Hi Guys,

We are in the process of setting up a web server and application using Apache/PHP/MySql on CENTOS5.6-64bit.

1) Is it necessary to install all the necessary OS updates before we configure the web server or the application?

2) Is it possible to administer the OS through GUI?

Thanks,
Avinash

Why wouldn't you want to have an up to date OS?



Yes, but you'll find the vast majority thinks this is not the best way to go, learn to use the command line.

Thank you for your response.

I am used to the command line for many years. I am just wondering if there was a possibility.

Also, my query was connected to configuring apache web server. Would there be any instance while installing/configuring Apache/PHP, where apache will tell me not to update the server becoz it has to do something!

The very first thing you should do upon getting any Linode is to update all the packages that come with the box by default, refreshing the package DB in the process to ensure you're pulling down the latest packages. Then you start installing stuff, at which point you're already up to date.

Thanks. Actually, i did install all the packages today.
Just waiting for the developers to start their work on the web server.
Is their a list of best practices for Apache/MySQL/PHP on CentOS 64bit edition?

The Linode Library has some good stuff for starters:

http://library.linode.com/

I think that's a quirk of .deb-based package management that doesn't apply to RPM-based systems. For CentOS, doing "yum -y update" should be sufficient for getting the latest 5.x packages and should pretty much be the first step taken on a new CentOS-based linode.

There's no particular reason that a debian package manager couldn't do updates/queries before any package installation. They just don't.

I think it's a matter of taste... I, for one, have been quite annoyed at yum's insistence on re-frobulating every single time, even when it just did it five minutes ago. When doing a bunch of distinct install commands, not having to go through the whole update dance is kind of a plus.

If you don't get the package update process you love, love the package update process you get.

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