Alx lnLervlew CuesLlons and Answers

bv admln ln unlx lnLervlew quesLlons and answers

l collecLed some useful lnLervlew quesLlons from varlous slLes and l LhouahL Lhese quesLlons mlahL help
our readers or [ob seekers Lo sLrenaLh Lhelr knowledae MosL of Lhe quesLlons are Alx PACM neLwork
relaLed Ln[ov

Can vou explaln Lhe sLeps Lo Mlrrorlna rooLva ln vour envlronmenL?

Mlrrorlna rooLva" proLecLs Lhe operaLlna svsLem from a dlsk fallure Mlrrorlna rooLva" requlres a
couple exLra sLeps compared Lo oLher volume aroups 1he mlrrored rooLva dlsk musL be booLable *and*
ln Lhe booLllsL CLherwlse lf Lhe prlmarv dlsk falls vou'll conLlnue Lo run buL vou won'L be able Lo
rebooL

ln brlef Lhe procedure Lo mlrror rooLva on hdlsk0 Lo hdlsk1 ls

1 Add hdlsk1 Lo rooLva exLendva rooLva hdlsk1

2 Mlrror rooLva Lo hdlsk1 mlrrorva rooLva hdlsk1 (or smlLLv mlrrorva)

3 CreaLe booL lmaaes on hdlsk1 bosbooL ad /dev/hdlsk1

4 Add hdlsk1 Lo Lhe booLllsLbooLllsL m normal hdlsk0 hdlsk1

3 8ebooL Lo dlsable quorum checklna on rooLva 1he mlrrorva Lurns off quorum bv defaulL buL Lhe
svsLem needs Lo be rebooLed for lL Lo Lake effecL

WhaL ls vn and how lL works?

A vn ls a prlvaLe neLwork LhaL uses a publlc neLwork (usuallv Lhe lnLerneL) Lo connecL remoLe slLes or
users LoaeLher lnsLead of uslna a dedlcaLed realworld connecLlon such as leased llne a vn uses
vlrLual" connecLlons rouLed rouah Lhe lnLerneL from Lhe companv's prlvaLe neLwork Lo Lhe remoLe slLe
or emplovee

WhaL ls daemon?

A daemon (pronounced uLLmuhn) ls a proaram LhaL runs conLlnuouslv and exlsLs for Lhe purpose of
handllna perlodlc servlce requesLs LhaL a compuLer svsLem expecLs Lo recelve 1he daemon proaram
forwards Lhe requesLs Lo oLher proarams (or processes) as approprlaLe Lach server of paaes on Lhe Web
has an P11u or PvperLexL 1ransfer roLocol daemon LhaL conLlnuallv walLs for requesLs Lo come ln
from Web cllenLs and Lhelr users

1here are several daemon ln Alx envlronmenL such as sshd lneLd and so on

Can vou descrlbe SAn ln vour won word?

A sLoraae area neLwork (SAn) ls a hlahspeed speclalpurpose neLwork (or subneLwork) LhaL
lnLerconnecLs dlfferenL klnds of daLa sLoraae devlces wlLh assoclaLed daLa servers on behalf of a laraer
neLwork of users 1vplcallv a sLoraae area neLwork ls parL of Lhe overall neLwork of compuLlna
resources for an enLerprlse A sLoraae area neLwork ls usuallv clusLered ln close proxlmlLv Lo oLher
compuLlna resources such as l8M ower3 boxes buL mav also exLend Lo remoLe locaLlons for backup and
archlval sLoraae uslna wlde area neLwork carrler Lechnoloales such as A1M or SCnL1

A sLoraae area neLwork can use exlsLlna communlcaLlon Lechnoloav such as l8M's opLlcal flber LSCCn or
lL mav use Lhe newer llbre Channel Lechnoloav Some SAn svsLem lnLearaLors llken lL Lo Lhe common
sLoraae bus (flow of daLa) ln a personal compuLer LhaL ls shared bv dlfferenL klnds of sLoraae devlces
such as a hard dlsk or a Cu8CM plaver

SAns supporL dlsk mlrrorlna backup and resLore archlval and reLrleval of archlved daLa daLa mlaraLlon
from one sLoraae devlce Lo anoLher and Lhe sharlna of daLa amona dlfferenL servers ln a neLwork SAns
can lncorporaLe subneLworks wlLh neLworkaLLached sLoraae (nAS) svsLems

So vou menLlon nAS buL WhaL ls nAS?

neLworkaLLached sLoraae (nAS) ls hard dlsk sLoraae LhaL ls seL up wlLh lLs own neLwork address raLher
Lhan belna aLLached Lo Lhe deparLmenL compuLer LhaL ls servlna appllcaLlons Lo a neLwork's worksLaLlon
users 8v removlna sLoraae access and lLs manaaemenL from Lhe deparLmenL server boLh appllcaLlon
proarammlna and flles can be served fasLer because Lhev are noL compeLlna for Lhe same processor
resources 1he neLworkaLLached sLoraae devlce ls aLLached Lo a local area neLwork (Lvplcallv an
LLherneL neLwork) and asslaned an l address llle requesLs are mapped bv Lhe maln server Lo Lhe nAS
flle server

neLworkaLLached sLoraae conslsLs of hard dlsk sLoraae lncludlna mulLldlsk 8Alu svsLems and sofLware
for conflaurlna and mapplna flle locaLlons Lo Lhe neLworkaLLached devlce neLworkaLLached sLoraae
can be a sLep Loward and lncluded as parL of a more sophlsLlcaLed sLoraae svsLem known as a sLoraae
area neLwork (SAn)

nAS sofLware can usuallv handle a number of neLwork proLocols lncludlna MlcrosofL's lnLerneLwork
ackeL Lxchanae and neL8Lul novell's neLware lnLerneLwork ackeL Lxchanae and Sun MlcrosvsLems'
neLwork llle SvsLem ConflauraLlon lncludlna Lhe seLLlna of user access prlorlLles ls usuallv posslble
uslna a Web browser

WhaL ls SM1 and how lL works?



SM1 (Slmple Mall 1ransfer roLocol) ls a 1C/l proLocol used ln sendlna and recelvlna emall
Powever slnce lL ls llmlLed ln lLs ablllLv Lo queue messaaes aL Lhe recelvlna end lL ls usuallv used wlLh
one of Lwo oLher proLocols C3 or lMA LhaL leL Lhe user save messaaes ln a server mallbox and
download Lhem perlodlcallv from Lhe server ln oLher words users Lvplcallv use a proaram LhaL uses
SM1 for sendlna emall and elLher C3 or lMA for recelvlna emall Cn unlxbased svsLems sendmall
ls Lhe mosL wldelvused SM1 server for emall A commerclal packaae Sendmall lncludes a C3
server MlcrosofL Lxchanae lncludes an SM1 server and can also be seL up Lo lnclude C3 supporL

SM1 usuallv ls lmplemenLed Lo operaLe over lnLerneL porL 23

uo vou have anv ldea abouL nA1?

ShorL for neLwork Address 1ranslaLlon an lnLerneL sLandard LhaL enables a localarea neLwork (LAn) Lo
use one seL of l addresses for lnLernal Lrafflc and a second seL of addresses for exLernal Lrafflc A nA1
box locaLed where Lhe LAn meeLs Lhe lnLerneL makes all necessarv l address LranslaLlons

nA1 serves Lhree maln purposes

rovldes a Lvpe of flrewall bv hldlna lnLernal l addresses
Lnables a companv Lo use more lnLernal l addresses Slnce Lhev're used lnLernallv onlv Lhere's no
posslblllLv of confllcL wlLh l addresses used bv oLher companles and oraanlzaLlons
Allows a companv Lo comblne mulLlple lSun connecLlons lnLo a slnale lnLerneL connecLlon
Lxplaln uPC and lLs uses Lo an envlronmenL?

ShorL for uvnamlc PosL ConflauraLlon roLocol a proLocol for asslanlna dvnamlc l addresses Lo devlces
on a neLwork WlLh dvnamlc addresslna a devlce can have a dlfferenL l address everv Llme lL connecLs
Lo Lhe neLwork ln some svsLems Lhe devlce's l address can even chanae whlle lL ls sLlll connecLed
uPC also supporLs a mlx of sLaLlc and dvnamlc l addresses

uvnamlc addresslna slmpllfles neLwork admlnlsLraLlon because Lhe sofLware keeps Lrack of l addresses
raLher Lhan requlrlna an admlnlsLraLor Lo manaae Lhe Lask 1hls means LhaL a new compuLer can be
added Lo a neLwork wlLhouL Lhe hassle of manuallv asslanlna lL a unlque l address Manv lSs use
dvnamlc l addresslna for dlalup users

WhaL does SnM sLands for?

ShorL for Slmple neLwork ManaaemenL roLocol a seL of proLocols for manaalna complex neLworks
SnM works bv sendlna messaaes called roLocol uaLa unlLs Lo dlfferenL parLs of a neLwork SnM
compllanL devlces called AaenLs sLore daLa abouL Lhemselves ln ManaaemenL lnformaLlon 8ases and
reLurn Lhls daLa Lo Lhe SnM requesLers

WhaL do vou know abouL 1Cuump?

1Cdump ls a common compuLer neLwork debuaalna Lool LhaL runs under Lhe command llne lL allows
Lhe user Lo lnLercepL and dlsplav 1C/l and oLher packeLs belna LransmlLLed or recelved over a neLwork
Lo whlch Lhe compuLer ls aLLached 1cpdump works on mosL unlxllke plaLforms Llnux Solarls 8Su Mac
CS x Pux and Alx amona oLhers Cn Wlndows Wlnuump can be used lL's a porL of Lcpdump Lo
Wlndows

?ou musL have a rooL or super user auLhorlLv Lo use 1Cdumps ln unlx llke envrlonmenL

Pow do l remove a volume aroup wlLh no dlsks?

1hls ls a verv common quesLlon abouL Alx LvM and l knew LhaL vou wlll ask me Lhls one WlLhln a
volume aroup Lhere ls a volume Croup uescrlpLor Area (vCuA) whlch ls klnda a sulLcase" of lvm
lnformaLlon 1hls ls whaL allows vou Lo plck up vour drlves and Lake Lhem Lo anoLher machlne lmporLva
Lhem and aeL fllesvsLems auLomaLlcallv deflned

WhaL happens when vou lmporLva Lhe volume aroup Lhe command aoes ouL and reads Lhe vCuA and
flnds ouL abouL all Lhe loalcal volumes and fllesvsLems LhaL mav exlsL on Lhe
volume aroup lL Lhen checks for clashes (name confllcLs eLc) on lLs own machlne and Lhen populaLes
lLs own daLabase wlLh lnformaLlon abouL Lhe new volume aroup and
lLs assoclaLed loalcal volumes ln cases of flle svsLems lL wlll ao lnLo Lhe /eLc/fllesvsLems flle and add Lhe
new fllesvsLem enLrles LhaL came alona wlLh Lhe lmporLed volume aroup

1he maln quesLlon l see ls l've Laken awav Lhe dlsks buL how do l aeL rld of Lhe volume aroup" 1he
quesLlon should reallv sav Pow do l aeL rld of Lhe volume aroup lnlC8MA1lCn" slnce LhaL's all vou
have on Lhe svsLem ?ou've aoL posslble enLrles ln
Lhe /eLc/fllesvsLems and deflnlLelv enLrles ln Lhe CuM !usL do
exporLva

lL does a reverse lmporLva excepL lL doesn'L ao off and read Lhe vCuA lL nukes anvLhlna relaLlna Lo Lhe
volume aroup ln Lhe /eLc/fllesvsLems and CuM 1he onlv Llme Lhls won'L work ls lf Lhe svsLem deLecLs
LhaL Lhe volume aroup ls varled on 1hen lL would be llke Lrvlna Lo chanae Llres on a movlna car we
won'L leL vou do lL!

Pow do vou vou aeL rld of a dlsk LhaL ls no lonaer reallv ln Lhe vC?
ln Lhls case vou uCn'1 wanL Lo do an exporLva WhaL vou wanL Lo do ls Lell Lhe svsLem vou wanL Lo cuL
ouL Lhe memorv of Lhe old bad dlsk from Lhe 8S/6000 Anu from Lhe vCuA of Lhe volume aroup ?ou
slmplv do reduceva d f
or lf Lhe hdname can'L be found
reduceva d f
8e careful wlLh Lhls command unllke Lhe exporLva command acLlons done
wlLh Lhls command WlLL affecL Lhe vCuA lnformaLlon on Lhe plaLLer

WhaL ls CapaclLv on uemand?

CapaclLv on uemand (Cou) encompasses Lhe varlous capablllLles for vou Lo dvnamlcallv acLlvaLe one or
more resources on vour server as vour buslness peaks dlcLaLe ?ou can acLlvaLe lnacLlve processors or
memorv unlLs LhaL are alreadv lnsLalled on vour server on a Lemporarv and permanenL basls

usuallv Lhe CapaclLv on uemand ls used for l8M SvsLem l3` and eServer` l3 and l8M SvsLem p3` and
eServer p3 320 330 370 390 and 393 models Some servers lnclude a number of acLlve and lnacLlve
resources AcLlve processors and acLlve memorv unlLs are resources LhaL are avallable for use on vour
server when lL comes from Lhe manufacLurer lnacLlve processors and lnacLlve memorv unlLs are
resources LhaL are lncluded wlLh vour server buL are noL avallable for use unLll vou acLlvaLe Lhem

WhaL ls Pardware ManaaemenL Console (PMC)?

1he PMC ls a server or sLand alone machlne LhaL provldes a araphlcal user lnLerface Lool Lo manaae
several ower SvsLems 1he PMC manaaes svsLem Lhrouah hvpervlsor and operaLlna svsLem lrom
verslon 7 lL ls Lrulv web based and vou can conflaure lnsLalls and manaae parLlLloned vlrLuallzaLlon
mosL of vour ower3 and 6 boxes vla PMC 1here are manv Lasks vou can do wlLh PMC such as

owerlna off and on of Lhe parLlLlon
Conflaure and acLlvaLe resources Lo Lhe svsLem
CreaLes and sLores LA8 proflles and allocaLed resources Lo Lhem
PMC do Lhe dvnamlc memorv reconflauraLlon of Lhe parLlLlon
SeLup vlC server and vlC cllenL Lhru PMC and do mlcroparLlLlon creaLe sLoraae
pool and processor pool wlLh lL
rovlde vlrLual console Lo Lhe parLlLlon
MosL of Lhe Llme we lnsLalled dual PMC for redundancv and make sure Lo achleve more upLlme ln a
wlde svsLem

Whv do l need a Pardware ManaaemenL Console anvwav?

?ou need a PMC lf vou plan Lo

Conflaure and manaae loalcal parLlLlons and parLlLlon proflles (selecLed models can conflaure Llnux
parLlLlons wlLhouL a PMC)
erform uLA8 (dvnamlc LA8) funcLlons
AcLlvaLe and manaae CapaclLv on uemand resources

?ou can also use Lhe PMC Lo
erform servlce funcLlons
Manaae frames (Lowers) lCs and lCAs * noLe LhaL vou cannoL see below Lhe lCA Lo Lhe devlce level
Manaae svsLem proflles (ves vou can have more Lhan one!)
ower on and power down 1he Servlce rocessor ls alwavs hoL lf Lhere ls power Lo Lhe server
AcLlvaLe and manaae vlrLuallzaLlon Lnalne Lechnoloales
3230 emulaLlon so vou can aeL a console up on a l3/CS parLlLlon or a vlrLual Lermlnal wlndow for Alx
or Llnux



WhaL ls kernel?

1he kernel ls Lhe essenLlal cenLer of a compuLer operaLlna svsLem Lhe core LhaL provldes baslc servlces
for all oLher parLs of Lhe operaLlna svsLem A svnonvm ls nucleus A kernel can be conLrasLed wlLh a
shell Lhe ouLermosL parL of an operaLlna svsLem LhaL lnLeracLs wlLh user commands kernel and shell
are Lerms used more frequenLlv ln unlx operaLlna svsLems Lhan ln l8M malnframe or MlcrosofL
Wlndows svsLems

1vplcallv a kernel (or anv comparable cenLer of an operaLlna svsLem) lncludes an lnLerrupL handler LhaL
handles all requesLs or compleLed l/C operaLlons LhaL compeLe for Lhe kernel's servlces a scheduler LhaL
deLermlnes whlch proarams share Lhe kernel's processlna Llme ln whaL order and a supervlsor LhaL
acLuallv alves use of Lhe compuLer Lo each process when lL ls scheduled A kernel mav also lnclude a
manaaer of Lhe operaLlna svsLem's address spaces ln memorv or sLoraae sharlna Lhese amona all
componenLs and oLher users of Lhe kernel's servlces A kernel's servlces are requesLed bv oLher parLs of
Lhe operaLlna svsLem or bv appllcaLlon proarams Lhrouah a speclfled seL of proaram lnLerfaces
someLlmes known as svsLem calls

WhaL ls 8MC?

1he 8esource MonlLorlna and ConLrol (8MC) subsvsLem ls Lhe scalable backbone of 8SC1 LhaL provldes a
aenerallzed framework for manaalna resources wlLhln a slnale svsLem or a clusLer lLs aenerallzed
framework ls used bv clusLer manaaemenL Lools Lo monlLor querv modlfv and conLrol clusLer
resources 8MC provldes a slnale monlLorlna and manaaemenL lnfrasLrucLure for boLh 8SC1 peer
domalns and manaaemenL domalns 8MC can also be used on a slnale machlne enabllna vou Lo monlLor
and manaae Lhe resources of LhaL machlne Powever when a aroup of machlnes each runnlna 8MC are
clusLered LoaeLher Lhe 8MC framework allows a process on anv node Lo perform an operaLlon on one
or more resources on anv oLher node ln Lhe domaln

WhaL lnformaLlon ls sLored ln Cb[ecL uaLa Manaaer?

lL ls a daLabase of svsLem and devlce conflauraLlon lnformaLlon lnLearaLed lnLo l8M's Alx operaLlna
svsLem 1he CuM ls unlque Lo Alx compared Lo oLher unlx operaLlna svsLems

Lxample of lnformaLlon sLored ln Lhe CuM daLabase are

neLwork conflauraLlon
Loalcal volume manaaemenL conflauraLlon
lnsLalled sofLware lnformaLlon
uevlces LhaL Alx has drlvers for
Loalcal devlces or sofLware drlvers
hvslcal hardware devlce lnsLalled
Menus screens and commands LhaL SMl1 uses
Lxplaln a llLLle abouL vlLal roducL uaLa (vu)?

vu ln Alx and Llnux ls a collecLlon of conflauraLlon and lnformaLlonal daLa assoclaLed wlLh a parLlcular
seL of hardware or sofLware vu refers Lo a subseL of daLabase Lables ln Lhe Cb[ecL uaLa Manaaer
(CuM) 1herefore Lhe vu and CuM Lerms are someLlmes referred Lo lnLerchanaeablv

vlLal producL daLa (vu) sLores lnformaLlon such as parL numbers serlal numbers and enalneerlna
chanae levels from Lhe CusLomlzed vu ob[ecL class or plaLform speclflc areas noL all devlces conLaln
vu daLa

uoes PACM work on dlfferenL operaLlna svsLems?

?es PACM ls LlahLlv lnLearaLed wlLh Lhe Alx 3L operaLlna svsLem and SvsLem p servers allowlna for a
rlch seL of feaLures whlch are noL avallable wlLh anv oLher comblnaLlon of operaLlna svsLem and
hardware PACM v3 lnLroduces supporL for Lhe Llnux operaLlna svsLem on CWL8 servers PACM for
Llnux supporLs a subseL of Lhe feaLures avallable on Alx 3L however Lhls muLllplaLform supporL
provldes a common avallablllLv lnfrasLrucLure for vour enLlre enLerprlse
WhaL appllcaLlons work wlLh PACM?

All popular appllcaLlons work wlLh PACM lncludlna u82 Cracle SA WebSphere eLc PACM provldes
SmarL AsslsL aaenLs Lo leL vou qulcklv and easllv conflaure PACM wlLh speclflc appllcaLlons PACM
lncludes flexlble conflauraLlon parameLers LhaL leL vou easllv seL lL up for [usL abouL anv appllcaLlon
Lhere ls
uoes PACM supporL dvnamlc LA8 Cuou Cn/Cff Cou or C8u?

PACM supporLs uvnamlc Loalcal arLlLlonlna CapaclLv uparade on uemand Cn/Cff CapaclLv on
uemand and CapaclLv 8ackup uparade
lf a server has LA8 capablllLv can Lwo or more LA8s be conflaured wlLh unlque lnsLances of PACM
runnlna on Lhem wlLhouL lncurrlna addlLlonal llcense charaes?

?es PACM ls a server producL LhaL has one charae unlL number of processors on whlch PACM wlll be
lnsLalled or run 8eaardless of how manv LA8s or lnsLances of Alx 3L LhaL run ln Lhe server vou are
charaed based on Lhe number of acLlve processors ln Lhe server LhaL ls runnlna PACM noLe LhaL
PACM conflauraLlons conLalnlna mulLlple LA8s wlLhln a slnale server mav represenL a poLenLlal slnale
polnLoffallure 1o avold Lhls lL ls recommended LhaL Lhe backup for an LA8 be an LA8 on a dlfferenL
server or a sLandalone server



uoes PACM supporL nonl8M hardware or operaLlna svsLems?

?es PACM for Alx 3L supporLs Lhe hardware and operaLlna svsLems as speclfled ln Lhe manual where
PACM v34 lncludes supporL for 8ed PaL and SuSL Llnux
WhaL ls nmon Lool do?

1he nmon Lool ls deslaned for Alx and Llnux performance speclallsLs Lo use for monlLorlna and analvzlna
performance daLa lncludlna

Cu uLlllzaLlon
Memorv use
kernel sLaLlsLlcs and run queue lnformaLlon
ulsks l/C raLes Lransfers and read/wrlLe raLlos
lree space on flle svsLems
ulsk adapLers
neLwork l/C raLes Lransfers and read/wrlLe raLlos
aalna space and paalna raLes
Cu and Alx speclflcaLlon
1op processors
l8M P11 Web cache
userdeflned dlsk aroups
Machlne deLalls and resources
Asvnchronous l/C Alx onlv
Workload Manaaer (WLM) Alx onlv
l8M 1oLalSLoraae LnLerprlse SLoraae Server (LSS) dlsks Alx onlv
neLwork llle SvsLem (nlS)
uvnamlc LA8 (uLA8) chanaes onlv pSerles p3 and Cpenower for elLher Alx or Llnux
Also lncluded ls a new Lool Lo aeneraLe araphs from Lhe nmon ouLpuL and creaLe alf flles LhaL can be
dlsplaved on a Web slLe

WhaL ls Loalcal volume Manaaer(LvM) means?

1he seL of operaLlna svsLem commands llbrarv subrouLlnes and oLher Lools LhaL allow vou Lo esLabllsh
and conLrol loalcal volume sLoraae ls called Lhe Loalcal volume Manaaer (LvM)

WhaL ls a Loalcal parLlLlon?

A loalcal parLlLlon (LA8) ls Lhe dlvlslon of a compuLer's processors memorv and hardware resources
lnLo mulLlple envlronmenLs so LhaL each envlronmenL can be operaLed lndependenLlv wlLh lLs own
operaLlna svsLem and appllcaLlons

Lxplaln neLwork llle SvsLems(nlS)?

1he neLwork llle SvsLem (nlS) ls a dlsLrlbuLed flle svsLem LhaL allows users Lo access flles and dlrecLorles
of remoLe servers as lf Lhev were local Suppose

Server A LhaL makes lLs flle svsLems dlrecLorles and oLher resources avallable for remoLe access
CllenL's compuLers or Lhelr processes LhaL use a server's resources

LxporL Lhe acL of maklna flle svsLems avallable Lo remoLe cllenLs

MounL Lhe acL of a cllenL accesslna Lhe flle svsLems LhaL a server exporLs

WhaL ls neLwork lnformaLlon Servlce (nlS)?

nlS was developed Lo slmpllfv Lhe Lask of admlnlsLraLlna a number of machlnes over a neLwork ln
parLlcular was Lhe requlremenL Lo malnLaln coples of common flles (ea password aroup and hosL)
across dlfferenL svsLems

WhaL ls sofLware 8Alu Levels do?
8edundanL Arravs of lndependenL ulsks (8Alu) ls formallv deflned as a meLhod Lo sLore daLa on anv Lvpe
of dlsk medlum

LuA

1he LlahL ulrecLorv Access roLocol (LuA) deflnes a sLandard meLhod for accesslna and updaLlna
lnformaLlon ln a dlrecLorv (a daLabase) elLher locallv or remoLelv ln a cllenLserver model