Networking

Networking

(skeleton)

Direct WAN Connection

In general if you have a wired connection to your modem, router, hub, or switch - and your home LAN and hardware is configured properly - then your new Fedora installation will have internet access already.

Setting the Hostname

The hostname is the name of your system. This can be set at installation (recommended) or after. There are two ways (at least) to set the host name.

Gaphical Interface

Using the system-config-network program and select the DNS tab. Type in the hostname in the Hostname field.

Command Line

Open the file located at /etc/hosts and edit the line of

127.0.0.1 localhost.localdomain localhost

to match the following syntax

127.0.0.1 mybox.mydomain.com localhost.localdomain localhost mybox

save the file you may have to reboot for all the change to take effect.

Switched Home LANs

DHCP Configuration

DHCP configuration is enabled by default on Ethernet devices. If you wish to use DHCP on a home LAN, or to receive an IP from your ISP (contact your ISP regarding whether you are expected to use DHCP or static IP assignment), you must have an available DHCP server; most home broadband routers today come with DHCP servers capable of serving a small home network installed and enabled by default. If you have switched previously to Static IP addressing, and would like to switch back, you can configure the NIC to use the built-in Fedora Network configuration utility either by 1) invoking "system-config-network" from a command line or 2) selecting System -> Administration -> Network, providing the root password, and then clicking "Edit" with your Ethernet device selected. Once there, select "Automatically obtain IP address information with dhcp." Fedora can also be configured to attempt to gain an IP address using bootp If you are unsure as to whether should select dhcp or bootp, use dhcp; keep in mind that 1) bootp is largely obsolete and rarely used, 2) most home broadband routers use dhcp rather than bootp, and 3) if your machine is directly connected to an ISP-furnished modem, it is most common for ISPs to assign IPs to their clients using DHCP.

Static IP Configuration

Like setting a NIC to use DHCP, you can set a NIC to use static IPs by running the system-config-network utility. This can be done by calling system-config-network from a terminal Window or by browsing to the utility through the GNOME menu (System -> Administartion -> Network). In order to set up static IPs, you will need to know some basic aspects of your home network. If the following makes no sense, seek a guide on the basics of IP addressing for home networks.

• IP Address
  • This is the IP you wish to assign to your Fedora machine.
• Subnet Mask
  • The subnet mask determines what logical network your machine should be a part of. In general, unless you have multiple routers, a single subnet should be enough for a home network.
• Default Gateway
  • This is the IP address of your router or gateway to the internet.
• DNS IP addresses
  • If you do not know what DNS server IPs to provide, keep in mind that most home broadband routers are capable of DNS forwarding. If yours does not and you do not know the IP addresses of your ISP's DNS servers (if you contact your ISP, these should be provided to you if you ask), OpenDNS provides fast DNS servers that are freely available to the public.

There are three ways (at least) to set the Static IP in the network configuration.

Grapgical Interface

Open the system-config-network program by either issuing the command "system-config-network" from a terminal or through the GNOME menu via System -> Administration -> Network. Select the interface you wish to configure and click the edit button. Select the Staticlly set IP addresses and enter the information accordingly. Click the OK button. Then click on the DNS tab and enter the DNS addresses here.

Command Line

Run the setup command and select network. Select the interface you wish to change. Arrow down to the User DHCP section and hit the space bar to deselect it. Enter the information requested. Tab down to the OK and hit the enter key. Open the file located at /etc/resolv.conf and add the DNS adresses using the following syntax.

nameserver <address>

Save the changes and run the following command

service network restart

The system will now be using the Static IP setting.

The other command line way of setting the IP address is using the ifconfig command. <more info needed here>

Networking with Windows

Split this off to its own page? (Samba, etc.)

• File sharing
• Print sharing

Wireless Networking

For wireless networking, please see the Wireless Networking page.

Network Configuration from the Command Line

ifconfig, service [network/NetworkManager/NetworkManagerDispatcher] [start/stop/restart/status], chkconfig, dhclient, etc.

Advanced Topics

SNMP, Nagios, Network monitoring, routing, providing basic network services (DNS, DHCP, etc.). Some of the content to go here could be split off.