Computer & Network Administration

• Course Title: Computer & Network Administration (mwd 260)
• CRN: 11806
• Credits: 3
• Prerequisites: mwd 110, cs 114, or cs 275
• Days: Mondays and Wednesdays
• Time: 10:30 – 11:45 am
• Room: 316, Charles A Dana Hall (map )
• Dates: 22 January – 5 May 2020
• Professor: Roy Vanegas (pronounced “vuh-nay-gus”)
• Email: vanegas at hartford dot edu
• Phone: 860.768.5925
• Office: Charles A Dana Hall, 310B
• Office hours: Drop-in or by appointment on the following days:
  • Mondays and Wednesdays: 9:00 – 10:00 am
  • Tuesdays: 10:00 am – 12:00 pm and 2:00 – 3:00 pm

Computer and network system administration is an increasingly complex and essential field. As the reliance of industry and government on computer systems increases so does the number and importance of system administrators. This course provides a practical problem-solving approach to the field of UNIX/LINUX computer and network system administration. Upon completion of this course, students are capable of configuring, administering, and supporting users on a UNIX/LINUX multi-user networked computer systems.

Upon successful completion of this course, students will understand...

• how to configure a terminal environment in Linux;
• how the Linux filesystem works;
• how to script in bash;
• how The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model works;
• how networking works, both for Linux systems and The Web;
• how to administer multiple users on a Linux system;
• and, how various monitors are handled in Linux.

There is no textbook for this course. Instead, there will be online readings and videos assigned on a bi-weekly basis. These will be listed in the Schedule section.

Room 302 in Dana Hall has six machines running the Ubuntu version of Linux. From left to right, their names are autechre, bauhaus, cappadonna, deftones, eluvium, and fugees, respectively. Do not reorder these machines, as this listing is important for their administration.

All you’ll need for this course will be a GitHub account. If you’d like to play with Linux on machines other than those in the lab, then you’ll need a USB flash drive onto which you’ll install Ubuntu.

Important Dates

• 26 February: No class (professor is at conference)
• 16 March: No class (spring recess)
• 18 March: No class (spring recess)

Check the University’s official calendar for other important dates.

Note: Time permitting, I will make every attempt to cover the topics listed below in order. However, depending on the cadence of the class, some topics may be overlooked.

Week	Topics	Homework
One	Visit lab Thorough syllabus breakdown	Carefully read the syllabus Open a GitHub account
Two	Booting to Ubuntu on a flash drive The difference between working with Ubuntu on a flash drive and working with it on a dedicated system Logging in to the Linux machines in the Dana 302 lab What is a shell? cli tutorial The bash environment	Do assignment 1 from the ungraded assignments repo
Three	Clone the in-class examples repo for the semester cli tutorial continued emacs tutorial	Do assignment 2 from the ungraded assignments repo
Four	An introduction to The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (fhs) Linux standard directory tree structure	Do assignment 3 from the ungraded assignments repo
Five	The fhs Linux standard directory tree structure continued An introduction to bash scripting	pending
Six	bash scripting continued	pending
Seven	pending	pending
Eight	In preparation for final exam, a review of material covered thus far	pending
Nine	Spring Recess	None
Ten	pending	pending
Eleven	pending	pending
Twelve	pending	pending
Thirteen	pending	pending
Fourteen	pending	pending
Fifteen	Evaluations	pending
Sixteen	Final exam*	Happy summer!

^*Date, time, and room pending.

• Digital devices. Your phones must be turned off before class starts. Not silent, but off. If you’re expecting an emergency call, provide them with The Dept’s phone numbers: 860.768.4039 or 860.768.4684. Someone in the office will come to the classroom to get you. Your final grade will be diminished by 10% for every occurrence of using your phone during class.
• Consuming food in class. There is no eating inside our classroom, either during class or while on break. Eat before or after class. Drinks in covered containers, however, are allowed.

We will go over the following document in detail on the first day of class.

• Advice for Succeeding in Class (in Markdown)
• Advice for Succeeding in Class (in pdf)

There are three homework-type assignments and one final exam. (See the Grading Standards section to learn what percentage of your final grade each is worth.)

1. Assignment (due XX February 2020)
2. Assignment (due XX March 2020)
3. Assignment (due XX April 2020)

Grading Formula

Your grade for this course — explained by The University of Hartford here — will be computed using the following formula:

1. Assignments (45%)
   • Assignment 1 — 15%
   • Assignment 2 — 15%
   • Assignment 3 — 15%
2. Final exam (45%)
3. Attendance and participation (10%)
   • Three unexcused absences alters the grading formula. First, the attendance and participation component of your grade increases to 40% from 10%. The 30% difference is taken from the assignments, each of which becomes worth 5%. Thus, all assignments are worth 15%, the final project remains at 45%, and attendance is worth 40%. Finally, the attendance portion of the grade becomes a 0, meaning that the highest grade you may achieve is 60 if you miss three classes without excuse and get perfect scores on all assignments and the final project.

To calculate your final grade, convert to decimal the percentages above and the grades you’ve earned. For example, if you got an 80 on the first assignment, a 93 on the second assignment, a 60 on the third assignment, a 100 on your final project, and 100 for attendance, then you’d use the following formula:

(.80 × .15) + (.93 × .15) + (.60 × .15) + (1 × .45) + (1 × .10) = 89%

I do not give grades — students earn them. The grade you earn is based strictly on the outlined formula clearly listed in this section.

This grading formula is unbending and will be adhered to strictly.

Important Note

Please do not try to negotiate a grade with me. By asking me to treat you favorably, you’re requesting that I put you above your classmates. Manage your time well; I do not accept late work.

Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated in this course; make certain that all the work you submit is your own. Refresh your understanding of the college’s policy on academic honesty.

Read about how The University of Hartford supports students with disabilities: https://www.hartford.edu/academics/academic-support/accessibility-services/default.aspx

I only communicate with students over email in emergency situations (pet emergency, personal tragedy, etc). For matters related to the class, you’re advised to see me in person before or after class, or during my office hours. My contact info is listed in the Preamble section above.

My office hours are walk-in for quick questions and by appointment for more involved academic inquiries.

• Office: Charles A Dana Hall, 310B
• Office hours: Drop-in or by appointment on the following days:
  • Mondays and Wednesdays: 9:00 – 10:00 am
  • Tuesdays: 10:00 am – 12:00 pm and 2:00 – 3:00 pm

If neither of the aforementioned times agrees with your schedule, we can make alternate arrangements to meet.