Linux System Administration: A Practical way of learning

Introduction

Securing & Hardening a Linux System

• Linux Physical Security

• How to break root password

• Securing the grub menu

• Reset root password from rescue mode

• BIOS Protection

• General Security

• Keep your system updated

• Turn off IPv6

• Disable USB Stick to detect

• Restrict Users to Use Old Passwords

• Check Password Expiration of a User

• Password Expiration - Lab Session

• Verify accounts for empty password

• Verify accounts with "Zero" UID

• Review logs regularly

• Keep /boot as read only

Managing Server Firewalls

• Firewall concepts

• About nftables, features and advantages of firewalld

• Firewalld components, pre-defined zones

• How packet flows through firewall

• Check firewalld services - Lab Session

• Adding and Removing Services & Port from Firewall Server - Lab Session

• Add Services Permanently in Firewalld - Lab Session

• Add HTTP Service in firewalld - Lab Session

• Port forwarding - Lab Session

• Conceptual discussion about Masquerading, Packet Flow in Firewalld

• Masquerading with Port Forwarding - Lab Session

• About Rich Rules in Firewalld

• Specifically allow a Server using Rich Rules - Lab Session

• Allow Telnet Port, SSH with log prefix using Rich Rule - Lab Session

• Accept, Reject, Drop - Lab Session

Advanced Storage Features

• About Stratis

• Lab - Installing & Configuring Stratis

• Lab - Managing Stratis File Systems

• Lab - Persistently Mounting Stratis File Systems

• Lab - Stratis filesystem snapshot

• Guided Exercise - Create a thin-provisioned file system

• Guided Exercise - Verify file system grows dynamically

• Guided Exercise - Create & access data from Snapshot

• VDO - Virtual Data Optimizer

• Lab - Installation VDO

• Lab - Create & format a VDO Volume

• Lab - Testing Deduplication:

• Recap - Lab

• Lab - Extend & Remove VDO Volume

Linux Containers

• Introducing Container Technology

• Planning for containers

• Lab - Configure a basic container

• Lab - mapping container host ports to the container

• Lab - stop, restart & remove container

Setting up a Apache Web Server

• Introduction Apache Web Server

• Basic Setup of Apache Web Server

• Apache main configuration file - 1

• Apache main configuration file - 2

• Launching a simple web page

• Order (Allow, Deny)

• Indexes

• Practice Lab Session on Indexes

• .htaccess - Security Restrictions on directories

• Practice Lab Session

• Secure a Web Server

• Encrypted Communication using SSL (443 port)

• Practice Lab Session

Setup a DNS Server

• Overview about DNS

• Understanding root & top level domains hierarchy

• How dns works?

• Configure a dns server - lab 1

• Zone configuration - lab 2

• Zone configuration - lab 3

• Troubleshooting of dns issues

• DNS Server Interview Questions and Answers

Automating Linux Administrative tasks

• About Ansible

• Ansible Setup - Lab1

• Ansible Setup - Lab2

• Ansible Setup - Lab3

• Ansible Setup - Lab4

• Ansible Components

• Control & Managed Node

• Ansible Inventories

• Customizing Ansible

• AD HOC Commands

• Ansible Modules

• Lab - Idempotent behaviour

• Lab - Command & Shell Module

• Lab - Configuration file directives

Managing SELinux Security

• SELinux Security Concepts

• SELinux Context

• SELinux Modes

• Lab on SELinux Modes

• Practical approach to understand SELinux

• Lab - Change context temporary

• Lab - Change context permanently

• Lab - SELinux inheritance and its pitfalls

• SELinux Booleans

• Lab - SELinux Booleans

• Audit logs & Troubleshooting SELinux

• Interview Questions and Answers SELinux

Samba Server

• Overview of Samba Server

• How Samba Works

• Lab - Installation & Configuration of Samba Server

• Lab - Configure a Private Samba Share

• Lab - mount samba share on Linux Client

• Lab - mount samba share on Windows Client

• Lab - Configure a Public Samba Share

• Lab - Drive mapping on windows client

• Lab - Secure Samba share resources

• Last Lecture