We ran into an issue where an init script was missing and we needed to restore the file.  The backup (of course) did not include the file we needed.  We had to download the package, extract the contents, and move the init script back into place.  Below are the commands used:

DEB:

$ dpkg-deb -x <package.deb> /restore/dir

RPM:

$ rpm2cpio <package.rpm> | cpio -idv

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You can display the current root password for mysql (if the host is running ensim), by using the following command.

# ensim-python -c "import sys;sys.path.append(\"/usr/lib/opcenter/mysql\");import mysqlbe;print mysqlbe.read_mysqlpass()"


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We ran into an issue when installing Fantastico. After clicking the installation button, everything seemed to download just fine, but every time you go back to the Fantastico link it says it is not installed.

It turns out, Fantastico uses wget to download files. wget is called with the ‘-P’ option, which is not honored in the recent version of wget. In order to get around this, I found the following post useful: http://www.netenberg.com/forum/index.php?topic=5430.0

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If you have a dedicated Linux server, this list is for you. Below are a few items you need to do, to ensure your 2008 will be a bit brighter.  This list is by no means comprehensive, but hopefully gets you started in the right direction this year.

• Check your backups and perform a full system backup (or setup a backup routine! Now!).

If you have backups configured, validate they are actually being run. Check the last date / time of the backups to ensure they are running as expected. If possible, test the restore process.

Perform a full system backup and copy this backup offsite, to a provider like rsync.net

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We deal with security related issues nearly every day. Many of these issues could be prevented with a few minor changes to php.ini along with the installation of mod_security. It is simply amazing how many machines are hacked, and then used for the sole purpose of sending spam, denial of service (DoS) attacks or Botnets.

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You may find this iptables based method of limiting packets useful. For example, to drop connection from from someone who is trying to brute force your passwords via ssh.

I have a particular case, where a customer wants to be notified if more than X number of SMTP connections are being generated from a particular IP address over a period of time.

Here are the commands..

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I was just asked today to provide a quick overview of the steps necessary to rename a filesystem. And here is what I came up with. Please use this information at your own risk, and always ensure you have a backup just in case something does not go well.

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