeBSD, as
well as the most popular third-party packages for FreeBSD.
The FreeBSD Corporate Networker's Guide is a remarkable
book in several ways. The topic discusses a seldom-addressed system
and the details of its networking capabilities. The author's
approach combines a logical and understandable description of the
processes, protocols, and design issues involved. Mittelstaedt also
contributes an historical perspective that presents an unique perspective
to the system's development. The result is an outstanding book
that every systems administrator, open source enthusiast, or knowledgeable
user will want to read.
Intrusion Signatures and Analysis
Stephen Northcutt, Mark Cooper, Matt Fearnow, and Karen Frederick
New Riders Press
ISBN 0-7357-1063-5
408 Pages
$39.99
http://www.newriders.com/
Intrusion methods and their accompanying traces of invasion vary.
The analyst's job is to recognize the unnoticeable and to reconstruct
the events. Intrusion Signatures and Analysis begins with
the analogy of a tracker, as portrayed through the myth and magic
of Hollywood westerns. The science of intrusion detection utilizes
various tools, each has its own way of recording events and retaining
evidence. You have to recognize what tools you have, and where to
look. Northcutt, Cooper, Fearnow, and Frederick demonstrate how
to become an effective intrusion analyst. They present tools, threats,
and responses through the following chapters: Reading Log Files,
Introduction to the Practicals, The Most Critical Internet Security
Threats (Parts 1 and 2), Non-Malicious Traffic, Perimeter Logs,
Reactions and Responses, Network Mapping, Scans That Probe Systems
for Information, Denial of Service-Resource Starvation, Denial of
Service-Bandwidth Consumption, Trojans, Exploits, Buffer Overflows
with Content, Fragmentation, False Positives, and Out-of-Spec Packets.
The Appendix provides answers to questions posed throughout the
text. Many of the topics and some of the material are closely related
to the SANS Institute Global Incident Analysis Center (GIAC) and
its certification program for a Certified Intrusion Analyst (GCIA).
Further information can be found at:
http://www.sans.org/giac.htm
This book encompasses security threats, and their respective solutions,
attack descriptions, evidence, responses, and defense recommendations.
An intruder may leave traces and evidence in a log file or through
a pattern change, i.e. an increase in network traffic at a specific
time. The analyst's task is to find whatever traces there may
be and identify them. Although the signatures will differ with the
various types of attacks, the systems involved, and the detection
tools employed, the authors demonstrate how to analyze and recognize
an intrusion, and illustrate the type of disruption to examine. Northcutt,
Cooper, Fearnow, and Frederick have created a valuable resource for
effective network protection, and they also define and detail an intrusion
analysis methodology. Intrusion Signatures and Analysis provides
administrators with an extraordinary defense against intrusion and
a well-written and unparalleled examination of detection.
SQL In A Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference
Kevin Kline with Daniel Kline
O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.
ISBN 1-56592-744-3
214 Pages
$29.95
http://www.oreilly.com
Databases can offer efficient ways to organize data, from your
Christmas card list to complete inventories including minute and
individualized descriptions. However, they can also become disorganized
nightmares without proper maintenance and query capabilities. Queries
provide a way to extract data from a database, preferably the data
and form that you need at the time. One of the most popular query
languages is SQL (Structured Query Language), which can be used
with a variety of database programs, including PostgresSQL, Oracle,
MySQL, and Microsoft's SQL Server. Its commands and structures
are relatively simple, depending on the complexity of the database
and the varying syntax.
Kevin and Daniel Kline have summarized the syntaxes and presented
an easy-to-use, quick reference guide. In this latest nutshell book
(at least as I write this), the authors address SQL Vendor Implementations,
and Some History, Foundational Concepts, SQL Statements Command
Reference, SQL Functions, and Unimplemented SQL99 Commands. The
Appendix features SQL99 and Vendor-Specific Keywords. The first
chapter surveys the concepts and implementations of relational databases
and the relational database model. Foundational Concepts, the second
chapter, examines the SQL99 relational database model, the individual
database datatypes, processing nulls, and some general syntax rules,
keywords, and identifiers. In the following chapter, SQL Statements
Command Reference, the authors provide the SQL commands and illustrate
any differences in syntax among PostgresSQL, Oracle, MySQL, and
Microsoft's SQL Server. This is the center of the book and
the chapter that anyone doing database programming needs. Kline
and Kline display tables showing keyword search patterns, limitations
of the searches, comparisons, operators, and little known and sometimes
undocumented facts about the commands. Functions are detailed in
Chapter 4, SQL Functions, and the SQL99 Commands that may be implemented
in the future.
This is an important resource for anyone using SQL queries in
database programming. It includes all of the important commands
and any differences among the PostgresSQL, Oracle, MySQL, and Microsoft's
SQL Server programs. Additionally, the authors provide warnings
and notes, describing problems or other facts to be considered before
utilizing a command, query, or command option. I wish I would have
had this book when I was using SQL to maintain and secure data from
large databases. Everyone involved with creating, maintaining, or
querying databases will value this book and wonder how they ever
managed without it!
mod_perl Pocket Reference
Andrew Ford
O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.
ISBN 0-596-00047-2
82 Pages
$9.95
http://www.oreilly.com
Systems administrators are well acquainted with both Apache and
Perl on a variety of platforms. Apache is the preferred Web server,
and Perl provides accompanying Web scripting capabilities. The Apache
mod_perl module allows programmers to implement and run Perl
scripts within the Apache environment. The mod_perl fundamental
configuration is relatively straightforward; however, finding a
particular directive, handler function, or method quickly and easily
can become a challenge. The mod_perl Pocket Reference by
Andrew Ford features an efficient and valuable organization of frequently
referenced functions, methods, and directives in a compact and portable
volume. Ford addresses essential topic in the following order: What
Is mod_perl?, Setting Up mod_perl, Migrating CGI Scripts
to mod_perl, Embedding Perl in HTML Documents, Programming
mod_perl, The mod_perl API, mod_perl Configuration
Directives, Apache/Perl Modules, CGI Environment Variables, HTTP
Status Codes, and HTTP Header Fields. He also includes two indexes:
an Index of Modules and an Index of Methods.
This is an excellent and easily referenced guide to mod_perl.
Ford provides essential information about mod_perl in a pragmatic
and effective mini-nutshell. This reference about the popular Apache
extension will furnish a superb supplement to any knowledgeable
Apache text. Administrators and Perl programmers will appreciate
Ford's mod_perl Pocket Reference and use it often.
UNIX: Your Visual Blueprint to the Universe of UNIX
Michael Bellomo
MaranGraphics Hungry Minds Books (formerly IDG Books)
ISBN 0-7645-3480-7
335 Pages
$24.99
CD-ROM Included
http://www.hungryminds.com
http://www.maran.com
During my computer science college days, one of my instructors
emphasized that everyone thought in pictures. At the time, I wasn't
totally convinced. However, the more I explain computer concepts
and procedures, the more I recognize and appreciate the value of
an applicable image. The newest series by MaranGraphics and Hungry
Minds, Visual Blueprints, is written for experienced users, network
professionals, and developers who prefer a visual approach. Michael
Bellomo, an experienced visual author (Master Red Hat Visually,
Linux Administration for Dummies, and both the Visual Blueprints
books on Linux and UNIX) demonstrates UNIX concepts and processes
through descriptions, illustrations, screen shots, and examples.
He begins his UNIX tour with Logging Into UNIX and The UNIX Desktop
Environment. Some of the topics in these two chapters feature the
Graphical User Interface (GUI), logging in and out of UNIX, shutdown
procedures, and desktop customization. The following chapters discuss
Working With Files And Directories, Working With UNIX File Permissions,
Creating Text Files, Working With Text Files, Working With Processes,
and Working With Shells And System Variables. The succeeding chapters
address administration issues through: Basic Administration, Administrating
Users and Groups, Working With Hard Disks and Printers, Network
Connectivity, Using Netscape, E-mail In The Terminal, Working With
Archived Files, Troubleshooting, Accessories, and Advanced System
Administration. The Appendices contain A) vi Editor Commands and
B) What's On The CD-ROM. The accompanying CD-ROM provides:
Diskcheck, Logwatch, and Tripwire troubleshooting and monitoring
programs, all of the code and examples from the book, and a searchable
e-version of the book.
The format of the topic entries highlights a set of progressive
screen displays, a step-by-step procedure for the specific task,
a clear and informative explanation of the process, and either an
Extra or an Apply It section. Extras provide additional information
about the topic, either in a note or question and answer form; Apply
Its present demonstrations or exercises that the reader can try
on his or her own system. Throughout the book, Bellomo addresses
a wide variety of topics from setting permissions, automating tasks
using cron, e-mailing through Netscape or mailx, fixing device problems
on reboot, setting calendar dates, and archiving and compression
utilities, to mention a few of the entries. UNIX: Your Visual
Blueprint to the Universe of UNIX by Michael Bellomo superbly
illustrates how UNIX works for the computer user who wants to learn
more about the UNIX system and its administration.
Elizabeth Zinkann has been involved in the UNIX and C environment
for the past 15 years. She is currently a UNIX and C consultant,
and one of her specialties is UNIX education. In addition to her
computer science background, she also has a degree in English. Her
writing has also appeared in Linux Magazine, Performance
Computing, and Network Administrator. Elizabeth can be
reached at: elizabeth@equillink.com.
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