Student responses to this Fall 2000 IS 431 final exam question. Original wording preserved. Spelling corrected. Editorial insertions are bracketed [like this]. Identity of the students has been deleted. Question: What did you learn by actually running a real server? Was doing it worth the extra work as compared to just talking about it? Answer: After having taken a course on network administration with the use of a server I had assumed that was all servers did: relay info to other computers on the network. As Information Systems majors it is assumed we would know what makes up an E-commerce site or at least what other potentials servers have. With little knowledge of web creation after taking a course on Web Development using Frontpage I hadn't the slightest idea what E-commerce was really about. Although I worked as the Web Developer/Designer [for the IS 431 course] I learned how CGI scripts worked and how to install Linux, something I never did before, and how data with scripts and other programs interacted. The extra work that was put forth into doing the whole project was worth while. I think you learn along the way instead of actually talking about the whole process of how this and that works. Having hands-on experiences enables you to learn minor mistakes that are usually not explained during lectures and also prepares for future jobs. By knowing such things such future projects could and would be easily solved leaving more time to solving difficult and larger tasks. Before this class I had no idea of CGI scripts, installing Linux, and anything that went on behind closed doors for those e-commerce sites on the Internet. After taking this course I would and should recommend this to ALL IS majors. It was fun!! Answer: I learned a lot by running a real server! I would have also liked to learn how to set up a site from the outside connection; may it be a T1, to the firewall, router, switches, to the servers, etc. Although it may be too much for the class it would be invaluable to learn, as this is what I am actually going to do in a few weeks. On doing the extra work, it is definitely worth it. It is actually essential to running a smooth business and server. Also a secure server. By doing the extra work better features and a better web site is the result. Also by running a real server I got to see more of Linux and its usage of assigning user's rights and group rights and things of that nature. Answer: I learned how CGI programs work. I enhanced my Perl skills. Also, I learned some mySQL and data base that how they work and interact with the server. I have learned how to install Linux on an empty machine. I improved my web designing skills both in HTML and Dreamweaver. Dreamweaver is easy to learn, yet it is powerful web tool. Also I have learned Apache server and Secure Sockets Layer. In brief, I have learned a lot about e-commerce business and how I can start such a business and what I need to know about the business in action. Answer: I leaned many things by actually running a real server. Now I know how to install Red Hat Linux 6.2, and gained knowledge of command keys, partitions, TCP/IP, CGI, Apache, SQL, and so on. After running the server it became very clear about whole structure of ecommerce. I think that it is a big difference between actually running the server and just reading book or talk about it. It took time but it was very worth spending time to learn about it. Because if I get out of school and start working, there will be no time to study or learn as I can do now. Answer: I learned many things by actually running a real server. That was actually a large part of the challenge that our group faced in completing this project. Running a web server was something that we knew nothing about. We spent a lot of our time in the beginning of this class working on, reinstalling, configuring, and reconfiguring our web server. I feel it was worth doing the extra work to a certain degree. I think we would have had more time to finish our project if we would have had to spend less time trying to learn our way around Linux and the Apache web server. Although I feel that spending that extra time learning Linux and how to configure the web server helped us in the end as we debugged the programming and database problems behind our website. I would say that it was helpful, but also very time consuming. Answer: Running a real server is different from just talking about it in several ways. First, you have a hands-on experience. There too many different files to talk about it. I learned how to start up SSH, mySQL daemons at boot time. I changed file mode and owner, created symbolic link to init, rc directories, I also learned to create accounts, set permissions, and move files to directories where a group can share. Second, I learned how to write Perl DBI for the mySQL server. I found out that I had to obtain, install, and configure additional modules to be able to write scripts: Data Dumper, mySQL plug-in, and DBI. Last, I made my server so that it can be accessed from remote locations. To do that, I installed SSH. SSH1 client can connect to SSH2 server, but it doesn't work the other way around. Answer: I really like this hands-on experience rather than just talking about it. When you actually build it, you recognized that it is not a easy task. Moreover, this hands-on experience helped me see what's effective and ineffective to the web sites, what a programmer can do and what they can't do. When I learned about install Linux, I had someone to ask when facing difficulty. If I did not learn by myself, I might not know what difficulties I would have to face and to resolve them. Although it takes a lot of time from us, it totally worth the extra work. Answer: In our group, the running of the server was solely in the hands of the system administrator. Although I did work on the machine, I was not really aware of what was going on in the background. Answer: To be perfectly honest, I don't know if I learned all that much about running a real server. If anything I think I was more confused on a lot of the different concepts. I feel because I spent too much of the time figuring out how to program our site, a lot of the other issues like this one was not addressed even though I did feel a little confused, I can say that I know more and are more aware of some of the issues regarding servers and how to run one. Like anything else doing extra work will always be of great worth than just talking about it. If we were to just talk about it and not do anything to back it up, I probably would have learned nothing. At least I can say I am aware of a lot of these issues, and if they were to arise in the future, I would be somewhat familiar. Answer: Running a real server has been a great learning experience for me. My knowledge of scripts, programs, operating systems, servers, daemons, and other components needed to run a server has greatly increased. Using Linux has been a eye opener. Simple tasks like inserting a disk into the a: is not so simple, if you don't know about mounting. It is critical for an administrator of a server to know the operating system. I have also learned how scripts work with programs to automate some processes that would normally be manual. For example, when someone purchases checks on our site, scripts pass variable information that is stored in our database to our credit card program for processing. It was really worth actually running a server because I have had a hands-on experience. Answer: I did learn a lot. Before the general idea about server was that it was a big physical device. But after running a real server I now know that it is the software which differentiates a server from a workstation. Also the server itself, by installing one, I now know that there is something such as the root. That when a person logs in as the root, he could delete or erase any file. I also now have a better idea of what partitioning is. I have also able to make myself more familiar with the unix commands in association to running a server. It was worth running a real server. Answer: I learned first of all how to run the install for Linux. It's free! The software is growing popularity for being a robust internet Operating System. Linux can save a company money by choosing its platform over Windows NT Server. I learned the steps and necessary components to set up a web server. It certainly is worth the extra work because it gave us experience. Answer: I learned quite a bit from running my own server. I learned that upgrading server operating systems should be done carefully and only after testing has been done. I also realized that servers are hard to maintain (especially if you are just learning). It was worth doing the extra work of running a real server than just talking about it because it gave me practical knowledge and has helped me learn more about Linux and how to build a website from scratch. Though there were a few issues regarding maintenance of multiple user accounts, hardware/software inoperability, and security, I have learned a lot from the experience. Answer: I learned how to install a server and run it. I learned how to partition the server. It was worth doing the extra work other than talking about it because "practice makes it better." We won't know the real thing until we try it ourself. By installing the server I learned actually how a server is installed and runned. It was not a easy thing to install because if you make one wrong choice the server won't work. And just by talking about it would not have helped me to see the real thing. You need to do it in order to know how to deal with it. Experience makes it better, and easy to understand. By running a real server I was able to gain real experience and skills about how it runs and how to operate it. I was able to learn how to handle it. Answer: Running a real server was like completing a program and it's more exciting, because you know it works, you installed it yourself and feel a sense of pride in the end result. It gave me a better understand of how it actually worked and that it really does go down when people in the computer lab says "the server's down!" It also makes me want to protect it like my own baby, and make sure it works properly. It was worth doing the extra work rather than talking about it because it was more real. It made the project more exciting. By doing the extra work, I've gain experience on running a real server on a simulated web site and made the site more realistic. Talking about it is half the fun. Answer: I learned how to properly (the optimum way) install a Linux server and have it configured correctly. This included how should the partitions be divided, how to mount an IDE device like zip drive, how to configure the apache server so that it's CGI-enabled, how to install other servers like sshd, mysqld, etc, how to add programs in the startup script, how to properly shut down, restart, stop servers like httpd, how to enable/disable inetd processes, how to listen on ports that are open, so that I know who and how many times people try to access them and how to maintain the server to ensure almost 100% of uptime (with the help of UPS). It was worth the extra work. Answer: From building a e-commerce site from scratch I discovered that it takes a lot of time and patience and that team work is a must. I know that our site would not have gotten completed had it not been for everyone's input on the team. Running a real server is complicated but actually doing it has given me more understanding than just being given a lecture in class. I learn better when I actually apply the things taught to me and discovering as I go along things I did wrong and how to make them work. I discovered that by taking the MBTI [Myers Briggs Type Indicator]. See, I did learn something in class. But seriously I recommend teaching the course like this again. Learning by actually making a server run and work is valuable resource. Frustrating at times but definitely worth it in the end.