Linux system administration and security

Information for Linux System Administration

GlusterFS 3.0 Tutorial: Create an NFS-Like Storage Server on Debian 6

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This tutorial shows how to set up a standalone storage server on Debian Squeeze. Instead of NFS, I will use GlusterFS here. The client system will be able to access the storage as if it was a local filesystem. GlusterFS is a clustered file-system capable of scaling to several peta-bytes. It aggregates various storage bricks over Infiniband RDMA or TCP/IP interconnect into one large parallel network file system. Storage bricks can be made of any commodity hardware such as x86_64 servers with SATA-II RAID and Infiniband HBA. read more...

mail this link | permapage | score:9991 | -falko, May 16, 2012

LAMP Tutorial: Apache2, PHP5, MySQL on Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

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LAMP is short for Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP. This tutorial shows how you can install an Apache2 webserver on an Ubuntu 12.04 LTS server with PHP5 support (mod_php) and MySQL support. read more...

permapage | score:9979 | -falko, May 14, 2012

Tutorial: Replace Windows with Xubuntu 12.04

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This tutorial shows how you can set up a Xubuntu 12.04 desktop that is a full-fledged replacement for a Windows desktop, i.e. that has all the software that people need to do the things they do on their Windows desktops. The advantages are clear: you get a secure system without DRM restrictions that works even on old hardware, and the best thing is: all software comes free of charge. read more...

permapage | score:9979 | -falko, May 15, 2012

Back up MySQL Databases with mylvmbackup on Debian 6

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mylvmbackup is a Perl script for quickly creating MySQL backups. It uses LVM's snapshot feature to do so. To perform a backup, mylvmbackup obtains a read lock on all tables and flushes all server caches to disk, creates a snapshot of the volume containing the MySQL data directory, and unlocks the tables again. This article shows how to use it on a Debian Squeeze server. read more...

permapage | score:9956 | -falko, May 11, 2012

Virtual Users, Domains with Postfix, Courier, MySQL, SquirrelMail (Ubuntu 12.04)

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This document describes how to install a Postfix mail server that is based on virtual users and domains, i.e. users and domains that are in a MySQL database. I'll also demonstrate the installation and configuration of Courier, so that Courier can authenticate against the same MySQL database Postfix uses. The resulting Postfix server is capable of SMTP-AUTH and TLS and quota. Passwords are stored in encrypted form in the database. In addition to that, this tutorial covers the installation of Amavisd, SpamAssassin and ClamAV. I will also show how to install SquirrelMail as a webmail interface. read more...

mail this link | permapage | score:9950 | -falko, May 10, 2012

Tutorial: Filesystem Encryption with EncFS (Debian 6/Ubuntu 11.10)

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EncFS provides an encrypted filesystem in user-space. It runs without any special permissions and uses the FUSE library and Linux kernel module to provide the filesystem interface. It is a pass-through filesystem, not an encrypted block device, which means it is created on top of an existing filesystem. This tutorial shows how you can use EncFS on Debian Squeeze/Ubuntu 11.10 to encrypt your data. read more...

permapage | score:9941 | -falko, May 9, 2012

Proxmox 2 With Software Raid

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Proxmox Virtual Environment is an easy to use Open Source virtualization platform for running Virtual Appliances and Virtual Machines. Proxmox does not officially support software raid but I have found software raid to be very stable and in some cases have had better luck with it than hardware raid. read more...

permapage | score:9934 | -falko, May 5, 2012

Tutorial: Replace Windows with Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

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This tutorial shows how you can set up an Ubuntu 12.04 (Precise Pangolin) desktop that is a full-fledged replacement for a Windows desktop, i.e. that has all the software that people need to do the things they do on their Windows desktops. The advantages are clear: you get a secure system without DRM restrictions that works even on old hardware, and the best thing is: all software comes free of charge. read more...

permapage | score:9934 | -falko, May 4, 2012

Build a Mail Server on CentOS 6 with Postfix, Dovecot, PostgreSQL

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We're going to set up a free, full-featured mail server on CentOS 6.2, all mail service related components are free and open source, and you have control over your own data. The installation process is extremly easy and smooth. read more...

permapage | score:9932 | -falko, April 29, 2012

Howto: Unity with Dodge Windows behavior in Ubuntu 12.04

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If you are running ubuntu 12.04(precise) and one thing you might have noticed from your unity is missing Dodge Windows behavior. Another feature users really like is the ability to be able to click a program’s icon on the Launcher and minimize/unminimize that window. Jonathan French (ojno), the developer behind this patch, has not only made this a reality, but also got this to work in conjunction with the ‘Spread Windows’ functionality. He’s even set up a PPA which contains the latest Unity and his patch to make it easier for end-users to get it. read more...

mail this link | permapage | score:9927 | -gg234, April 30, 2012

CentOS 6.2: Install mod_spdy with Apache 2

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SPDY (Speedy) is an experiment with protocols for the web. Its goal is to reduce the latency of web pages. mod_spdy is an open-source Apache module which supports the use of SPDY protocol to the Apache HTTPD server. This allows for faster page loading and more efficient bandwidth utilization when loading https URLs in SPDY-enabled browsers. read more...

permapage | score:9915 | -falko, April 26, 2012

AVG Antivirus for Linux/FreeBSD plus Qmail

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This document describes how to deploy AVG Antivirus for Linux/FreeBSD to the Qmail mail server. It is usable for AVG version 8.5, 10 and 2012. By using AVG Antivirus with your Qmail mail server, you can ensure virus-free inboxes. read more...

permapage | score:9914 | -falko, April 30, 2012

Tutorial: Build an Ubuntu 12.04 LTS server

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This tutorial shows how to prepare an Ubuntu 12.04 LTS (Precise Pangolin) server (with Apache2, BIND, Dovecot) for the installation of ISPConfig 3, and how to install ISPConfig 3. ISPConfig 3 is a webhosting control panel that allows you to configure the following services through a web browser: Apache or nginx web server, Postfix mail server, Courier or Dovecot IMAP/POP3 server, MySQL, BIND or MyDNS nameserver, PureFTPd, SpamAssassin, ClamAV, and many more. This setup covers Apache (instead of nginx), BIND (instead of MyDNS), and Dovecot (instead of Courier). read more...

mail this link | permapage | score:9900 | -falko, May 2, 2012

Tutorial: Apache2 with mod_fcgid, PHP5 on Ubuntu 11.10

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This tutorial describes how you can install Apache2 with mod_fcgid and PHP5 on Ubuntu 11.10. mod_fcgid is a compatible alternative to the older mod_fastcgi. It lets you execute PHP scripts with the permissions of their owners instead of the Apache user. read more...

permapage | score:9897 | -falko, May 7, 2012

rm -rf / : What it actually does

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Typing the wrong command can severely cripple your computer. A wrong switch or wrong option is all it takes. One command that I learned to avoid a long time ago, based on what experienced users told me, is rm -rf /. The rm command is what you use to remove or delete a file or directory.

By itself, rm will delete a file. With the -r or -R option, it will recursively delete a directory. The -f option will force the action. So, you can imagine what rm -rf / could theoretically do to you your system. But will it? read more...

mail this link | permapage | score:9895 | -finid, May 2, 2012

Choosing a Tool to Monitor Your Network

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Recently we have worked with a small company who was trying to determine the best tool to monitor their network. They had heard of Nagios and wanted to explore that option first. They also were most interested in an Open Source option as they did not want to have renew licenses to lower their ongoing cost. In this type of evaluation, there are a lot of things to consider. read more...

permapage | score:9894 | -aweber, May 3, 2012

CentOS 6.2 Samba Server with tdbsam

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This tutorial explains the installation of a Samba fileserver on CentOS 6.2 and how to configure it to share files over the SMB protocol as well as how to add users. Samba is configured as a standalone server, not as a domain controller. In the resulting setup, every user has his own home directory accessible via the SMB protocol and all users have a shared directory with read-/write access. read more...

permapage | score:9870 | -falko, March 22, 2012

Virus Scanning PureFTPd with ClamAV on Debian 6

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This tutorial explains how you can integrate ClamAV into PureFTPd for virus scanning on a Debian Squeeze system. In the end, whenever a file gets uploaded through PureFTPd, ClamAV will check the file and delete it if it is malware. read more...

permapage | score:9859 | -falko, May 1, 2012

Monitor OSX and Linux with Nagios and SNMP

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OSX is somewhat unique both in the fact that this is not a common server which is monitored and also your actually working with two operating systems, FreeBSD under the hood and OSX built on top. However, these examples could also be used for Linux distros with a few modifications. SNMP is selected for creating the checks because it is the easiest to deploy with minimal time on the servers to be monitored. read more...

permapage | score:9853 | -aweber, April 23, 2012

Upgrade Ubuntu 11.10 To 12.04 LTS

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The new Ubuntu 12.04 LTS (Precise Pangolin) has just been released. Ubuntu 12.04 LTS is a long-term support release, which means it is supported for five years. This guide shows how you can upgrade your Ubuntu 11.10 desktop and server installations to Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. read more...

permapage | score:9851 | -falko, April 28, 2012

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