SysadminSG RHCSA Study Guide

Understand and Use Essential Tools

   * Access a shell prompt and issue commands with correct syntax
   * Use input-output redirection (>, >>, |, 2>, etc.)
   * Use grep and regular expressions to analyze text
   * Access remote systems using ssh and VNC
   * Log in and switch users in multi-user runlevels
   * Archive, compress, unpack and uncompress files using tar, star, gzip, and bzip2
   * Create and edit text files
   * Create, delete, copy and move files and directories
   * Create hard and soft links
   * List, set and change standard ugo/rwx permissions
   * Locate, read and use system documentation including man, info, and files in /usr/share/doc .
     [Note: Red Hat may use applications during the exam that are not included in Red Hat Enterprise Linux for the purpose of evaluating candidate's abilities to meet this objective.]

Operate Running Systems

   * Boot, reboot, and shut down a system normally
   * Boot systems into different runlevels manually
   * Use single-user mode to gain access to a system
   * Identify CPU/memory intensive processes, adjust process priority with renice, and kill processes
   * Locate and interpret system log files
   * Access a virtual machine's console
   * Start and stop virtual machines
   * Start, stop and check the status of network services

Configure Local Storage

   * List, create, delete and set partition type for primary, extended, and logical partitions
   * Create and remove physical volumes, assign physical volumes to volume groups, create and delete logical volumes
   * Create and configure LUKS-encrypted partitions and logical volumes to prompt for password and mount a decrypted file system at boot
   * Configure systems to mount file systems at boot by Universally Unique ID (UUID) or label
   * Add new partitions, logical volumes and swap to a system non-destructively

Create and Configure File Systems

   * Create, mount, unmount and use ext2, ext3 and ext4 file systems
   * Mount, unmount and use LUKS-encrypted file systems
   * Mount and unmount CIFS and NFS network file systems
   * Configure systems to mount ext4, LUKS-encrypted and network file systems automatically
   * Extend existing unencrypted ext4-formatted logical volumes
   * Create and configure set-GID directories for collaboration
   * Create and manage Access Control Lists (ACLs)
   * Diagnose and correct file permission problems

Deploy, Configure and Maintain Systems

   * Configure networking and hostname resolution statically or dynamically
   * Schedule tasks using cron
   * Configure systems to boot into a specific runlevel automatically
   * Install Red Hat Enterprise Linux automatically using Kickstart
   * Configure a physical machine to host virtual guests
   * Install Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems as virtual guests
   * Configure systems to launch virtual machines at boot
   * Configure network services to start automatically at boot
   * Configure a system to run a default configuration HTTP server
   * Configure a system to run a default configuration FTP server
   * Install and update software packages from Red Hat Network, a remote repository, or from the local filesystem
   * Update the kernel package appropriately to ensure a bootable system
   * Modify the system bootloader

Manage Users and Groups

   * Create, delete, and modify local user accounts
   * Change passwords and adjust password aging for local user accounts
   * Create, delete and modify local groups and group memberships
   * Configure a system to use an existing LDAP directory service for user and group information

Manage Security

   * Configure firewall settings using system-config-firewall or iptables
   * Set enforcing and permissive modes for SELinux
   * List and identify SELinux file and process context
   * Restore default file contexts
   * Use boolean settings to modify system SELinux settings
   * Diagnose and address routine SELinux policy violations

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   * Exam Objectives
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System Configuration and Management

• Route IP traffic and create static routes

• Use iptables to implement packet filtering and configure network address translation (NAT)

• Use /proc/sys and sysctl to modify and set kernel run-time parameters

• Configure system to authenticate using Kerberos

• Build a simple RPM that packages a single file

• Configure a system as an iSCSI initiator that persistently mounts an iSCSI target

• Produce and deliver reports on system utilization (processor, memory, disk, and network)

• Use shell scripting to automate system maintenance tasks

• Configure a system to log to a remote system

• Configure a system to accept logging from a remote system

Network Services

• Install the packages needed to provide the service

• Configure SELinux to support the service

• Configure the service to start when the system is booted

• Configure the service for basic operation

• Configure host-based and user-based security for the service

HTTP/HTTPS

• Configure a virtual host

• Configure private directories

• Deploy a basic CGI application

• Configure group-managed content

DNS

• Configure a caching-only name server

• Configure a caching-only name server to forward DNS queries

FTP

• Configure anonymous-only download

NFS

• Provide network shares to specific clients

• Provide network shares suitable for group collaboration

SMB

• Provide network shares to specific clients

• Provide network shares suitable for group collaboration

SMTP

• Configure a mail transfer agent (MTA) to accept inbound email from other systems

• Configure an MTA to forward (relay) email through a smart host

SSH

• Configure key-based authentication

NTP

• Synchronize time using other NTP peers