htmldocs/using_samba/ch00.html

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<h1 class="head0">Preface</h1>


<p>You are reading a book about Samba, a software suite that networks
Windows, Unix, and other operating systems using
Windows' native networking protocol. Samba allows
Unix servers to offer Windows networking services by matching the
filesystem and networking models of Unix to those of Windows. Samba
acts as a bridge between the two systems, connecting the
corresponding parts of their architectures and providing a
translation wherever necessary.</p>

<p>Bridging the gap between systems as dissimilar as Windows and Unix is
a complex task, which Samba handles surprisingly well. To be a good
Samba administrator, your abilities must parallel
Samba's. For starters, you need to know basic Unix
system and network administration and have a good understanding of
Windows filesystems and networking fundamentals. In addition, you
need to learn how Samba fills in the &quot;gray
area&quot; between Unix and Windows. Once you know how
everything fits together, you'll find it easy to
configure a Samba server to provide your network with reliable and
high-performance computational resources.</p>

<p>Our job is to make all of that easier for you. We do this by starting
out with a quick and yet comprehensive tour of Windows networking in
<a href="ch01.html">Chapter 1</a>, followed by tutorially-oriented
<a href="ch02.html">Chapter 2</a> and <a href="ch03.html">Chapter 3</a>, which tell you how to set up a minimal Samba server
and configure Windows clients to work with it. Most likely, you will
be surprised how quickly you can complete the required tasks.</p>

<p>We believe that a hands-on approach is the most effective, and you
can use the Samba server you build in <a href="ch02.html">Chapter 2</a> and <a href="ch03.html">Chapter 3</a> as a test
system for trying out examples that we show and describe throughout
the book. You can jump around from chapter to chapter if you like,
but if you continue sequentially from <a href="ch04.html">Chapter 4</a>
onward, by the time you finish the book you will have a
well-configured production Samba server ready for use. All you have
to do is add the appropriate support for your intended purpose as we
explain how to use each feature.</p>


<div class="sect1"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-1"/>

<h2 class="head1">Audience for This Book</h2>

<p>This book is primarily intended for Unix administrators who need to
support Windows clients on their network, as well as anyone who needs
to access the resources of a Windows network environment from a Unix
client. While we assume you are familiar with basic Unix system
administration, we do <em class="emphasis">not</em> assume you are a
networking expert. We do our best along the way to help out with
unusual definitions and terms.</p>

<p>Furthermore, we don't assume that you are an expert
in Microsoft Windows. We carefully explain all the essential concepts
related to Windows networking, and we go through the Windows side of
the installation task in considerable detail, providing examples for
both Windows 95/98/Me and Windows NT/2000/XP, which are significantly
different. For the Unix side, we give examples that work with common
Unix operating systems, such as Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, and Mac OS
X.</p>


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<div class="sect1"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-2"/>

<h2 class="head1">Organization</h2>

<p>Here is a quick description of each chapter:</p>

<p><a href="ch01.html">Chapter 1</a> introduces Samba and its capabilities,
then describes the most important concepts of NetBIOS and SMB/CIFS
networking. Finally, we give you a quick overview of the daemons and
utilities that are included in the Samba distribution.</p>

<p><a href="ch02.html">Chapter 2</a> covers configuring, compiling,
installing, setting up, and testing the Samba server on a Unix
platform.</p>

<p><a href="ch03.html">Chapter 3</a> explains how to configure Microsoft
Windows 95/98/Me and Windows NT/2000/XP clients to participate in an
SMB network.</p>

<p><a href="ch04.html">Chapter 4</a> explains the ins and outs of Windows NT
domains and how to configure Samba to work in a network set up as a
Windows NT domain.</p>

<p><a href="ch05.html">Chapter 5</a> describes methods for accessing SMB
shares on the network from Unix client systems.</p>

<p><a href="ch06.html">Chapter 6</a>
gets you up to speed on the structure of the Samba
configuration file and shows you how to take control of file-sharing
services.</p>

<p><a href="ch07.html">Chapter 7</a> introduces name resolution, which is
used to convert NetBIOS computer names into IP addresses, and
browsing, the method used in SMB networking to find what resources
are being shared on the network.</p>

<p><a href="ch08.html">Chapter 8</a> continues the discussion of file-sharing options, and
covers more advanced functions such as permissions, access control
lists, opportunistic locks, and setting up a Distributed filesystem
tree.</p>

<p><a href="ch09.html">Chapter 9</a> discusses how
to set up Samba users, introduces you to Samba security, and shows
you how to work with encrypted and nonencrypted passwords.</p>

<p><a href="ch10.html">Chapter 10</a>
discusses printer setup for sharing Unix printers on the
SMB network, and allowing Unix workstations to access SMB shared
printers.</p>

<p><a href="ch11.html">Chapter 11</a>
bundles several miscellaneous topics associated with
Samba, such as configuring Samba shares for programmers and
internationalization issues.</p>

<p><a href="ch12.html">Chapter 12</a> details what to do if
you have problems installing Samba. This comparatively
large chapter is packed with troubleshooting hints and strategies for
identifying what is going wrong.</p>

<p><a href="appa.html">Appendix A</a> provides working examples of
<em class="filename">smb.conf</em> files for use in configuring Samba for
its more common applications. You can easily modify the examples for
use in a wide variety of circumstances.</p>

<p><a href="appb.html">Appendix B</a> covers each option that can be used in
the Samba configuration file.</p>

<p><a href="appc.html">Appendix C</a> is a quick reference that covers each
server daemon and tool that make up the Samba suite.</p>

<p><a href="appd.html">Appendix D</a> explains how to download the latest
development version of the Samba source code using CVS.</p>

<p><a href="appe.html">Appendix E</a> documents each option that can be used
with the <em class="emphasis">configure</em> command before compiling the
Samba source code.</p>

<p><a href="appf.html">Appendix F</a> includes directions for sharing files
and printers with the Server edition of Mac OS X.</p>

<p><a href="appg.html">Appendix G</a> is the copyright license under which
this book is published.</p>


</div>


<div class="sect1"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-3"/>

<h2 class="head1">Conventions Used in This Book</h2>

<p>The following font conventions are followed throughout this book:</p>

<dl>
<dt><b>Italic </b></dt>
<dd>
<p>Filenames, file extensions, URLs, executable files, command options,
and emphasis.</p>
</dd>


<dt><b><tt class="literal">Constant</tt> <tt class="literal">width</tt> </b></dt>
<dd>
<p>Samba configuration options, computer names, user and group names,
hostnames, domain names, other code that appears in the text, and
command-line information that should be typed verbatim on the screen.</p>
</dd>


<dt><b><tt class="userinput"><b>Constant width bold</b></tt> </b></dt>
<dd>
<p>Commands that are entered by the user and new configuration options
that we wish to bring to the attention of the reader.</p>
</dd>


<dt><b><em class="replaceable">Constant width italic</em></b></dt>
<dd>
<p>Replaceable content in code and command-line information.</p>
</dd>

</dl>

<a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-NOTE-82"/><blockquote class="note"><h4 class="objtitle">TIP</h4>
<p>This designates a note, which is an important aside to the nearby
text.</p>
</blockquote>
<a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-NOTE-83"/><blockquote class="note"><h4 class="objtitle">WARNING</h4>
<p>This designates a warning related to the nearby text.</p>
</blockquote>


</div>


<div class="sect1"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-4"/>

<h2 class="head1">How to Contact Us</h2>

<p>We have tested and verified the information in this book to the best
of our ability, but you might find that features have changed (or
even that we have made mistakes!). Please let us know about any
errors you find, as well as your suggestions for future editions, by
writing to:</p>

<blockquote class="simplelist">

<p>O'Reilly &amp; Associates, Inc.</p>

<p>1005 Gravenstein Highway North</p>

<p>Sebastopol, CA 95472</p>

<p>(800) 998-9938 (in the United States or Canada)</p>

<p>(707) 829-0515 (international/local)</p>

<p>(707) 829-0104 (fax)</p>

</blockquote>

<p>To ask technical questions or comment on the book, send email to:</p>

<blockquote class="simplelist">

<p><em class="email">bookquestions@oreilly.com</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>We have a web page for this book where we list examples and any plans
for future editions. You can access this information at:</p>

<blockquote class="simplelist">

<p><a href="http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/samba2">http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/samba2</a></p>

</blockquote>

<p>You can also contact Jay Ts, the lead author of this edition, through
his web site at:</p>

<blockquote class="simplelist">

<p><a href="http://www.jayts.com">http://www.jayts.com</a></p>

</blockquote>


</div>


<div class="sect1"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-5"/>

<h2 class="head1">Acknowledgments</h2>

<p>We thank Leon Towns-von Stauber for thoroughly researching the use of
Samba on Mac OS X and writing material that appears in <a href="ch02.html">Chapter 2</a>, <a href="ch05.html">Chapter 5</a>, and <a href="ch10.html">Chapter 10</a>, as well as the entire <a href="appf.html">Appendix F</a>. We also thank our technical reviewers Sam
Johnston, Matthew Temple, Marty Leisner, and Don McCall.</p>


<div class="sect2"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-5.1"/>

<h3 class="head2">Jay Ts</h3>

<p>This book would have been extremely difficult to write if it
hadn't been for the copy of VMware Workstation
graciously provided by VMware, Inc. I want to thank Rik Farrow for
his clarifying comments on security topics related to Samba and
Windows, and both him and Rose Moon for their supportive friendship.
Thanks also go to Mark Watson for his encouragement and advice on the
topic of authoring technical books. Additionally,
I'd like to express my appreciation to Andy Oram at
O'Reilly for being a supportive, friendly, and
easygoing editor, and for offering me terms that I could say yes
to&mdash;something that a few other publishers
didn't even approach. SuSE, Inc. generously provided
a copy of SuSE Linux 8.1 Professional.</p>


</div>


<div class="sect2"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-5.2"/>

<h3 class="head2">Robert Eckstein</h3>

<p>I'd first like to recognize Dave Collier-Brown and
Peter Kelly for all their help in the creation of this book.
I'd also like to thank each technical reviewer who
helped polish this book into shape on such short notice: Matthew
Temple, Jeremy Allison, and of course Andrew Tridgell. Andrew and
Jeremy deserve special recognition, not only for creating such a
wonderful product, but also for providing a tireless amount of
support in the final phase of this book&mdash;hats off to you, guys!
A warm hug goes out to my wife Michelle, who once again put up with a
husband loaded down with too much caffeine and a tight schedule.
Thanks to Dave Sifry and the people at LinuxCare, San Francisco, for
hosting me on such short notice for Andrew
Tridgell's visit. And finally, a huge amount of
thanks to our editor, Andy Oram, who (very) patiently helped guide
this book through its many stages until we got it right.</p>


</div>


<div class="sect2"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-5.3"/>

<h3 class="head2">David Collier-Brown</h3>

<p>I'd particularly like to thank Joyce, who put up
with me during the sometimes exciting development of the book. My
thanks to Andy Oram, who was kind enough to provide the criticism
that allowed me to contribute; the crew at ACE (Opcom) who humored
the obvious madman in their midst; and Ian MacMillan, who voluntarily
translated several of my early drafts from nerd to English. I would
also like to give special thanks to Perry Donham, Drew Sullivan, and
Jerry DeRoo for starting and sustaining this mad project. Finally,
I'd like to thank Bob Eckstein for a final,
sustained, and professional effort that lifted the whole book up to
the level that Andy needed.</p>


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<div class="sect2"><a name="samba2-PREFACE-2-SECT-5.4"/>

<h3 class="head2">All</h3>

<p>We would especially like to give thanks to Perry Donham and Peter
Kelly for helping mold the first draft of this book. Although Perry
was unable to contribute to subsequent drafts, his material was
essential to getting this book off on the right foot. In addition,
some of the browsing material came from text originally written by
Dan Shearer for O'Reilly.</p>


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<hr/><h4 class="head4"><a href="toc.html">TOC</a></h4>
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