Robert M. Koretsky | Raspberry Pi 5 System Administration Basics (2026) [EPUB] [EN]

The first introductory chapter illustrates a basic set of text-based commands which are the predominant means that a system administrator uses to maintain the integrity of the system. User account control is an example of the fundamental integrity aspect of administration, requiring the addition of users and groups while maintaining secure access. Storage solutions involve integrating persistent media such as USB3 SSDs and NVMe drives, ensuring proper file system classification based on physical or virtual media, including NFSv4 and iSCSI setups.

The second chapter, which is the core of the book, covers many critical and pertinent system administration commands and facilities. For example, how to attach additional media to the Raspberry Pi 5 and how to install and boot the Raspberry Pi 5 from an NVMe SSD, rather than from the traditional microSD card medium. This chapter also covers many advanced topics to expand the beginner’s knowledge of system maintenance and control.

The third chapter shows how system administration is streamlined with systemd, which allows efficient service management. The systemd "superkernel" is a powerful initialization and service management framework that has revolutionized Linux system administration. It introduces a structured approach to system control through sub-commands and applications, enhancing system efficiency. At its core, systemd units and unit files serve as essential building blocks, defining system behavior.

The fourth chapter gives a basic introduction to the Python 3 programming language, with a complete explication of the syntax of the language, and many illustrative examples.

About the Author
Robert M. Koretsky is a retired lecturer in mechanical engineering, formerly of the University of Portland School of Engineering. He now writes books on UNIX and Linux, particularly for the Raspberry Pi SOC. His hobbies include woodworking and playing early 80s synth pop music.

Contents

1. Preface
2. 0.“Quick Start” into Sysadmin for the Raspberry Pi 5 OS
3. 0.1Objectives and Introduction
4. 0.2File Maintenance Commands and Help on Raspberry Pi 5 OS Command Usage
5. 0.3Utility Commands
6. 0.4Printing Commands
7. 0.5Chapter Summary
8. 1.Raspberry Pi 5 OS System Administration Fundamentals
9. 1.0Objectives and Introduction
10. 1.1System Administration the Easy Way
11. 1.2Installation of the Raspberry Pi 5 OS onto Various Media, and Preliminary System Configuration
12. 1.3Pre-and-Post Installation Considerations and Choices
13. 1.4System Services Administration, Startup, and Shutdown Procedures
14. 1.5User Administration
15. 1.6Basic Password Management
16. 1.7Determining and Changing File Access Privileges
17. 1.8File Systems, Connections to Persistent Media, and Adding Media to Your System
18. 1.9Installing ZFS, zpool, and zfs Command Syntax
19. 1.10Configuring a Printer
20. 1.11File System Backup and Recovery
21. 1.12rsync
22. 1.13Software Updates and Operating System Upgrades
23. 1.14System and Software Performance Monitoring and Adjustment
24. 1.15System Security
25. 1.16Virtualization Methodologies
26. 1.17Summary
27. 2.Applications of systemd for the Beginner
28. 2.0Objectives and Introduction
29. 2.1Applications of systemd for the Beginner
30. 2.2Bootup in the Initial RAM Disk (initrd)
31. vi.2.3systemd Units and Unit Files
32. 2.4Targets
33. 2.5Practicing on Target Units
34. 2.6Other Important systemd Commands
35. 2.7A Python3-Based Web Server as a “New-Style Daemon”
36. 2.8Chapter Summary
37. 3.Python 3
38. 3.0Objectives and Introduction
39. 3.1A Quickstart into Python 3 with the Thonny Integrated Development Environment
40. 3.2An Overview of the Python 3 Language
41. 3.3Python 3 Syntax
42. 3.4Practical Examples
43. 3.5Summary
44. 3.6Ultimate Reference Glossary
45. Index