Preface
You are reading a book about Samba, a software suite that networks Windows, Unix, and other operating systems using Windows’ native networking protocol. Samba allows Unix servers to offer Windows networking services by matching the filesystem and networking models of Unix to those of Windows. Samba acts as a bridge between the two systems, connecting the corresponding parts of their architectures and providing a translation wherever necessary.
Bridging the gap between systems as dissimilar as Windows and Unix is a complex task, which Samba handles surprisingly well. To be a good Samba administrator, your abilities must parallel Samba’s. For starters, you need to know basic Unix system and network administration and have a good understanding of Windows filesystems and networking fundamentals. In addition, you need to learn how Samba fills in the “gray area” between Unix and Windows. Once you know how everything fits together, you’ll find it easy to configure a Samba server to provide your network with reliable and high-performance computational resources.
Our job is to make all of that easier for you. We do this by starting out with a quick and yet comprehensive tour of Windows networking in Chapter 1, followed by tutorially-oriented Chapter 2 and Chapter 3, which tell you how to set up a minimal Samba server and configure Windows clients to work with it. Most likely, you will be surprised how quickly you can complete the required tasks.
We believe that a hands-on approach is ...
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