******************************************************************

                   The Sys Admin Newsletter
                          News for the
          January 2003 issue of Sys Admin Magazine

******************************************************************
Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday season from everyone at 
Sys Admin magazine.
******************************************************************
                            CONTENTS

1. Note from the Editor
2. Highlights of the January issue 
3. Call for Papers
4. Subscription Information
------------------------------------------------------------------
Sponsored by PROGNOSIS from Integrated Research
============================================================
Manage UNIX, Linux and Windows servers with one product 

PROGNOSIS from Integrated Research gives you the power to 
manage any server or application, from any point on your 
network - seamlessly across UNIX, Linux and Windows. It's 
ideal for larger environments - from 25 servers to thousands 
- yet it doesn't cost a fortune and it won't take you a 
lifetime to implement.

Check it out:
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4fa2sokSb/
------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:

Just in time for holiday shopping, we've released Version 8 of the 
Sys Admin CD-ROM, which includes complete articles and code from 1992 
through the December issue of 2002. It also includes archives of The 
Perl Journal from 1996 through 2002. As always, we offer both HTML 
and ASCII versions of the articles on the CD. The CD can be ordered 
online through the Sys Admin Web site for $49.95 or $24.95 for 
registered owners of the previous version.  

Sincerely,
Amber Ankerholz
Editor in Chief

------------------------------------------------------------------
Need Performance & Availability Monitoring?

up.time is an easy-to-install, easy-to-use, low cost, browser-based,
yet powerful realtime server performance and availability monitoring 
and
graphical reporting tool, which enables rapid: Historical Trend 
Analysis,
Granular Root-Cause Analysis and Capacity Planning.

Buy or Rent up.time from $79/month per server

Visit:
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4ga2sokSb/ 
for your FREE  evaluation copy.
------------------------------------------------------------------

	The January 2003 issue contains:

Searching in Unusual Ways and Places by Æleen Frisch
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4ha2sokSb/  
In contexts where grep can't be applied easily, Frisch turns to other 
tools (some open source, others vendor provided). This article looks 
at some of them.

Solstice DiskSuite Soft Partitions - Not Hard At All by Matthew Cheek
Cheek introduces DiskSuite Soft Partitions, a new feature that greatly 
extends the capabilities of the DiskSuite storage management product.

Improving SSH with Keychain by Todd A. Jacobs
Jacobs shows how keychain can simplify key management by allowing a 
user 
to use a single authentication agent across virtual consoles and 
through 
multiple logins.

Highlighting Linux Command Prompts with the PROMPT_COMMAND Variable 
by Kirk Becker  
Becker describes how to implement a colored command prompt that shows 
which terminal is visible and makes it easy to distinguish commands 
from output.

Autosniff - A Sniffer-Starting Daemon by Ed Ravin 
Autosniff will let your customers start a sniffer, record a trace of 
the problem, and mail you the results when the capture is complete.

Linux Kernel Debugging by Evan Sarmiento 
Sarmiento examines methods of debugging the Linux kernel, using actual 
kernel bugs as examples.

Recursive Use of SystemImager for Cloning Entire Clusters 
by Scott Delinger 
Delinger demonstrates how the SystemImager utility can be used to 
automate
Linux installs in the construction of clusters.

Visual Cron 2.1 by Chip Castle 
Castle describes Visual Cron, a nifty little utility for handling 
job scheduling.

Bootprofile for Linux by Rajeev Kumar 
The "Bootprofile for Linux" tool manipulates configuration files very
early in the Linux boot process, making it useful for configuring 
machines
in changing environments.

Usogres - The PostgreSQL Replication Tool by Tim Epkes  
Epkes explains how the Usogres tool can listen for updates then 
distribute those updates to multiple databases at the same time.

------------------------------------------------------------------
Sponsored by ActiveState PureMessage
============================================================
Stop 98% of spam at the server.

PureMessage provides flexible control over the security and
usage of any corporate email system at the gateway, providing
spam and virus protection, and corporate policy enforcement.

Find out more:
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4ia2sokSb/
------------------------------------------------------------------
	
	COLUMNS

Questions and Answers by Amy Rich  
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4ja2sokSb/

The Duct Tape of the Internet by Randal L. Schwartz  
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4ka2sokSb/

Cool Commands by Peter Baer Galvin
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4la2sokSb/

------------------------------------------------------------------
FREE UNIX Management Guide

Do you want to improve user experience, exceed SLAs, save time and
increase the return on your infrastructure investments? Get "The Top
10 Reports Every IT Manager Lives For" from NetIQ. This free guide
explores 10 critical UNIX system views and management reports.

Register now.
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4ma2sokSb/
------------------------------------------------------------------  
     CALL FOR PAPERS  

	Performance Tuning -- May 2003
Proposals Due: January 1, 2003
Manuscripts Due: February 3, 2003

* BSD Performance Tuning Tips 
* Shareware and Freeware Tools for Tuning Up Linux Performance 
* Getting the Most from Limited Bandwidth 
* Undocumented Innovations for Improving Performance 
* Scripts for Tuning and Monitoring Performance

	Information Security -- June 2003

Proposals Due: February 3, 2003
Manuscripts Due: March 3, 2003

* Choosing an Encryption Algorithm
* New Solaris 9 Features for Securing Data
* Secret HIPAA Techniques
* They Said My Data Was Secure: How I Found Out It Wasn't and What I 
Did
* Innovative Uses for Shareware or Freeware Encryption Tools 

	Networking -- July 2003

Proposals Due: March 3, 2003
Manuscripts Due: April 1, 2003

* Homegrown Network Management Tools
* Unusual and Interesting Case Studies in Network Configuration
* Weird (but Effective) Solutions for Multi-platform Connectivity
* Open Source Network-Troubleshooting Utilities
* Securing Wireless Networks
------------------------------------------------------------------
LINUXWORLD CONFERENCE & EXPO  - THERE'S STILL TIME TO SAVE!

DISCOVER why Linux is thriving in financial, telecommunications, 
government
and retail industries.
HEAR how Wall Street firms are already leveraging Linux to achieve a 
lower
total cost of ownership at the all-new Linux Financial Summit.
ATTEND exciting keynote addresses from AMD, Morgan Stanley/Red Hat, IBM 
and
Dell
EXPLORE the newest technologies from leading Linux and Open Source
suppliers and a growing array of start-ups.
IMPROVE your skills by participating in our world-class education 
program.
Register today:
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4na2sokSb/
When Registering, enter priority code LNUR
------------------------------------------------------------------
     Newsletter Subscription Information

Please feel free to share this newsletter with interested parties
via email (not on bulletin boards).  To subscribe, see:
http://click.sysadmin.email-publisher.com/maaaHFwaaUP4oa2sokSb/

Email comments to: aankerholz@cmp.com