I recently realized I am deficient in that area and would like learn the basics, enough so I could (hypothetically) buy a slice from slicehost and set it up.
Does anyone have any good primers/online tutorials?
Gentoo feels like someone sat down to a Debian or CentOS system, used it for a while, and said, "You know, I really like it when I have to compile stuff from scratch, and make all of my own decisions about options and stuff and what tools to use, even though I have no idea what the difference is between various init systems, FTP servers, versions of Apache, configuration tools, etc. I don't like how easy and quick installing software from apt-get or yum is, or how it all seems to Just Work when it's done. I know, I'll borrow some ideas from FreeBSD's far more complicated to use and error-prone package management tools, and make a whole new Linux distribution that requires significantly more time and effort to use! It'll be awesome!" And a billion and one nerds with too much time on their hands saw it, loved it, and climbed right on board.
I'm sure I'll be voted down for this, as Gentoo has rabid fans, but I'm always stunned by how effectively the community markets Gentoo to new Linux users, and what an astonishingly bad experience it provides to those new users. Encouraging learning is wonderful, but foisting a seriously challenging learning experience on to users while calling it an "easy to use" Linux distribution is doing them, and Linux in general, a grave disservice. Gentoo is not easy to use, and it is extremely easy to break.
Of course, that narrows it down to Debian, Ubuntu, RHEL, and CentOS. But all of those are absolutely fantastic in current versions (though I generally like Debian better on servers than Ubuntu--I just don't think the changes they've made make it a better system).
I have used them for setting up my own slice and it worked out really well.
I couldn't be happier. The tutorials (especially the ones for Ubuntu) are fantastic, and setting up your server and security with shorewall/etc couldn't be more painless. I probably took only an hour and had apache/php/mysql and rails up and running securely.
Major points to slicehost for the high quality walkthroughs- and for 20 bucks a month, it's more than worth it to just get a slice and jump in. That's something I'd highly recommend (No, i don't work for them, I'm just very happy!)
At times, system administration will make you want to kill yourself, but it's worth learning. Building your own slice is a great way to start.
If you haven't already done so, download an install ISO for Debian/Ubuntu or CentOs/Fedora, and install it on a spare machine, or even in a VMWare image on your regular workstation. Work through some of the examples on HowtoForge, and learn to install and configure Apache, MySQL and/or PostgreSQL, PHP/Ruby/Python, and Postfix or Exim w/basic spam filters.
Running a virtual private server (VPS) is a bit easier, in the sense that you don't have to manage the actual hardware, but the fundamentals are the same, and you'll be glad you have physical access to the system when you screw up the configuration or forget the root password. Get comfortable maintaining a machine locally, then go out and inflict your administration skills on the 'net at large.
For me, the best way to learn is to just go at it. I recommend Ubuntu for ease of use, and the Ubuntu community can be quite helpful in getting a server set up. I just started with basic LAMP and then used google to find tutorials on adding and configuring other things such as virtual hosts, SSL, etc. I found it to be a pretty good way to learn.
Something to think about when using slicehost...when they give you a fresh OS install, there is very litte on it. There is only the bare minimum to bring the server up. The 'man' command isn't even installed! It might be a bit tougher for people without much commandline admin experience.
Its online tutorials are not as abundant say to FreeBSD, let alone Ubuntu; however, you want quality, not quantity - Excellent man pages
OpenBSD is created and used by people who love their own craft -- you can feel it -- When I'm forced to use Ubuntu, i felt like i was using Windows ... I miss OpenBSD dearly
Maybe there's a blub paradox playing in OS
You probably want tutorials/recipes based on your deploy platform: PHP, rails, django each have a bunch. Ezra Z's rails deployment book is outstanding.
And a bunch of threads have gone over the Freebsd/OpenBSD, non-BSD choices, look in
searchyc.com http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=197878
But besides that; I can't really speak to either of them.
1. Slicehost makes you prepay 3 months to get started. Linode charges month to month with discounts if you prepay.
2. Slicehost does not prorate if you decide you don't like the service. Ie. Try it for 1 week and the rest of those three weeks are lost. Linode prorates on a daily basis, whatever you don't use they give you the money back.
3. Slicehost customer service is slow and more reliant on the community boards. Linode responds to emails within 8-10 hours.
4. Slicehost does not give you as much RAM (which is a lot more valuable). Linode gives you 15% more.
5. Slicehost's web admin is clumsy and crappy. Linode has a very useful admin that does everything from host management to network/cpu graphs to account management.
Point 3 was a comparison of response rates in customer service. Linode has been consistently faster in response time for both tech and billing response. My billing inquiries to Slicehost and my tech inquiries had longer turnaround.
Point 4 was a comparison of product offerings. Linode doesn't list a 4Gb memory option but I'm sure you can ask them for it but this wasn't in contention.
Point 5: I can flesh this out into paragraphs. Would that make you feel better?