Introduction

Welcome to the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Security Guide!

The Red Hat Enterprise Linux Security Guide is designed to assist users of Red Hat Enterprise Linux in learning the processes and practices of securing workstations and servers against local and remote intrusion, exploitation, and malicious activity. The Red Hat Enterprise Linux Security Guide details the planning and the tools involved in creating a secured computing environment for the data center, workplace, and home. With proper administrative knowledge, vigilance, and tools, systems running Red Hat Enterprise Linux can be both fully functional and secured from most common intrusion and exploit methods.

This guide discusses several security-related topics in great detail, including:

• Firewalls

• Encryption

• Securing Critical Services

• Virtual Private Networks

• Intrusion Detection

The manual is divided into the following parts:

• General Introduction to Security

• Configuring Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Security

• Assessing Your Security

• Intrusions and Incident Response

• Appendix

We would like to thank Thomas Rude for his generous contributions to this manual. He wrote the Vulnerability Assessments and Incident Response chapters. Thanks, Thomas!

This manual assumes that you have an advanced knowledge of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. If you are a new user or only have basic to intermediate knowledge of Red Hat Enterprise Linux and need more information on using the system, refer to the following guides which discuss the fundamental aspects of Red Hat Enterprise Linux in greater detail than the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Security Guide:

• The Red Hat Enterprise Linux Installation Guide provides information regarding installation.

• The Red Hat Enterprise Linux Introduction to System Administration contains introductory information for new Red Hat Enterprise Linux system administrators.

• The Red Hat Enterprise Linux System Administration Guide offers detailed information about configuring Red Hat Enterprise Linux to suit your particular needs as a user. This guide includes some services that are discussed (from a security standpoint) in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Security Guide.

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Reference Guide provides detailed information suited for more experienced users to refer to when needed, as opposed to step-by-step instructions.

HTML, PDF, and RPM versions of the manuals are available on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Documentation CD and online at https://www.redhat.com/docs/.