Centos 6/RHEL install and setup Webmin

Webmin is an established program for managing many aspects of unix systems. Written by Jamie Cameron, it has become an essential tool for the minimal Linux Desktop, with a multitude
of functions covering a wide range of tasks.

It is an impressive piece of work, made all the more so when you consider it was written almost entirely by a single author over something like half a lifetime. Mr Cameron is unquestionably a formidable talent in the web engineering world.

Consisting of CVS, Postfix Mail and SSH Servers and a number of CGI programs which directly update system files like /etc/inetd.conf and /etc/passwd, there are Network, Hardware and Cluster sections to complement the above giving a pretty comprehensive management system which makes life easier for the Linux user.

The web server and all CGI programs are written in Perl

You should find it invaluable in managing your Linux system as it can accomplish a huge variety of tasks with ease, a veritable Swiss army knife for Unix.

It is also a perfect fit for a minimal Centos 6/RHEL system. 

Here's what it looks like on Centos 6 using Chrome Browser


Install Webmin via the Webmin repo

$ sudo vi /etc/yum.repos.d/webmin.repo

Enter the text below

[Webmin]
name=Webmin Distribution Neutral
#baseurl=http://download.webmin.com/download/yum
mirrorlist=http://download.webmin.com/download/yum/mirrorlist
enabled=1

Import the gpg key

# rpm --import http://www.webmin.com/jcameron-key.asc

$ sudo yum -y install webmin

Make sure it's running 

$ sudo service webmin status

$ sudo service webmin start

To run automatically at startup use chkconfig

$ sudo chkconfig --level 2345 webmin on

Run it in any browser, address it http://localhost:10000

(Ignore the install message)

Once installed it will automatically update when a new version is released as shown in the image below.


Upgrading Webmin

A similar procedure is seen below for other software updates.


Updating other software packages

Webmin performs a vast array of maintenance tasks, below are examples of the Boot up and Shutdown tab in the System section and the Unused Modules section.


Bootup and Shutdown

Unused Modules 

Fluxbox or other window manager users (if using Chrome Browser) can create a shortcut to http://localhost:10000 

Click the tools menu and select 'create application shortcut'

That's it, pretty straightforward and a very useful installation.

There are no man pages so a useful source of extra information can be found at http://doxfer.webmin.com/Webmin




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