| aliases |
Mail aliases file for use with the
Sendmail and Postfix mail server. Running a mail server on each and
every system has long been common use in the UNIX world, and almost
every Linux distribution still comes with a Sendmail package. In
this file local user names are matched with real names as they
occur in E-mail addresses, or with other local addresses. |
| apache |
Config files for the Apache web
server. |
| bashrc |
The system-wide configuration file
for the Bourne Again SHell. Defines functions and aliases for all
users. Other shells may have their own system-wide config files,
like cshrc. |
| crontab
and the cron.* directories |
Configuration of tasks that need
to be executed periodically - backups, updates of the system
databases, cleaning of the system, rotating logs etc. |
| default |
Default options for certain
commands, such as useradd. |
| filesystems |
Known file systems: ext3, vfat,
iso9660 etc. |
| fstab |
Lists partitions and their
mount points. |
| ftp* |
Configuration of the ftp-server:
who can connect, what parts of the system are accessible etc. |
| group |
Configuration file for user
groups. Use the shadow utilities groupadd,
groupmod and groupdel
to edit this file. Edit manually only if you really know what you
are doing. |
| hosts |
A list of machines that can be
contacted using the network, but without the need for a domain name
service. This has nothing to do with the system's network
configuration, which is done in /etc/sysconfig. |
| inittab |
Information for booting: mode,
number of text consoles etc. |
| issue |
Information about the distribution
(release version and/or kernel info). |
| ld.so.conf |
Locations of library files. |
| lilo.conf, silo.conf,
aboot.conf etc. |
Boot information for the LInux
LOader, the system for booting that is now gradually being replaced
with GRUB. |
| logrotate.* |
Rotation of the logs, a system
preventing the collection of huge amounts of log files. |
| mail |
Directory containing instructions
for the behavior of the mail server. |
| modules.conf |
Configuration of modules that
enable special features (drivers). |
| motd |
Message Of The Day: Shown to
everyone who connects to the system (in text mode), may be used by
the system admin to announce system services/maintenance etc. |
| mtab |
Currently mounted file systems. It
is advised to never edit this file. |
| nsswitch.conf |
Order in which to contact the name
resolvers when a process demands resolving of a host name. |
| pam.d |
Configuration of authentication
modules. |
| passwd |
Lists local users. Use the shadow
utilities useradd, usermod and userdel to edit
this file. Edit manually only when you really know what you are
doing. |
| printcap |
Outdated but still frequently used
printer configuration file. Don't edit this manually unless you
really know what you are doing. |
| profile |
System wide configuration of the
shell environment: variables, default properties of new files,
limitation of resources etc. |
| rc* |
Directories defining active
services for each run level. |
| resolv.conf |
Order in which to contact DNS
servers (Domain Name Servers only). |
| sendmail.cf |
Main config file for the Sendmail
server. |
| services |
Connections accepted by this
machine (open ports). |
| sndconfig or sound |
Configuration of the sound card
and sound events. |
| ssh |
Directory containing the config
files for secure shell client and server. |
| sysconfig |
Directory containing the system
configuration files: mouse, keyboard, network, desktop, system
clock, power management etc. (specific to RedHat) |
| X11 |
Settings for the graphical server,
X. RedHat uses XFree, which is reflected in the name of the main
configuration file, XFree86Config. Also contains the general
directions for the window managers available on the system, for
example gdm, fvwm,
twm, etc. |
| xinetd.*
or inetd.conf |
Configuration files for Internet
services that are run from the system's (extended) Internet
services daemon (servers that don't run an independent
daemon). |
