Overview

One of the more fundamental tasks of administering a Red Hat Linux server is setting up and supporting user accounts. Computers, after all, are tools to be used by people. Apocalyptic science fiction plots aside, computers have no purpose without users.

When you install Red Hat Linux, you are required to create the root (administrator) user account. The first time you boot Red Hat Linux, you are asked to create a regular user account, using any name you choose. Several other administrative user accounts are set up automatically that you will probably never use directly.

This chapter discusses the basics of setting up a user account and offers tips on easing the burden of supporting a large number of Red Hat Linux users.