OK What’s Next…

5 years ago I was wanting to become a Network & Security Engineer so badly. I sacrificed so many things to come this far. Specially my precious youth where I could just enjoy so many other things other than writing a program or configuring a router. But everything I planned 5 years ago were archived successfully.

I got a degree from a good university, have industry experience for more than 2 and half years, I have industry certifications like CCNA, MCSA, CCNA Sec and studying for CCNP and CCSP, also eventually step in to CISSP and looks great huh! What a great technology career.

Now I don’t want any of that. Why??? See, the reason behind I needed to become this person called a professional, because I could live the life that I wanted, I get the attention from the people I loved and I don’t have to struggle so much in my life.

Now what I want is my own company. It could be in IT, could be in Clothing, or could be just another Import/Export company. That’s all in my mind right now. So now I am struggling for the 1^st time in my life. I know my IT skills and experience going to help me whatever I do in the future, but all the hard work I have done would it be wasted?

I am in position to start my own business. Yes I am in a great position to start my own thing. Do I have the contacts I needed, yes I do have great contacts. Do I have enough money to get things started, yes I do have money to invest and also I have good investors. Do I have enough experience , probably not, but nothing is perfect in this world.

So if I want to become a company owner should I have to give up my career and step in to whole new world. People say different things, as I always do, should I experience this by myself. Should I still keep reading my articles and studying my CCNP stuff?

Confused for the 1^st time in my life!

Linux Run Levels

For some reason I was confused about run levels but when I actually read them and try to understand it, it sounds so better and clear. One thing I love about IT is that, even though you find hard to understand the concept at 1st place you will eventually get it. Not like mathematics … Note: this blog is referencing to Redhat Linux and Fedora.

What are run levels in Linux?

Run Levels are system profiles configured to run different processes in the system. Meaning each profile is configured to run set of processes. For easy system management, processes are bundled together and make a profile (run level) where you can shift between run levels.

All configuration files are located at /etc/rc.d/ directory.

Scripts;

rc              -----> rc.local      -----> rc.sysinit   -----> rc.serial     ----->

Folders;

init.d/   -----> Contains all the scripts listed in all run levels rc0.d/    -----> HALT, Shutdown, Contains all the kill commands rc1.d/    -----> Single user mode, stops all the services rc2.d/    -----> Multiuser mode but without network services rc3.d/    -----> Multiuser mode with full services but in Command line rc4.d/    -----> Not used (Users can define this) rc5.d/    -----> Multiuser with full services graphical mode rc6.d/    -----> System reboot

Note: The SysV init runlevel system provides a standard process for controlling which programs init launches or halts when initializing a runlevel. SysV init was chosen because it is easier to use and more flexible than the traditional BSD-style init process.  [Source: Redhat]

Does windows have any thing similar to run levels?

Personally I haven’t seen anything like this in Windows, if some one has seen something please correct me.

How can I change run levels in Redhat Linux?
You use init command to change run levels.
Examples:

init 0 [This will shutdown you’re system]
init 5 [This will jump to X windows system]

Where do I specify my default run level?
To find out the default runlevel for a system, look for the line similar to the one below near the top of /etc/inittab

id:5:initdefault:

Red Hat Linux provides three main utilities for managing run levels

1. chkconfig [Example: chkconfig | grep sendmail]
2. ntsysv
3. redhat-config-services

Additional Note: You could start any service listed in /etc/rc.d/init.d manually regardless of any run level that you are running.

[Example: ./sshd start] alternatively you could do: service sshd start [Only in Redhat and Fedora]

You can change run levels at boot time

• LILO : access the boot: prompt by typing [Ctrl]-[X]. Then type:  linux <runlevel-number>
• Grub : In the graphical GRUB boot loader screen, select the Red Hat Linux boot label and press [e] to edit it. Arrow down to the kernel line and press [e] to edit it. At the prompt, type the number of the runlevel you wish to boot into (1 through 5), or the words single or emergency and press [Enter]. You will be returned to the GRUB screen with the kernel information. Press the [b] key to boot the system. [Source: Redhat]

Nmap Official Book is Out

Nmap Network Scanning: The Official Nmap Project Guide to Network Discovery and Security Scanning (Paperback)

by Gordon Fyodor Lyon (Author)

The book that we all being waiting for. It seems like it has included all the techniques in port scanning and enumeration. You can buy this in Amazon;

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0979958717/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new

What Skills Required to Become an Ethical Hacker?

“Ethical hackers who stay a step ahead of malicious hackers must be computer systems experts who are very knowledgeable about computer programming, networking and operating systems.In-depth knowledge about highly targeted platforms (such as Windows, Unix, and Linux) is also a requirement. Patience, persistence, and immense perseverance are important qualities that many hackers possess because of the length of time and level of concentration required for most attacks/compromises to pay off.

Most ethical hackers are knowledgeable about security areas and related issues but don’t necessarily have a strong command of the countermeasure that can prevent attacks. The following chapters of this book will address both the vulnerabilities and the countermeasures to prevent certain types of attacks” [Official Certified Ethical Hacker Review Guide]

So are you ready to be an Ethical Hacker?

I did ask this question 4 years ago before I started my degree. Then after the degree I said to myself I need industrial experience before stepping into information security.

What I am now,

1.    Degree in Network Computing [My base in Information Technologies]

2.    8 months work experience as a programmer/web developer

3.    10 months work experience in a financial service as IT Support analyst

4.    CCNA [My networking foundation – 8 months diploma in Cisco Academy]

5.    Participated in RHCE training programme [My Linux Foundation]

6.    MCSE [Current] [Microsoft Server/workstation and database Foundation]

7.    CCNP [Current] [Advanced understanding of Networking concepts]

Well I think it’s time to step in to Information Security, so I decided to do CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker) as a kick start to my Information Security career and enrolled in Masters  in Information Security degree at RMIT part-time, which will be commencing in Feb 2009.

 

Root Password in Ubuntu

For higher security Ubuntu has no password set for the root user. To gain root access you have to type in your own user password. [This is the password you set for the first user while installing Ubuntu]

The idea is to keep the root account loacked down and use a general user login all the time for general use. When doing advanced editing and system changes, etc.. you can use the “SUDO” command and run as root.

For example: To power off the machine

sudo init 0

To manually set a password for the root user, type in the following in the shell:

sudo passwd

After that you are asked to type in the new root password twice. Finally, your root user has its own password

 

KDE 4.1

 

http://linux-guider.blogspot.com/2008/08/kde-41-mania.html

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