1 The Solaris Distributed Computing Solution Shell A shell is an interface between the user and the kernel It acts as an interpreter or translator In other words, the shell accepts commands issued by you, interprets these commands, and executes the appropriate programs Three shells are available in the Solaris environment: q q Korn shell ($) – A superset of the Bourne shell It has many of the Bourne shell features plus added features such as aliasing and history This is the industry standard for normal system users q 1-12 Bourne shell ($) – The default shell for the Solaris computing environment The Bourne shell was developed for the AT&T System V.2 UNIX environment This shell does not have aliasing or history capabilities It is typically used by system administrators C shell (%) – A shell based on the C programming language Like the Korn shell, it has additional features such as aliasing and history C shell was developed by Sun’s Bill Joy for programmers, but is used with increasing frequency by normal system users Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D The Solaris Distributed Computing Solution Shell Note – Examples given in this course are primarily based on the Korn shell Hardware CPU Kernel Shell Figure 1-3 Solaris Environment Shells Solaris Computing Environment 1-13 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D The Solaris Distributed Computing Solution The File System The Solaris computing environment file structure is a hierarchy of directories, subdirectories, and files that are grouped together for a specific purpose q q 1-14 Directory – A location for other files and directories The Solaris file system, or directory structure, enables you to create files and directories accessed through a hierarchy of directories Subdirectory – Any directory below another directory For example, some of the subdirectories under the root (/) directory are/usr, /etc, and /kernel Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D The Solaris Distributed Computing Solution The File System root (/) opt dev etc export kernel var home usr genunix bin sbin lib user1 Figure 1-4 user2 user3 Common Solaris Subdirectories The file system is integrated with the kernel to provide an organizational structure to store your data The topmost directory is called the root directory It is the starting point of the file-system hierarchy The root directory (/) is required for the operating system to function and contains critical systems files (such as the kernel, called /kernel/genunix) The /usr directory contains executable commands, system administration utilities, and library routines The /opt directory contains Sun’s unbundled software applications The /etc directory contains system administration files The /export/home directory contains the user’s home directory Depending on how the system has been set up by the administrator, the home directories may instead be found in /home The /dev directory contains files which are pointers to device names Solaris Computing Environment 1-15 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D The Solaris Distributed Computing Solution The File System The file system organizes data in a hierarchical structure of directories, similar to the way a filing cabinet stores information Directory Folder File Figure 1-5 File System Organization Example Directories are like file drawers Subdirectories are similar to folders Files are like the individual pages of information contained in the folder The Solaris operating system contains many different kinds of files: q q Plain ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) documents q Applications (databases, word processing programs, and spreadsheets) q 1-16 Directories Executable programs Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Main Capabilities of the Operating System The Solaris computing environment was designed for: q  Multitasking – Enables the kernel to keep track of several processes simultaneously, which allows more than one tool or application to be used at a time A user can run a program (like a spreadsheet) and edit a document using a word processor at the same time q Multiuser capability – Enables more than one user to access the same system resources q Distributed processing – Enables the use of resources across the network Figure 1-6 Solaris Computing Environment Solaris Computing Environment 1-17 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Main Capabilities of the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) Sun Microsystems was the first company to use a windowing environment in conjunction with the UNIX operating system In 1993, a consortium of UNIX platform vendors was formed to develop an integrated, standard, and consistent graphical user interface desktop environment The contributors included Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Novell, and Sun Microsystems, along with many other companies and members of the OSF (Open Software Foundation), X/Open, and the X Consortium CDE is Motif-based and users of other UNIX and personal computer (PC) desktops should be comfortable using CDE; many of the features are common to other desktop environments 1-18 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Main Capabilities of the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) The Common Desktop Environment (CDE) q q  Is a graphical user interface (GUI) between the user and the operating system Provides built-in menus for users to select and run utilities and programs without using Solaris environment commands The Solaris computing environment provides over 300 utility programs and tools q q  Enables users to control multiple documents or applications on the screen at the same time Controls activities in windows using both the mouse and the keyboard The icons pictured above represent some of the major programs and tools available with CDE CDE is discussed in greater detail in subsequent modules Solaris Computing Environment 1-19 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Exercise: Using the Solaris Computing Environment Exercise objective – This exercise helps you review the basics of the computing environment Tasks Answer the following questions: Identify the four main components of a computer _ _ _ _ Describe the three main functions of the kernel In the blank spaces, write one of these three terms: kernel, shell, or file system w w The _ manages and allocates resources among users w The _ provides command interpretation w The _ organizes and stores data in a hierarchical structure w The _ performs memory management w The _ components are files and directories w 1-20 The _ represents the user interface, which translates requests into actions The _ controls disks, tapes, printers, terminals, communication lines, and other devices Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Exercise: Using the Solaris Computing Environment Tasks In the blank spaces, write one of these three capabilities: multitasking, multiuser, or distributed processing w The _ capability enables users to share system resources w The _ capability is the ability to perform several processes simultaneously w The _ capability is the ability to use resources across a network Workshop Labs Use what you have learned so far in this course to work through the following: A new UNIX environment user calls the system administrator with a problem Yesterday, the user was working on a project when there was a power outage When the system recovered, the work the user had done was no longer available What happened? A user is working at a Sun workstation that has no hard disk What options might this user have for saving work that is done during the day? Solaris Computing Environment 1-21 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Changing Your Password Example $ passwd passwd: Changing password for user2 Enter login password: New password: Re-enter new passwd: $  If the users are unable to change their passwords due to cred table errors, use the following command on the Network Information Service Plus (NIS+) server: newkey -u username -s nisplus This puts the user login password in the NIS+ cred table 2-16 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D The CDE Workspaces When you log in to a CDE session, four workspaces are available to you by default Each workspace is equivalent to a desktop environment You can independently set the characteristics of each workspace and add more workspaces (desktops) Alternate among your workspaces by left clicking on the appropriate workspace button or by using the keyboard metakey (diamond) combined with the left or right arrow keys In the illustration above, workspace One is selected Note – In some locations the function of the metakey differs It may be necessary to use the Alt key or space bar with the arrow keys to perform the function described here Accessing Your System 2-17 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Overlapping Windows When an icon is selected from the Front Panel, a window will open on your workspace screen Normally, windows on the workspace will overlap each other, with the most recently opened window overlapping previously opened windows 2-18 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Lowering a Window To choose the window menu, position the mouse pointer on the window title area and press the right mouse button One option in the resulting menu is to lower the window This option will force the window to the back of the overlapping windows on your screen display Window title area The alternative keyboard action is to hold down the Alt key and press function key (Alt-F3) Note – There is no alternative to raising a window to the front of a set of overlapping windows When selected, a window automatically comes to the front of any overlapping windows in a CDE display The Front key on the keyboard will also bring a window to the front of the display Accessing Your System 2-19 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Moving a Window To move a window, you can either of the following: q 2-20 Choose the Move option from the window menu The mouse pointer will change from an arrow to a small cross Drag the cross pointer to move the window As the cross moves, an outline of the window will be displayed on your screen When the outline is in the desired position, click once with the left mouse button and the window will move there Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Moving a Window q Place the mouse pointer over the window’s title area, hold down the left mouse button, and drag the window to its new screen location When the window is being moved, a pair of numbers will be displayed on your screen These are the X and Y axis values which show the new position of the window on your workspace display The number on the left (385) represents the horizontal (X) position The number on the right (231) represents the vertical (Y) position These numbers are useful to developers and programmers who want to have a window appear in the same position every time an application is invoked Accessing Your System 2-21 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Minimizing a Window At the top right side of the window is a Minimize button Clicking on this button will convert the window into an icon Single left click Double-click left button The icon of a minimized window will be placed at the left edge of the workspace display by default However, it can be moved to any desktop location by dragging the icon to the desired position 2-22 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Minimizing a Window Only one click of the left button is required to change a window to an icon To change the icon back into a window, you must double-click on the icon with the left button Clicking once on an icon will invoke the window menu Selecting Restore will then change the icon back into a window Accessing Your System 2-23 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Maximizing a Window To make a window fill the entire workspace display, you must left click on the box button at the top right side of the window To reduce the full-display window to its previous window size, select the box button again The box area represents the workspace display area 2-24 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Maximizing a Window When the window is reduced to its previous size, it is placed in its previous display position on the workspace Note – When a window occupies all of the workspace display, no other windows can be seen (as they are covered up) To switch to another window, you must either lower the full-display window or reduce it to its previous size You can use the F9 and F10 function keys with the Alt key, as keyboard alternatives to using the mouse The Minimize and Maximize buttons are shown along with the window menu equivalents in the above figure Accessing Your System 2-25 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Closing a Window To close a window, double-click with the left mouse button in the upper left corner of the window A window can also be closed by single clicking with the left mouse button in the upper left corner and then selecting the Close option Double-click left button Single left click 2-26 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Managing Windows Closing a Window The keyboard alternative to close a window is Alt+F4 Most applications will request that you confirm the closure of a window that contains unsaved data Accessing Your System 2-27 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Leaving the CDE Session Logging out prevents unauthorized users from gaining access to your files Using the Exit Button The Exit Button, on the Front Panel, is used to log out from your CDE session By default, you will be asked to confirm that you want to log out Confirmation is done by clicking on the OK button or by pressing Return when the OK button is highlighted 2-28 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Leaving the CDE Session Using the Exit Button The current CDE session will be saved automatically so that you can return to the same workspace windows at your next CDE session However, any data contained in the current set of open windows will be lost You must therefore save all data before exiting from your CDE session It is possible to change the default activities of the Exit button so that confirmation is not required This is discussed in a later module Single left click Accessing Your System 2-29 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Notes 2-30 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D ... discussed in this module: q 2- 2 Solaris Common Desktop Environment: User’s Guide, “Starting a Desktop Session,” Part Number 8 02- 6485 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All... Accessing Your System 2- 29 Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems, Inc All Rights Reserved Enterprise Services August 1999, Revision D Notes 2- 30 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun Microsystems,... Solaris UNIX environment set it apart from a typical standalone PC environment? What would some of the benefits of these features be to a company? 1 -26 Fundamentals of Solaris Copyright 1999 Sun