The Linux Documentation Project
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 Documentation - Guides  Ordered by Last Update


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.


Linux Documentation Project Guides

  • LDP Author Guide

    version: 3.11
    author(s): Mark F. Komarinski, <>
    Jorge Godoy, <>
    David C. Merrill, <>
    last update: January 2002
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 415k)
    3. PDF (822k)
    4. other : plain text, PDF, and PostScript.

    Lists the tools, procedures, and hints to get LDP authors up to speed and writing.

    There are many ways to contribute to the Linux movement without actually writing code. One of the most important is writing documentation, allowing each person to share their knowledge with thousands of others around the world. This Guide is designed to help you get familiar with how the LDP works, and what tools you'll need to write your own HOWTO.

  • Advanced Bash-Scripting Guide

    version: 1.1
    author: Mendel Cooper, <>
    last update: January 2002
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 275k)
    3. PDF (900k)
    4. other : plain text, PDF, PostScript, and SGML (DocBook) source.

    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.

  • Linux From Scratch

    version: 3.1
    author: Gerard Beekmans, <>
    last update: December 2001
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 175k)
    3. PDF (901k)
    4. other : plain text, PDF, PostScript, and XML (DocBook) source.

    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 http://linuxfromscratch.org.

  • Emacspeak User's Guide

    version: 1.2
    author: Jennifer Jobst, <>
    last update: December 2001
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 25k)
    3. PDF (91k)
    4. other : plain text, PDF, PostScript, and SGML (DocBook) source.

    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.

  • The Linux System Administrators' Guide

    version: 0.7
    author(s): Lars Wirzenius, Joanna Oja, and Stephen Stafford
    last update: November 2001
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 150k)
    3. PDF (332k)
    4. other : PDF, PostScript, and SGML source
    5. various (non-English) translations

    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 System Administrators' Guide Homepage.

  • The Bugzilla Guide

    version: 2.14
    author: Matthew P. Barnson, <>
    last update: August 2001
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 471k)
    3. PDF (584k)
    4. other : plain text, PDF, PostScript, and SGML (DocBook) source.

    This document is intended to be the comprehensive guide to the installation, administration, maintenance, and use of the Bugzilla bug-tracking system.

  • Linux Kernel 2.4 Internals

    version: 1.2
    author: Tigran Aivazian, <>
    last update: August 2001
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 73k)
    3. PDF (260k)
    4. other : plain text, PostScript, and SGML (Linuxdoc) source.

    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.

  • Linux Consultants Guide

    version: 7.6.6
    author: Joshua Drake
    last update: April 2001
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 170k)
    3. PDF (1.2M)
    4. other : plain text, PostScript, and SGML (DocBook) source.

    Replacement for the Consultants-HOWTO. A listing of companies providing commercial Linux related support. For further information, see http://www.linuxports.com.

  • Securing and Optimizing Linux Red Hat Edition - A Hands on Guide

    version: 1.3
    author(s): Gerhard Mourani, <>
    last update: August 2000
    ISBN: 0-9700330-0-1
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 1.5MB)
    3. PDF (5MB)
    4. other : plain text, PDF, and XML (DocBook) source.
    5. Example server configuration files (tar file; described in book as "floppy.tgz").

    This book addresses unanswered questions about Linux security and optimization in the marketplace. It is intended for a technical audience and discusses how to install a Red Hat Linux Server with all the necessary security and optimization for a high performance Linux-specific machine. It covers (in detail) several ways to configure security and optimization.

    Due to a many requests from Linux users, this update includes: a backup section, firewall security approach, Sendmail section, Kernel security and improvement, FTP chrooted configuration and many other changes. This document is indispensable for people that want to get all the advantages, security, and the optimization out of a Linux Server.

    Additional changes to this version include- OpenSSH has been added, Sendmail 8.10.1, the book is now compatible with Red Hat Linux 6.2. The firewall rules has been reviewed for easy use, more securities tips added, and how to use the new "sysctl.conf" file of RH 6.2.

    More information: Printed books section.

    This book can be purchased from bookstores, more information can be found here.

  • The Linux Network Administrator's Guide, Second Edition

    version: 1.1
    author(s): Olaf Kirch and Terry Dawson
    last update: March 2000
    ISBN: 1-56592-400-2
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 690k)
    3. PDF (1.5MB)
    4. other : PDF, PostScript, and SGML (DocBook) source.

    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.

  • 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: http://www.seifried.org/lasg/

  • Linux System Administration Made Easy

    version: 1.06
    author(s): Steve Frampton
    last update: November 1999
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 99k)
    3. other : PDF, PostScript, text, and SGML source

    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.

  • The Linux Kernel Module Programming Guide

    version: 1.1.0
    author(s): Ori Pomerantz
    last update: May 1999
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 67k)
    3. other : DVI, PDF, PostScript, and LaTeX source.
    4. Example source code is also available.

    This document is for people who want to write kernel modules.


Older/Unmaintained (but still pertinent!) Guides

  • The Linux Network Administrators' Guide

    version: 1.0
    author(s): Olaf Kirch
    last update: March 1996
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 332k)
    3. other : plain text, DVI, LaTeX source, PDF, and PostScript.
    4. various (non-English) translations

    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.

  • The Linux Programmer's Guide

    version: 0.4
    author(s): B. Scott Burkett, Sven Goldt, John D. Harper, Sven van der Meer and Matt Welsh
    last update: March 1996
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 140k)
    3. other : DVI, LaTeX source, PDF and PostScript.
    4. Example source code is also available.
    5. various (non-English) translations

    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.

  • The Linux Users' Guide

    version: beta-1
    author(s): Larry Greenfield
    last update: December 1996
    available formats:
    1. other : DVI, PDF (gzipped / zipped), PostScript (gzipped / zipped), and LaTeX source
    2. various (non-English) translations

    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.

  • The Linux Kernel Hackers' Guide

    version: not available
    author(s): Michael K. Johnson
    last update: August 1998
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 468k)

    This is an older, archived instance; complete with discussion threads (no posting or replying however).

  • Installation and Getting Started Guide

    version: 3.2
    author(s): Matt Welsh and others
    last update: March 1998
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 836k)
    3. other : HTML (zipped), DVI, PDF (gzipped / zipped), PostScript (gzipped / zipped), and LaTeX source.
    4. various (non-English) translations

    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.

  • The Linux Kernel

    version: 0.8-3
    author(s): David A. Rusling
    last update: January 1998
    available formats:
    1. HTML (read online)
    2. HTML (tarred and gzipped package, 376k)
    3. other : DVI, PostScript (gzipped), and LaTeX source.

    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 http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/docs/LDP/.    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   EN es           ru sl
Kernel Hackers Guide   EN                
Linux Kernel   EN                
Linux Schulung DE                  
Module Programming Guide   EN                
Network Guide   EN es              
Programmers Guide   EN es              
System Administration Guide   EN   fr it     pt    
Users Guide   EN es   it          


 legend:
de = German, en = English, es = Spanish, fr = French, it = Italian, ja = Japanese,
pl = Polish, pt = Portuguese, ru = Russian, sl = Slovenian

Uppercase letters indicate that this is the document's original language.


The Linux Documentation Project
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Joshua Drake,
Greg Ferguson,

Last Modified: 2001-12-18