Linux Documentation Project Guides
The Linux Documentation Project (LDP) is working on developing good, reliable documentation for the Linux operating system. The overall goal of the LDP is to collaborate in taking care of all of the issues of Linux documentation, ranging from online documentation (man pages, HTML, and so on) to printed manuals covering topics such as installing, using, and running Linux. Here is the Linux Documentation Project Manifesto and Copyright License for LDP works.
Translations of LDP works (languages other than English) can be found on the "Non-English Linux Info" links page.
Additional documentation (HOWTOs, FAQs, etc) can be found here.
Older and unmaintained (but still pertinent) guides can be found here.
Search the LDP documents from our search page.
| Current / Maintained Guides |
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version: 3.1 author: Mendel Cooper, <> last update: Nov 2004 available formats: This document is both a tutorial and a reference on shell scripting with Bash. It assumes no previous knowledge of scripting or programming, but progresses rapidly toward an intermediate/advanced level of instruction. The exercises and heavily-commented examples invite active reader participation. Still, it is a work in progress. The intention is to add much supplementary material in future updates to this document, as it evolves into a comprehensive book that matches or surpasses any of the shell scripting manuals in print.
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version: 3.0 author: David Horton, <> last update: Nov 2004 available formats: The Pocket Linux Guide is for anyone interested in learning the techniques of building a GNU/Linux system from source code. The guide is structured as a project that builds a small diskette-based GNU/Linux system called Pocket Linux. Each chapter explores a small piece of the overall system explaining how it works, why it is needed and how to build it. After completing the Pocket Linux project, readers should possess an enhanced knowledge of what makes GNU/Linux systems work as well as the confidence to explore larger, more complex source-code-only projects.
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version: 1.4 author: Machtelt Garrels, <> last update: Oct 2004 available formats: The Bash Guide for Beginners gets you started with Bash scripting and bridges the gap between the Bash HOWTO and the Advanced Bash Scripting Guide. Everybody who wants to make life easier on themselves, power users and sysadmins alike, can benefit from reading this practical course. The guide contains lots of examples and exercises at the end of each chapter, demonstrating the theory and helping you practice. Bash is available on a wide variety of UNIX, Linux, MS Windows and other systems.
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version: 2.4.0 authors: Christine Lorenz, IBM
Joy Goodreau, IBM
Kylie Smith, IBMlast update: September, 2004 available formats: This book is designed to address user's questions about Enterprise Volume Management System (EVMS) and provide a context for using EVMS. For additional information about EVMS or to ask questions specific to your distribution, the EVMS mailing lists are an excellent resource. You can view the list archives or subscribe to the lists from the .
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version: 0.16 author: Binh Nguyen, < last update: August 2004 available formats: - HTML (read online)
- HTML (read online, single file, 7.9M)
- HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 1.5M)
- PDF (8.0M)
- PostScript (1.7M)
- text (gzipped, 1.6M)
- PluckerDB (1.8M)
- directory listing (contains .deb and .rpm packages)
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version: 0.65 author: Binh Nguyen, <> last update: July 2004 available formats: This document outlines the set of requirements and guidelines for file and directory placement under the Linux operating system according to those of the FSSTND v2.3 final (January 29, 2004) and also its actual implementation on an arbitrary system. It is meant to be accessible to all members of the Linux community, be distribution independent and is intended discuss the impact of the FSSTND and how it has managed to increase the efficiency of support interoperability of applications, system administration tools, development tools, and scripts as well as greater uniformity of documentation for these systems.
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The Linux Kernel Module Programming Guide
available versions: 2.4 and 2.6 authors: Peter Jay Salzman, Michael Burian, Ori Pomerantz last update: July 2004 available formats
(kernel version 2.6):available formats
(kernel version 2.4):A guide to programming Linux kernel modules.
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version: 4.5 authors: Mark F. Komarinski, <>
Jorge Godoy, <>
David C. Merrill, <>
Emma Jane Hogbinlast update: Jul 2004 available formats: This guide describes the process of submitting and publishing a document with The Linux Documentation Project (TLDP). It includes information about the tools, toolchains and formats used by TLDP. The document's primary audience is new TLDP authors, but it also contains information for seasoned documentation authors.
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Introduction to Linux - A Hands on Guide
version: 1.15 author: Machtelt Garrels, <> last update: Jul 2004 ISBN: 90-808529-1-0 available formats: This guide was created as an overview of the Linux Operating System, geared toward new users as an exploration tour and getting started guide, with exercises at the end of each chapter. For more advanced trainees it can be a desktop reference, and a collection of the base knowledge needed to proceed with system and network administration. This book contains many real life examples derived from the author's experience as a Linux system and network administrator, trainer and consultant. We hope these examples will help you to get a better understanding of the Linux system and that you feel encouraged to try out things on your own.
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Custom Linux: A Porting Guide - Porting LinuxPPC to a Custom SBC
version: 2.1 author: Shie Erlich, <> last update: Mar 2004 available formats: This guide describes a work in progress, to port Linux to a custom PowerPC-based board. This means making the operating system work on unfamiliar hardware. Anyone, who is on the same track might benefit from reading this paper, as it highlights the pitfalls and problematic points along the way.
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Guide to Managing Media and Public Relations in the Linux Community
version: 1.0 author: The Linux Professional Institute
Sheldon Roselast update: Jan 2004 available formats: This guide provides useful information on how to generate positive public relations and news media coverage for Linux.
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Windows+BSD+Linux Installation Guide
version: 1.2 author: Subhasish Ghosh, < last update: Jan 2004 available formats: Currently under review... Explains how three different operating systems can be installed and configured on the same hard disk of a computer. The reader may choose from: Microsoft Windows 95/98(Second Edition)/Millennium edition(ME)/NT/2K/XP + FreeBSD 4.7-RELEASE/OpenBSD 3.2-RELEASE + Linux. Only Intel architecture multi-booting is discussed and GNU GRUB is the boot-loader of choice.
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The Linux System Administrators' Guide
version: 0.8 authors: Lars Wirzenius, Joanna Oja, Stephen Stafford, and Alex Weeks last update: December 2003 available formats: This is the third book in the main LDP series, and assumes knowledge of everything in the Installation and Users' Guides. It will cover all of the aspects of keeping the system running, handling user accounts, backups, configuration of the system, installing and upgrading software, and more. Whereas some of this information is in the Installation Guide (just to get the system off the ground) this book should be much more complete.
Also visit the . -
version: 5.0 author: Gerard Beekmans, <> last update: November 2003 available formats: Derived from the popular Linux-From-Scratch-HOWTO, this book describes the process of creating your own Linux system from scratch from an already installed Linux distribution, using nothing but the sources of software that are needed.
More information can be found at .
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version: 2.16.3 author: Matthew P. Barnson, <> last update: April 2003 available formats: This document is intended to be the comprehensive guide to the installation, administration, maintenance, and use of the Bugzilla bug-tracking system.
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version: 8.0 author: Joshua Drake last update: November 2002 available formats: Replacement for the Consultants-HOWTO. A listing of companies providing commercial Linux related support. For further information, see .
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author: Tigran Aivazian, <> last update: August 2002 available formats: An introduction to the Linux 2.4 kernel. The author is working as senior Linux kernel engineer at VERITAS Software Ltd and wrote this book for the purpose of supporting the short training course/lectures he gave on this subject, internally at VERITAS.
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Securing & Optimizing Linux: The Ultimate Solution
version: 2.0 author: Gerhard Mourani, <> last update: July 2002 available formats: - PDF (6.2MB)
- Example server configuration files (tar file; described in book as "floppy.tgz").
Mastering security with Linux and getting the maximum out of your system have never been easier. Securing & Optimizing Linux: The Ultimate Solution (v2.0) has been written and achieved with tightening security to an incomparable level in mind. One of its main features is the easy path from beginning to end in a smooth manner, step by step for beginners as well as for experts.
More information: .
older version: Securing and Optimizing Linux Red Hat Edition - A Hands on Guide
version: 1.3 author: Gerhard Mourani, <> last update: August 2000 available formats: - HTML (read online)
- HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 1.5MB)
- PDF (4.9MB)
- Example server configuration files (tar file; described in book as "floppy.tgz").
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version: 1.3 author: Jennifer Jobst, <> last update: July 2002 available formats: This document helps Emacspeak users become familiar with Emacs as an audio desktop and provides tutorials on many common tasks and the Emacs applications available to perform those tasks.
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The Linux Cookbook: Tips and Techniques for Everyday Use
Removed at the author's request.
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The Linux Network Administrator's Guide, Second Edition
version: 1.1 authors: Olaf Kirch and Terry Dawson last update: March 2000 ISBN: 1-56592-400-2 available formats: This book was written to provide a single reference for network administration in a Linux environment. Beginners and experienced users alike should find the information they need to cover nearly all important administration activities required to manage a Linux network configuration. The possible range of topics to cover is nearly limitless, so of course it has been impossible to include everything there is to say on all subjects. We've tried to cover the most important and common ones. We've found that beginners to Linux networking, even those with no prior exposure to Unix-like operating systems, have found this book good enough to help them successfully get their Linux network configurations up and running and get them ready to learn more.
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Linux Administrator's Security Guide
Removed at the request of the author (book is now more "dynamic"). Please access the Linux Administrator's Security Guide at the following location:
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Linux System Administration Made Easy
version: 1.06 author: Steve Frampton last update: November 1999 available formats: The Linux Administration Made Easy (LAME) guide attempts to describe day-to-day administration and maintenance issues commonly faced by Linux system administrators.
This book can be purchased from bookstores, more information can be found here.
| Older / Unmaintained (but still pertinent) Guides |
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The Linux Network Administrators' Guide
version: 1.0 author: Olaf Kirch last update: March 1996 available formats: This guide supplements the System Administrators' Guide and cover all of the diverse issues of networking under Linux, from UUCP to serial connections to TCP/IP. Many Linux users won't have access to such a network, so this information is in a separate manual. It contains an intro to TCP/IP and UUCP (for those who have never used such networks before, lots of background information), TCP/IP, UUCP, SLIP, and DNS configuration, configuration of mail systems such as sendmail and Smail, setting up NNTP and news, and NFS.
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version: 0.4 authors: B. Scott Burkett, Sven Goldt, John D. Harper, Sven van der Meer and Matt Welsh last update: March 1996 available formats: The Linux Programmer's Guide is meant to do what the name implies -- It is to help Linux programmers understand the peculiarities of Linux. By its nature, this also means that it should be useful when porting programs from other operating systems to Linux. Therefore, this guide must describe the system calls and the major kernel changes which have effects on older programs like serial I/O and networking.
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version: beta-1 author: Larry Greenfield last update: December 1996 available formats: - : DVI, PDF (gzipped / zipped), PostScript (gzipped / zipped), and LaTeX source
This book covers all of the user-end aspects of Linux, from sitting down at the first login session to using complex tools such as gcc, emacs, and so on. It assumes no previous Unix experience, so not only will it serve as an introduction to Linux, but to Unix in general as well. This manual won't cover system administrator tasks (i.e. anything that needs to be done as root) - it's for the J. Random User who has a working Linux system sitting in front of them.
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The Linux Kernel Hackers' Guide
version: not available author: Michael K. Johnson last update: August 1998 available formats: This is an older, archived instance; complete with discussion threads (no posting or replying however).
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Installation and Getting Started Guide
version: 3.2 authors: Matt Welsh and others last update: March 1998 available formats: This book is for personal computer users who want to install and use Linux. The book assumes that you have basic knowledge about personal computers and operating systems like MS-DOS, but no previous knowledge of Linux or UNIX.
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version: 0.8-3 author: David A. Rusling last update: January 1998 available formats: The kernel is at the heart of the operating system. This book is a guide to how the kernel fits together, how it works; a tour of the kernel.
| Translated Guides |
Below is a table of translated guides that are available from . Additional translations of LDP works and translated documentation not listed here may be found on the "Non-English Linux Info" page.
| de | en | es | fr | it | ja | pl | pt | ru | sl | |
| Install Guide | ||||||||||
| Kernel Hackers Guide | ||||||||||
| Linux Kernel | ||||||||||
| Linux Schulung | ||||||||||
| Module Programming Guide | ||||||||||
| Network Guide | ||||||||||
| Network Admin Guide, 2nd ed | ||||||||||
| Programmers Guide | ||||||||||
| System Administration Guide | ||||||||||
| Users Guide | ||||||||||
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| Additional Guides of Interest |
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Linux Palm Developer's Quick Start Guide
version: 1.0 author(s): Jim Weller last update: February 2001 available formats: This guide is intended to help those new to palm programming get started. It assumes a fair knowledge of linux and gnu tools. It takes you from clueless to able to compile a HelloWorld type application.
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TrinityOS: A Guide to Configuring Your Linux Server for Performance, Security, and Managability
author(s): David A. Ranch available formats: - Various formats available from another
TrinityOS and its associated archive scripts guide the Linux user in a step-by-step fashion using a common example throughout to configure over 50+ Internet services. The main focus of TrinityOS is to do this in a secure fashion while keeping both performance and managability in mind. The documents also guide the user in other advanced topics such as aquiring their own Internet domain(s), moving DNS servers, confirming if you've been hacked, fighting SPAM email, and fixing various Linux file system, partition, LILO, and data recovery problems.
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author(s): the VideoLAN project last update: September 2003 available formats: - HTML (read online)
- tarred/gzipped (106K)
- PDF (440K)
- text(8.5M)
This document describes how to start using VideoLAN quickly.
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VLC (VideoLAN Client) User Guide
author(s): the VideoLAN project last update: September 2003 available formats: - HTML (read online)
- tarred/gzipped (118K)
- PDF (506K)
- text
This document is the complete user guide of VLC, the VideoLAN Client.
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VLS (VideoLAN Server) User Guide
author(s): the VideoLAN project last update: September 2003 available formats: - HTML (read online)
- tarred/gzipped (123K)
- PDF (471K)
- text
This document is the complete user guide of VLS, the VideoLAN Server.