Linux Ubuntu/Debian Server Setup

linux-server-setup.md

Linux Ubuntu/Debian Server Setup

On remote machine

As root

1. Change root password
   • $ passwd
2. Create user & their home directory
   • $ useradd -m <username>
3. Set user's password
   • $ passwd <username>
4. Make user a sudoer
   • $ usermod -aG sudo <username>
5. Set user's shell as bash
   • $ chsh -s /bin/bash <username>
6. Disconnect SSH session

As <username>

1. Install essentials
   • Update & upgrade
     • $ sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
   • Install tools
     • $ sudo apt install nano curl git htop mlocate dnsutils tmux tree fzf
   • Build locate's index
     • $ sudo updatedb
2. Enable passwordless sudo for user
   • $ sudo nano /etc/sudoers
   • Add: <username> ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL

On local machine

1. Copy SSH public key to remote machine's authorized keys
   • $ ssh-copy-id -i <public-key-path> <username>@<remote-machine-ip-address>

On remote machine

As <username>

1. Edit SSH daemon configuration
   • $ sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config
   • Disable root access
     • Edit: PermitRootLogin no
   • Disable password authentication
     • Edit: PasswordAuthentication no
   • Restart ssh service: $ sudo /etc/init.d/ssh restart
2. Set ZSH as default shell
   • $ sudo apt install zsh
   • $ sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.github.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"
3. Configure locale (if not English)
   • Ubuntu: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Locale & https://askubuntu.com/questions/89976/how-do-i-change-the-default-locale-in-ubuntu-server
   • Debian: https://wiki.debian.org/Locale & https://stackoverflow.com/a/7413863/6579787
4. Install Docker
   • Ubuntu: https://docs.docker.com/engine/install/ubuntu
   • Debian: https://docs.docker.com/engine/install/debian
5. Install Docker Compose
   • https://docs.docker.com/compose/install
6. Schedule cleanup of unused Docker images
   • Open crontab
     • $ crontab -e
   • Create a new cronjob
     • Append: 0 1 * * * sudo docker system prune -af
7. Facilitate pushing to ssh git remotes
   • $ git config receive.denyCurrentBranch updateInstead