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Amazon Linux Server Management Guide

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1. Introduction

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2. Updating and Upgrading the System

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2.1. Checking for Updates

sudo yum check-update

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2.2. Updating the System

sudo yum update -y

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2.3. Upgrading the System

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3. Installing Packages

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3.1. Installing a Package

sudo yum install <package_name> -y

sudo yum install httpd -y

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3.2. Searching for a Package

yum search <package_name>

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3.3. Removing a Package

sudo yum remove <package_name> -y

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4. Basic Commands

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4.1. Navigating the File System

• List files and directories:
  ls
  
• Change directory:
  cd /path/to/directory
  
• Print the current working directory:
  pwd
  

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4.2. File Operations

• Create a file:
  touch filename.txt
  
• View file contents:
  cat filename.txt
  
• Copy a file:
  cp source.txt destination.txt
  
• Move or rename a file:
  mv oldname.txt newname.txt
  
• Delete a file:
  rm filename.txt
  

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4.3. Managing Users and Groups

• Add a new user:
  sudo useradd username
  
• Set a password for a user:
  sudo passwd username
  
• Delete a user:
  sudo userdel username
  
• Add a user to a group:
  sudo usermod -aG groupname username
  

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5. System Monitoring and Troubleshooting

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5.1. System Resource Monitoring

• Check system uptime:
  uptime
  
• View running processes:
  top
  
• Check memory usage:
  free -m
  
• Check disk usage:
  df -h
  

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5.2. Networking Commands

• Check network interfaces:
  ifconfig
  
• Test network connectivity:
  ping <hostname_or_IP>
  
• Display routing table:
  netstat -rn
  

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5.3. Log Management

• View system logs:
  sudo tail -f /var/log/messages
  
• View SSH logs:
  sudo tail -f /var/log/secure
  
• View Apache logs:
  sudo tail -f /var/log/httpd/access_log
  sudo tail -f /var/log/httpd/error_log
  

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5.4. Service Management

• Start a service:
  sudo systemctl start <service_name>
  
• Stop a service:
  sudo systemctl stop <service_name>
  
• Restart a service:
  sudo systemctl restart <service_name>
  
• Enable a service to start on boot:
  sudo systemctl enable <service_name>
  

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6. Security Best Practices

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6.1. Managing Firewalls

• Check firewall status:
  sudo systemctl status firewalld
  
• Start/Stop/Restart the firewall:
  sudo systemctl start firewalld
  sudo systemctl stop firewalld
  sudo systemctl restart firewalld
  

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6.2. Securing SSH Access

• Change the default SSH port: Edit the SSH configuration file /etc/ssh/sshd_config and change the Port directive.
• Disable root login via SSH: In the SSH configuration file, set PermitRootLogin no.
• Restart SSH service:
  sudo systemctl restart sshd
  

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7. Automating Tasks with Cron Jobs

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7.1. Creating a Cron Job

crontab -e

* * * * * /path/to/script.sh

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7.2. Viewing Scheduled Cron Jobs

crontab -l

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7.3. Removing a Cron Job

crontab -r

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8. Package Management with EPEL and Remi Repositories

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8.1. Enabling EPEL Repository

sudo amazon-linux-extras install epel -y

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8.2. Enabling Remi Repository

sudo amazon-linux-extras install epel
sudo yum install https://rpms.remirepo.net/enterprise/remi-release-7.rpm -y

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9. Managing System Backups

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9.1. Creating a Backup with tar

tar -czvf backup.tar.gz /path/to/directory

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9.2. Restoring a Backup

tar -xzvf backup.tar.gz

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10. Additional Resources

• Official Amazon Linux Documentation: Amazon Linux 2 Documentation
• AWS CLI Documentation: AWS CLI Command Reference
• Systemd Cheat Sheet: Systemd Commands

This documentation should serve as a comprehensive guide to managing an Amazon Linux server, covering essential tasks and best practices.