HP-UX System Administrator's Guide: Routine Management Tasks

X-Window-based displays have been retained. See “System Management Homepage
(Text-Based)” (page 28).
HP-UX Commands
HP-UX commands provide you with the finest granularity of access to system
configuration but they require you to be careful to complete all the steps correctly. In
some cases, such as root home directory reconfiguration (see “Create the Root Home
Directory” in the HP-UX System Administrator’s Guide: Configuration Management), they
may be the only way to do it. In other cases, such as tweaking non-password data in
the password file, it’s just easier to run a command such as vipw. The following chapters
describe the use of HP-UX commands where they are necessary or convenient.
Generally, HP recommends that less-experienced system administrators use HP SMH
or HP SIM to manage systems wherever possible and convenient, because they are
designed to ensure that all the files and databases are updated and all the commands
are issued correctly.
Using HP SIM and HP SMH versus HP-UX Commands
HP SIM and HP SMH reduce the complexity of most administration tasks. They
minimize or eliminate the need for detailed knowledge of many administration
commands, thus saving valuable time. Use these utilities whenever possible, especially
when first mastering a task. Some tasks described in this manual cannot be done by
these utilities, in which case you will need to use the HP-UX commands. However,
these utilities are the tools of choice for much administration work.
TIP: Most tasks in HP SMH allow you to display the HP-UX commands that it will
use to perform the task at hand. Previewing these commands can help you learn how
to perform HP-UX administration tasks at the command line.
System Management Homepage (Web-Based)
The System Management Homepage (HP SMH) helps you with detailed system
administration. When you log in via the web (see “Starting an HP SMH Web Client”
(page 27)), you see a Home page that gives you access to a wide range of system
information and some principal areas of system configuration.
The Tools page, selectable from the menu bar, displays the full range of configuration
tools available through HP SMH. The following list summarizes the available tools,
based on the Mission Critical Operating Environment. Depending on OE, installation
choices, and added optional software, your Tools page may be different.
• Accounts for Users and Groups
24 Introduction