Foreword

In these days, when there is a prevailing feeling that everything is living in the cloud, it is crucial that students understand there is still hardware with operating systems using resources which are not unlimited and cost real money. That the hardware is connected via networks that require proper security considerations. While cloud computing abstracts away many infrastructure concerns, system administrators must still comprehend the underlying fundamentals of how systems actually operate, consume resources, and interact with each other.

Students will use OpenBSD with its available source code, good license, secure reputation, and excellent documentation to learn system administration on Unix-like system. OpenBSD provides an ideal learning environment where students can examine every aspect of the system, understand resource constraints, and develop a deep appreciation for security-conscious system design. This hands-on approach with real hardware and actual resource limitations will prepare students for the realities of system administration, whether managing cloud infrastructure, on-premises servers, or hybrid environments.

— Jiří Navrátil