Basically this is the stuff I can’t remember how to do when I’m setting up Ubuntu as a backup server. Tested with Ubuntu Server 8.04.1 (Hardy Heron).

How do I turn off the dang bell (aka PC speaker beep)?

sudo rmmod pcspkr
sudo vi /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist

Then add:

blacklist pcspkr

How do I make arrow keys work in vi?

sudo apt-get install vim

How do I configure Ubuntu to have a static IP address?

sudo vi /etc/network/interfaces

Then replace:

auto eth0
iface eth0 inet dhcp

with:

auto eth0
iface eth0 inet static
address 192.168.1.100
netmask 255.255.255.0
network 192.168.1.0
broadcast 192.168.1.255
gateway 192.168.1.1

Note: This assumes your router’s (aka gateway’s) IP address is 192.168.1.1 and you want to assign a static IP of 192.168.1.100.

Finally run:

sudo /etc/init.d/networking restart

How do I install an SSH server?

sudo apt-get install openssh-server

How do I find out information about my processor (CPU)?

cat /proc/cpuinfo

How do I find out my external USB drive’s device location?

sudo fdisk -l

How do I manually mount an external USB drive?

sudo mkdir /media/usb0
sudo mount /dev/sdb1 /media/usb0

Note: Your USB drive may have been assigned a different device location than /dev/sdb1. Use sudo fdisk -l to find out.

How do I format an external USB drive?

sudo mkfs.ext3 /dev/sdb1

Note: Be very careful with this command. Make sure you have the correct device location.