As a Linux system (LTSP computer lab) administrator, Your jobs job is to "look after" the smooth operation of the computer lab. This will require you to either use graphical applications (programs) to administer the computer lab, or open a command prompt (called a "shell" in Linux terminology) to issue Linux operating system commands.

A wise Unix/Linux user once mentioned, "'''With Linux, learn it once, know it always'''". What is really means is In other words, if you take the time to learn how to do everything in Linux by issuing commands and understanding its understand the system/setup files and structure, you can perform all of the tasks <u>with </u> or <u>without </u> graphical administration programs. Therefore, people People that were working on UNIX systems in the 70's can still operate new work on Linux systems (and not have to pay $10.000 every 4 years to maintain their designation, or learn new graphical administration tools)...cool!

Knowing which type of programming language to use when automating a task is based upon a programmers knowledge base and experience of . In other word, knowing which is the "'''best tool for the task'''". Should the program is be '''compiled ''' (like C, C++, etc) for efficient operation (if a lot of people run same program within a compressed period of time), or should ? Should program be '''interpreted ''' (eg. Shell Script, Perl Script, JavaScript) for ease of programming? Many factors are involved here, but '''shell scripting is definately definitely an easy way for the adminstrator administrator to automate rountine routine tasks'''... I will only be discussing Shell Scripting in the WIKI, although, you can access by webpage to learn other programming languages (like C - Course: IPC144)...

Many of the shell scripts on the Internet are "open-source" so instead of trying to "re-invent the wheel", you may be able to download, use, and /or modify the contents to meet your own needs...

These sample shell scripts will grow over time... Note that some of the shell scripts using the "'''zenity'''" Linux command (utility) to provide graphical input/output boxes that can be used when you run shell scripts... Therefore, shell scripting isn't as "old-fashioned" as you would suspect...  Note: In order to execute, these files need to have execute permissions. You can issue the Linux command '''chmod 755 filename''' to provide execute permissions.

During semestersWhile the school year was in process, I would visit the high-school once a week to check on the status of the computer lab. Sometimes, I would have to replace stolen mice, or reconnect Ethernet cables. etc...

OnceOne day, the high-school teacher informed me that the computer system was running slower than normal. I asked the teacher when was the last time that the system has been rebooted. The teacher indicated that the system had been up for at least 5 weeks. It is important to note that a server should be rebooted on a periodic basis, since lost running programs (referred to as the computer system's performance may be affected by "'''zombie processes'''"(programs that were completed, but still running as a process) by occur, or "'''memory leaks'''" (unallocated memory due to bad programmingerrors) may affect the computer server's performance. I instructed recommended that the instructor teacher reboot the server once or twice a week, and ... that solved the problem...

By the way, I suspect one reason for the cause of the problem occured as a result of was that students were powering-off the their terminals (thin clients) instead of properly logging outtheir accounts...

Problems like this such as these may occur from time-to-time, and a Linux administrator will be called upon to provide a solution. Let's take the previous problem and add an additional element. Let's assume that the high-school is used throughout the day and night (i.e. night-school). Let's assume that the only time that the system can be rebooted is between midnight and 7 am. Obviously, the high-school teacher (nor myself) want to say up twice a week after midnight to reboot the system. Therefore, it would make sense to have this shell script (run as the "administrator") automatically for a specificied date and time...