January 31, 2011

How to do Rsync with a non-standard ssh port

Filed under: Miscellaneous — admin @ 5:52 am

rsync -avz -e "ssh -p $portNumber" user@destinationserverIP:/filespath /path_to_local/

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Command to show the login details of each mailbox under a specific domain in linux plesk

Filed under: Miscellaneous — admin @ 5:51 am

You can get the plesk admin password from the file /etc/psa/.psa.shadow

1. login to mysql

mysql -u admin -p

2. select the database psa

use psa;

3. Run the mysql query that will give login details of each mailbox under a specified domein

select m.mail_name, m.password,d.name  from mail m, domains d where m.dom_id = d.id and d.name =’supprotpro.com‘;

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Add Name servers from Backend

Filed under: Miscellaneous — admin @ 5:49 am

In case we are not able to add name servers from WHM, we can add it from shell by using root login information. 

Login in to server as root user and run following commands.

root@server[~]#/scripts/adddns –domain ns1.your_domain.com –ip=111.222.222.1

root@server[~]#/scripts/adddns –domain ns2.your_domain.com –ip=111.222.222.2

Replace ‘ your_domain.com’  in above command with your domain name and  use the respective ips which you want to use for your nameservers.
root@server[~]#service named restart
or
root@server[~]#/etc/init.d/named restart

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January 25, 2011

Linux Server Monitoring and Security

Filed under: Miscellaneous — admin @ 2:18 am

Linux is one of the most reliable brand in webserver operating systems with an almost perfect monitoring system that ensures your servers run round the clock smoothly and minimum chances of a crash. The Linux server monitoring system is one of the best known tools to ensure optimum performance of your servers. No wonder then that brand such as the LAMP server is most recognized and preferred by most large web hosting companies.

Webhosting servers need to be up all the time. And since they contain massive data, accessed and used by all clients, security and maintaining optimal performance becomes a crucial factor. Monitoring servers 24×7 for proper working of scripts and tools , HTTP, SSL, SMTP, POP, IMAP, SSH, Telnet, FTP and any other text-based TCP service ensures that the server has minimum chances of a crash or hack. Having the latest scripts and technology on your servers helps handle security issues and threats from unauthorized applications easily.

Linux server support is one of the utmost offering of several dedicated web server organizations as it is one of the upper crust methods that guarantees more secured database than other administration services.

Servers are prone to malignant software and viruses that are automatically installed and corrupt the whole system. Firewalls do protect important data but only monitoring ensures that the system is least affected. Linux offers effective monitoring service tools that guarantees that the servers are virus free and also safeguard it from spam and hacks. All these features provide astonishing results that ensure that your web server is up to date with the latest technological advancements and capable of adapting to the breakneck changes. Security and safety of your clients is guaranteed as it utilizes the latest technology features and applications. The Linux monitoring software products checks the performance of your system and since it is available 24×7 this ensures that your entire network is functioning properly.

To prevent any untoward incident from disrupting your business or affecting your clients you must always opt for Linux server monitoring services. These techniques also ensures that your server never hangs or crashes, thereby protecting your important data and applications. 

Monitoring does assure your servers are in safe hands but some essential tips should also be followed to ensure proper server security.

In a Linux server aspects such as physical security, local security, password authentication, Email security, kernel security, securing web server and wireless network security plays vital role. SELinux is a set of security policies that secures the server at every level.

Email Security – Configuring your router, email client program to block mails from spammers is the best know security measure.

Network Security – There are a large number of tools available to monitor and protect linux networks. Nagios, Oreon, Zabbix, etc are some of them. They can monitor traffic, bandwidth usage and resource allocation.

Web server Security - There are plenty of ways by which you can secure of Apache Web server.

Make sure that apache is running under it’s own user account and group.
Turn off directory browsing.
Turn off server side includes.
Turn off multiple options.
Run Mod_security.
Disable any unnecessary modules.
Lower the timeout value.
Limit the size of XML body.
Limit the concurrency.
Limit access by IP address.
Adjust the keep Alive settings.
Run Apache in Chroot environment

Securing Firewall There are different types of firewalls that can be used in Linux such as packet-filtering, ipchains, stateful, and layered. Smoothwall Express and Smooth Guardian are two commercially available firewall software for Linux.

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January 19, 2011

Online Backup Service – features & selecting the best option

Filed under: Miscellaneous — admin @ 2:59 am

Online data backup is just as the name implies – data is backed up to a remote location over a networked connection, mostly using TCP/IP standard protocol of the internet. With an online backup service, important data is transmitted over the internet and securely stored on a server. Most online backup systems run on schedule, usually when the computers aren’t in use (nights mostly). It collects, compresses, encrypts and transfers the data to a secured, remote backup server or off site hardware.

Some key features of an Online Backup Systems include -

* Data is encrypted to ensure maximum security. Data is to be encrypted before it is sent across the internet, and it should be stored in its encrypted state. Encryption should be at least 256 bits, and the user should have the option of using his/her own encryption key, which should never be sent to the server.

* Network backup system can back up multiple computers, servers, etc on a local area network from a single device.

* Back ups can be taken continuously or on a predefined schedule.

* Some services allow users to access the files over normal web browsers, though most do not provide such functionality.

* User-selectable option to select bandwidth usage. It is possible to set this to change at various times of day.

* Users can restore files themselves, without assistance from a service provider, by searching them based on file names and folder names.

Some of the popular Online back up systems are –

Carbonite

Barracuda Backup Service

Comodo backup

Mozy

DropBox

There is a clutter of online backup service providers, most guaranteeing unique features for security and user friendliness. Some factors to be considered while choosing a back up system are –

Security – Probably the most important aspect to consider when choosing a back up system is Security. For most people security of their data is a concern while transfer over the internet and storage in a remote server. Data has to be encrypted and access should be password protected.

Support – It is ideal to choose a provider who assures 24×7 online support, with clear indication on how long it would take to respond to a quire. You may need emergency assistance and turn around time is crucial in such cases.

Space – Most providers offer enough free storage space. But if you run a large business and need more space, make sure the provider offers the space at a good price per month. With some of the popular storage companies, you can get unlimited backup space very cheaply.

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