Overview
This unit gives you a practical introduction to system and network service management and administration. You are provided with the skills necessary to configure and manage secure server environments and deliver network services. You will cover topics such as managing computer systems and users, managing network services, configuring and managing system and network software, computer security mechanisms and ethics, and developing administrative policies and procedures. You will use a Linux operating system as a practical platform to apply and demonstrate knowledge.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisite: COIT12206 - TCP/IP Principles and Protocols OR, COIT13147 - Networks.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2026
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Feedback
Some students reported that the assignment specifications and marking criteria were inconsistent.
Revise the assignment specifications and marking criteria for better consistency.
Feedback from Teaching Team
The instructions for installing and using DokuWiki in Week 7 are outdated, as the new Ubuntu versions (22.04 or later) no longer support older PHP versions.
Update the Week 7 teaching materials to align with the new Ubuntu version, i.e., 22.04 or 24.04.
- Use administration commands and utilities to manage and secure computer systems
- Configure and deploy the common system and network services
- Demonstrate the ability to perform user management and maintenance tasks
- Describe how elements of relevant codes of ethics inform professional practice
- Develop, deploy and evaluate security policies and rules.
The Australian Computer Society (ACS) recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is adopted by organisations, governments and individuals in many countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles. ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile.
This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA 7 (the SFIA code is included):
- Network Support (NTAS)
- Problem Management (PBMG)
- System Design (DESN)
- Incident Management (USUP)
The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Framework defines knowledge, skills and tasks needed to perform various cyber security roles. Developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the NICE Framework is used by organisations to plan their workforce, including recruit into cyber security positions.
This unit helps prepare you for roles such as Systems Security Analyst, Network Operations Specialist and Systems Administrator, contributing to the following knowledge and skills:
- K0035 Knowledge of installation, integration, and optimization of system components.
- K0060 Knowledge of operating systems.
- K0076 Knowledge of server administration and systems engineering theories, concepts, and methods.
- K0088 Knowledge of systems administration concepts.
- K0130 Knowledge of virtualization technologies and virtual machine development and maintenance.
- K0167 Knowledge of system administration, network, and operating system hardening techniques.
- K0275 Knowledge of configuration management techniques.
- K0289 Knowledge of system/server diagnostic tools and fault identification techniques.
- K0290 Knowledge of systems security testing and evaluation methods.
- S0043 Skill in maintaining directory services. (e.g., Microsoft Active Directory, LDAP, etc.).
- S0143 Skill in conducting system/server planning, management, and maintenance.
- S0144 Skill in correcting physical and technical problems that impact system/server performance.
- S0150 Skill in implementing and testing network infrastructure contingency and recovery plans.
- S0151 Skill in troubleshooting failed system components (i.e., servers)
- S0153 Skill in identifying and anticipating system/server performance, availability, capacity, or configuration problems.
- S0154 Skill in installing system and component upgrades. (i.e., servers, appliances, network devices).
- S0155 Skill in monitoring and optimizing system/server performance.
- S0157 Skill in recovering failed systems/servers. (e.g., recovery software, failover clusters, replication, etc.).
- S0158 Skill in operating system administration. (e.g., account maintenance, data backups, maintain system performance, install and configure new hardware/software).
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 15% | |||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 25% | |||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 60% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Information for Textbooks and Resources has not been released yet.
This information will be available on Monday 16 February 2026As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
