Linux: Preparation Steps

Please note: Thomas College provides only limited support to Linux users.

This document explains how to connect a Linux computer to the Thomas College network and the internet.

Before Following This Guide

Before you go through this guide it is assumed that you have already installed an ethernet adapter in your machine and it is working with your Linux distribution. Ethernet cards are available from the Thomas Bookstore. To install a new card follow the instructions that come with it. For more information on getting an ethernet card to work with your Linux distribution, please consult the Ethernet-HOWTO for information on how to do this.

Verify your network card is installed and setup your DHCP client

If you have setup the network card check it is working by running /sbin/ifconfig from an xterm - there should be an entry for the interface eth0 see the example below: 
eth0      Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:AA:00:C8:6F:4F
          inet addr:172.21.16.101  Bcast:172.21.19.255  Mask:255.255.252.0
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:2401713 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:1163370 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:1163370
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:100
          Interrupt:11 Base address:0x210
lo        Link encap:Local Loopback
          inet addr:127.0.0.1  Mask:255.0.0.0
          UP LOOPBACK RUNNING  MTU:3924  Metric:1
          RX packets:112 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:112 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:0
Next, ensure that you have a dhcp-client installed. To do this on RPM Distributions such as RedHat or Mandrake, you can run rpm -q dhcp-client from an xterm.