Image showing a Puppet sync error message

How to use Puppet environments in Linux to safely update an agent

Objective

Create and use puppet environments to test new configuration before updating a live production system.

Operating System and Software Versions

  • Operating System: Any major linux distribution e.g. Ubuntu, Debian, CentOS
  • Software: puppet and puppet-master

Requirements

Privileged access to the puppet master server and the puppet client node.

Conventions

  • # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
  • $ – given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Introduction

Most Puppet installations begin life as a master server running a single branch. The master contains all the manifests and other configuration for all the Puppet agents that are synced to it. This is a fine place to begin but there will rapidly arrive a time when an update needs pushing that has the potential to break a production server. Hoping for the best is not the best way to proceed.

Puppet provides the tools to separate entire branches of configuration. These are called environments. A Puppet environment is a way to supply an isolated group of agent nodes with their own dedicated configuration. Each environment contains an entire Puppet configuration tree and can be considered as a separate Puppet master server.

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How to install latest Firefox Browser on Debian 9 Stretch Linux

Objective

Debian Linux comes with Firefox ESR (Extended Support Release) version, which in some rare scenarios may not adequately fit your needs. The objective is to replace the Debian’s default Firefox ESR with the latest bleeding edge Firefox.

Operating System and Software Versions

  • Operating System: – Debian 9 Stretch

Requirements

Privileged access to your Debian Linux system will be required.

Difficulty

EASY

Conventions

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How to use special permissions: the setuid, setgid and sticky bits

Objective

Getting to know how special permissions works, how to identify and set them.

Requirements

  • Knowledge of the standard unix/linux permissions system

Difficulty

EASY

Conventions

  • # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either
    directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
  • $ – requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Introduction

Normally, on a unix-like operating system, the ownership of files and directories is based on the default uid (user-id) and gid (group-id) of the user who created them. The same thing happens when a process is launched: it runs with the effective user-id and group-id of the user who started it, and with the corresponding privileges. This behavior can be modified by using special permissions.

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debian vs ubuntu comparison

Debian vs Ubuntu

debian vs ubuntu comparisonUbuntu and Debian are two of the most popular Linux distributions in history. Aside from that, they’re very closely related, making it hard for new Linux users to sort out the differences between the two. Let’s explore Debian vs Ubuntu comparisons.

Thus, is Ubuntu the same as Debian? While, many things may appear to be similar, or even the same, with these powerhouse distributions, there are some sizable differences between them.

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Partclone ncurses progress interface

How to use partclone to create a “smart” partition backup

Objective

Learning how to use the partclone utility to backup a partition

Requirements

  • Root permissions
  • Partition to backup must be unmounted

Difficulty

EASY

Conventions

  • # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either
    directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
  • $ – requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Introduction

If you ever used Clonezilla to create a backup of your operating system, you have already experienced the power of the partclone. Unlike other tools like dd, partclone knows how to interact with specific filesystems, therefore it can create much smaller backups, cloning only the used space in the partition. In this tutorial we will learn how to use partclone from command line.

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The Default Dunst Configuration

Get Better Notifications In Your WM With Dunst

Objective

Install and configure Dunst for desktop notifications.

Distributions

Dunst is only distributed as source, so it can be built on any current distribution.

Requirements

A working Linux install with root privileges.

Difficulty

Medium

Conventions

  • # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
  • $ – requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Introduction

No one wants to spend hours configuring and customizing their tiling window manager only for an ugly, poorly rendered notification window from GNOME to keep popping up and ruining the overall feel of their desktop.

If you’re looking for a more minimal and configurable notification daemon, look no further than Dunst. It provides a basic notification daemon that you can style and configure to match any tiling window manager setup. Plus, it’s super light weight, so there’s no need to worry about it hogging resources.

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hacking bitcoin exchange

Tutorial on how to create a paper and digital offline Bitcoin wallet with Linux

Objective

The objective is to create an offline digital and paper bitcoin wallet using Linux operating system, VirtualBox and Electrum Bitcoin wallet. The outcome of this tutorial will be a paper with written keywords which can be used to access your bitcoins. We will also create an encrypted version of virtual machine as a digital backup to be stored digitally on a secure medium which will provide a convenient access to your bitcoins if necessary.

Operating System and Software Versions

  • Operating System: – Debian 9 GNU/Linux
  • Software: – Electrum 3.0.3 or higher, VirtualBox Version 5.2.2 r119230

Requirements

Privileged access to your host operating system will be required to install Virtual Box virtualization software.

Difficulty

MEDIUM

Conventions

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How to reset MySQL root password on your Linux server

The following guide will provide you with simple to follow steps on how to reset your administrative root password on Linux.

Stop MySQL

First, stop MySQL server:

# service mysql stop
 * Stopping MySQL database server mysqld              [ OK ]

Start MySQL server>

Start your MySQL server, but skip all grand privileges and networking:

# mkdir -p /var/run/mysqld
# chown mysql:mysql /var/run/mysqld
# /usr/sbin/mysqld --skip-grant-tables --skip-networking &
[1] 8142

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SimpleScreenRecorder Startup Screen

Record Your Linux Desktop With SimpleScreenRecorder

Objective

Install SimpleScreenRecorder and use it to record video of your desktop.

Distributions

SimpleScreenRecorder is available on just about every distribution.

Requirements

A working Linux install with root privileges.

Difficulty

Easy

Conventions

  • # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
  • $ – requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Introduction

Recording your Linux desktop is… well, simple. With SimpleScreenRecorder, you can easily record your whole desktop or a portion of the screen with very little overhead. To make things even better, SimpleScreenRecorder is a generic X program, so it’s not tied to one specific desktop environment or another.

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qrcode

How to organize your passwords using pass password manager

Objective

Learn to organize your passwords using the “pass” password manager on linux

Requirements

  • Root permissions needed to install required packages

Difficulty

EASY

Conventions

  • # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either
    directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
  • $ – requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Introduction

If you have the good habit to never use the same password for more than one purpose, you have probably already felt the need for a password manager. There are many alternatives to choose from on linux, both proprietary (if you dare) and open source. If you, like me, think that simplicity it’s the way to go, you may be interested in knowing however to use the pass utility.

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