diff --git a/FAQ/preface.sgml b/FAQ/preface.sgml index 729f511a0a..caf1df3f41 100644 --- a/FAQ/preface.sgml +++ b/FAQ/preface.sgml @@ -1,617 +1,608 @@ - + Preface

Welcome to the FreeBSD 2.X FAQ! What is the purpose of this FAQ?

As is usual with Usenet FAQs, this document aims to cover the most frequently asked questions concerning the FreeBSD operating system (and of course answer them!). Although originally intended to reduce bandwidth and avoid the same old questions being asked over and over again, FAQs have become recognized as valuable information resources.

Every effort has been made to make this FAQ as informative as possible; if you have any suggestions as to how it may be improved, please feel free to mail them to the . What is FreeBSD?

Briefly, FreeBSD 2.X is a UN*X-like operating system based on U.C. Berkeley's 4.4BSD-lite release for the i386 platform. It is also based indirectly on William Jolitz's port of U.C. Berkeley's Net/2 to the i386, known as 386BSD, though very little of the 386BSD code remains. A fuller description of what FreeBSD is and how it can work for you may be found on the .

FreeBSD is used by companies, Internet Service Providers, researchers, computer professionals, students and home users all over the world in their work, education and recreation. See some of them in the

For more detailed information on FreeBSD, please see the What are the goals of FreeBSD?

The goals of the FreeBSD Project are to provide software that may be used for any purpose and without strings attached. Many of us have a significant investment in the code (and project) and would certainly not mind a little financial compensation now and then, but we're definitely not prepared to insist on it. We believe that our first and foremost "mission" is to provide code to any and all comers, and for whatever purpose, so that the code gets the widest possible use and provides the widest possible benefit. This is, we believe, one of the most fundamental goals of Free Software and one that we enthusiastically support.

That code in our source tree which falls under the GNU Public License (GPL) or GNU Library Public License (GLPL) comes with slightly more strings attached, though at least on the side of enforced access rather than the usual opposite. Due to the additional complexities that can evolve in the commercial use of GPL software, we do, however, endeavor to replace such software with submissions under the more relaxed BSD copyright whenever possible. Why is it called FreeBSD?

It may be used free of charge, even by commercial users. Full source for the operating system is freely available, and the minimum possible restrictions have been placed upon its use, distribution and incorporation into other work (commercial or non-commercial). Anyone who has an improvement and/or bug fix is free to submit their code and have it added to the source tree (subject to one or two obvious provisos).

For those of our readers whose first language is not English, it may be worth pointing out that the word ``free'' is being used in two ways here, one meaning ``at no cost'', the other meaning ``you can do whatever you like''. Apart from one or two things you What is the latest version of FreeBSD? -

Version is the latest stable version; it was released - in December, 1998. This is also the latest release version. +

Version is the latest Briefly explained, -stable is aimed at the ISP or other +

Briefly explained, -current branch is polished enough for general release. - -

This is not to say that a 3.0-STABLE release is unusable for - business services, and many people who need some 3.0 specific feature - (newer compiler technology, faster networking code, etc) have decided - to take a chance with it with very good results. We simply do not - wish to "certify" 3.0 as mission-worthy until it's been released - as 3.1-RELEASE in February, 1999. + the wizzy new features of the latest What is FreeBSD-current?

is the development version of the operating system, which will in due course become 4.0-RELEASE. As such, it is really only of interest to developers working on the system and die-hard hobbyists. See the in the for details on running -current.

If you are not familiar with the operating system or are not capable of identifying the difference between a real problem and a temporary problem, you should not use FreeBSD-current. This branch sometimes evolves quite quickly and can be un-buildable for a number of days at a time. People that use FreeBSD-current are expected to be able to analyze any problems and only report them if they are deemed to be mistakes rather than ``glitches''. Questions such as ``make world produces some error about groups'' on the -current mailing list are sometimes treated with contempt.

Every now and again, a release is also made of this -current development code, CDROM distributions of the occasional snapshot even now being made available. The goals behind each snapshot release are: To test the latest version of the installation software. To give people who would like to run -current but who don't have the time and/or bandwidth to follow it on a day-to-day basis an easy way of bootstrapping it onto their systems. To preserve a fixed reference point for the code in question, just in case we break something really badly later. (Although CVS normally prevents anything horrible like this happening :) To ensure that any new features in need of testing have the greatest possible number of potential testers.

No claims are made that any snapshot can be considered ``production quality'' for any purpose. For stability and tested mettle, you will have to stick to full releases.

Snapshot releases are directly available from and are generated, on the average, once a day for both the 4.0-current and 3.0-stable branches. What is the FreeBSD-stable concept?

Back when FreeBSD 2.0.5 was released, we decided to branch FreeBSD development into two parts. One branch was named , with the intention that only well-tested bug fixes and small incremental enhancements would be made to it (for Internet Service Providers and other commercial enterprises for whom sudden shifts or experimental features are quite undesirable). The other branch was , which essentially has been one unbroken line leading towards 4.0-RELEASE (and beyond) since 2.0 was released. If a little ASCII art would help, this is how it looks: 2.0 | | | [2.1-stable] *BRANCH* 2.0.5 -> 2.1 -> 2.1.5 -> 2.1.6 -> 2.1.7.1 [2.1-stable ends] | (Mar 1997) | | | [2.2-stable] *BRANCH* 2.2.1 -> 2.2.2-RELEASE -> 2.2.5 -> 2.2.6 -> 2.2.7 -> 2.2.8 [end] | (Mar 1997) (Oct 97) (Apr 98) (Jul 98) (Dec 98) | | 3.0-SNAPs (started Q1 1997) | | 3.0.0-RELEASE (Oct 1998) | | [3.0-stable] *BRANCH* 3.1 (Feb 1999) -> ... future 3.x releases ... | | \|/ + [4.0-current continues]

The -current branch is slowly progressing towards 4.0 and beyond, the previous 2.2-stable branch having just retired with the release of 2.2.8. 3.0-stable has now replaced it, the next release coming up with 3.1 in early 1999. 4.0-current is now the "current branch", with the first 4.0 releases appearing in Q1 2000. When are FreeBSD releases made?

As a general principle, the FreeBSD core team only release a new version of FreeBSD when they believe that there are sufficient new features and/or bug fixes to justify one, and are satisfied that the changes made have settled down sufficiently to avoid compromising the stability of the release. Many users regard this caution as one of the best things about FreeBSD, although it can be a little frustrating when waiting for all the latest goodies to become available...

Releases are made about every 4 months on average.

For people needing (or wanting) a little more excitement, there are SNAPs released more frequently, particularly during the month or so leading up to a release. Is FreeBSD only available for PCs ?

FreeBSD 3.x currently runs on the as well as the x86 architecture. Some interest has also been expressed in a SPARC port, but details on this project are not yet clear. If your machine has a different architecture and you need something right now, we suggest you look at or . Who is responsible for FreeBSD?

The key decisions concerning the FreeBSD project, such as the overall direction of the project and who is allowed to add code to the source tree, are made by a of some 15 people. There is a much larger team of over 100 who are authorized to make changes directly to the FreeBSD source tree.

However, most non-trivial changes are discussed in advance in the , and there are no restrictions on who may take part in the discussion. Where can I get FreeBSD?

Every significant release of FreeBSD is available via anonymous ftp from the : For the current 2.2-stable release, 2.2.8R, see the directory. For the current 3.0-stable release, 3.0-RELEASE, see the directory. releases are made once a day along the RELENG_2_2 branch (post 2.2.8) as it slowly winds down in maintenance mode. The RELENG_2_2 branch is currently being carefully maintained by the legacy support folks and no changes other than those strictly necessary for security or reliability enhancements are now made. releases are also made once a day along the RELENG_3 branch (post 3.0-release) as it continues on its way towards 3.1-RELEASE. releases are made once a day for the branch, these being of service purely to bleeding-edge testers and developers.

FreeBSD is also available via CDROM, from the following place(s):

Walnut Creek CDROM 4041 Pike Lane, Suite F Concord, CA 94520 USA Orders: +1 800 786-9907 Questions: +1 925 674-0783 FAX: +1 925 674-0821 email: WWW:

In Australia, you may find it at:

Advanced Multimedia Distributors Factory 1/1 Ovata Drive Tullamarine, Melbourne Victoria Australia Voice: +61 3 9338 6777 CDROM Support BBS 17 Irvine St Peppermint Grove WA 6011 Voice: +61 9 385-3793 Fax: +61 9 385-2360 And in the UK: The Public Domain & Shareware Library Winscombe House, Beacon Rd Crowborough Sussex. TN6 1UL Voice: +44 1892 663-298 Fax: +44 1892 667-473 Where do I find info on the FreeBSD mailing lists?

You can find full information in the What FreeBSD news groups are available?

You can find full information in the Are there FreeBSD IRC (Internet Relay Chat) channels?

Yes, most major IRC networks host a FreeBSD chat channel: Channel #FreeBSD on EFNet is a FreeBSD forum, but don't go there for tech support or to try and get folks there to help you avoid the pain of reading man pages or doing your own research. It is a chat channel, first and foremost, and topics there are just as likely to involve sex, sports or nuclear weapons as they are FreeBSD. You Have Been Warned! Available at server irc.chat.org. Channel #FreeBSD on DALNET is available at irc.dal.net in the US and irc.eu.dal.net in Europe. Channel #FreeBSD on UNDERNET is available at us.undernet.org in the US and eu.undernet.org in Europe. Same provisions as for EFNET apply - either don't ask questions or learn to ask amazingly politely if you want help. It's a chat channel, not a help channel. Finally, you can also join #FreeBSD on BSDNET, a smaller BSD only chat network, at irc.FreeBSD.org. This network attempts to do more tech support and not be as anarchistic as EFNET, UNDERNET or DALNET, but it's also nowhere near as popular as a result. Why not volunteer to answer FreeBSD questions on BSDNET today?

Each of these channels are distinct and are not connected to each other. Their chat styles also differ, so you may need to try each to find one suited to your chat style. As with *all* types of IRC traffic, if you're easily offended or can't deal with lots of young people (and more than a few older ones) doing the verbal equivalent of jello wrestling, don't even bother with it. Books on FreeBSD

There is a FreeBSD Documentation Project which you may contact (or even better, join) on the doc mailing list: . This list is for discussion of the FreeBSD documentation. For actual questions about FreeBSD, there is the questions mailing list: .

A FreeBSD ``handbook'' is available, and can be found as: . Note that this is a work in progress, and so parts may be incomplete.

The definitive printed guide on FreeBSD is ``The Complete FreeBSD'', written by Greg Lehey and published by Walnut Creek CDROM Books. Now in its second edition, the book contains 1,750 pages of install & system administration guidance, program setup help, and manual pages. The book (and current FreeBSD release) can be ordered from , , or at your favorite bookstore. The ISBN is 1-57176-227-2.

However, as FreeBSD 2.2.X is based upon Berkeley 4.4BSD-Lite2, most of the 4.4BSD manuals are applicable to FreeBSD 2.2.X. O'Reilly and Associates publishes these manuals: 4.4BSD System Manager's Manual By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley 1st Edition June 1994, 804 pages : 1-56592-080-5 4.4BSD User's Reference Manual By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley 1st Edition June 1994, 905 pages : 1-56592-075-9 4.4BSD User's Supplementary Documents By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley 1st Edition July 1994, 712 pages : 1-56592-076-7 4.4BSD Programmer's Reference Manual By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley 1st Edition June 1994, 886 pages : 1-56592-078-3 4.4BSD Programmer's Supplementary Documents By Computer Systems Research Group, UC Berkeley 1st Edition July 1994, 596 pages : 1-56592-079-1

A description of these can be found via WWW as: . Due to poor sales, however, these manuals may be hard to get a hold of.

For a more in-depth look at the 4.4BSD kernel organization, you can't go wrong with:

McKusick, Marshall Kirk, Keith Bostic, Michael J Karels, and John Quarterman.

The Design and Implementation of the 4.4BSD Operating System. Reading, Mass. : Addison-Wesley, 1996. 0-201-54979-4

A good book on system administration is:

Evi Nemeth, Garth Snyder, Scott Seebass & Trent R. Hein, ``Unix System Administration Handbook'', Prentice-Hall, 1995 : 0-13-151051-7

This book covers the basics, as well as TCP/IP, DNS, NFS, SLIP/PPP, sendmail, INN/NNTP, printing, etc.. It's expensive (approx. US$45-$55), but worth it. It also includes a CDROM with the sources for various tools; most of these, however, are also on the FreeBSD 2.2.6R CDROM (and the FreeBSD CDROM often has newer versions). How do I access your Problem Report database?

The Problem Report database of all open user change requests may be queried (or submitted to) by using our web-based PR and interfaces. The send-pr(1) command can also be used to submit problem reports and change requests via electronic mail. Where can I get ASCII/PostScript versions of the FAQ?

The up-to-date FAQ is available from the FreeBSD Web Server or any mirror as PostScript and plain text (7 bit ASCII and 8-bit Latin1).

As PostScript (about 370KB):

As ASCII text (about 220KB):

As ISO 8859-1 text (about 220KB): Where can I get ASCII/PostScript versions of the Handbook?

The up-to-date Handbook is available from the FreeBSD Web Server or any mirror as PostScript and plain text (7 bit ASCII and 8-bit Latin1).

As PostScript (about 1.7MB):

As ASCII text (about 1080KB):

As ISO 8859-1 text (about 1080KB): The ASCII handbook isn't plain text!

True, the ASCII and Latin1 versions of the FAQ and Handbook aren't strictly plaintext; they contain underlines and overprints that assume the output is going directly to a dot matrix printer. If you need to reformat them to be human-readable, run the file through col: $ col -b < inputfile > outputfile I'd like to become a FreeBSD Web mirror!

Certainly! There are multiple ways to mirror the Web pages. Using CVSUP: You can retrieve the formatted files using CVSUP from cvsup.freebsd.org. Add this line to your cvsup file: www release=current hostname=/home base=/usr/local/etc/cvsup prefix=/usr/local/www/data/www.freebsd.org delete old use-rel-suffix Using rsync: See for information. Using ftp mirror: You can download the FTP server's copy of the web site using your favorite ftp mirror tool. Simply start at ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/FreeBSD-current/www. I'd like to translate the documentation into Friesian.

Well, we can't pay, but we might arrange a free CD or T-shirt and a Contributor's Handbook entry if you submit a translation of the documentation. Other sources of information.

The following newsgroups contain pertinent discussion for FreeBSD users: (moderated)

Web resources: The .

The FreeBSD handbook also has a fairly complete section which is worth reading if you're looking for actual books to buy.