Page 19 - DCAP106_OPERATING_SYSTEM_TOOLS

Operating System Tools

Notes Telnet and FTP Security

Though they’re shown as options in the security configuration screens, both telnet and FTP
are widely recognized as insecure protocols. SSH is a much more secure option than telnet for
accessing remote machines, as SFTP is a more secure option than FTP for transferring files. If an
FTP capability is required, it’s recommended that it be set up on a different server that’s isolated
as much as possible from the rest of the network.

Task Make distinction between SSH and Telnet.

Setting the Time Zone

There are two options for setting the time zone for your server. You can roll the mouse over the
metropolitan area that’s closest to you, or you can select from an exhaustive list of cities. In either
case, the chosen city will be highlighted on the map, as shown in Figure 1.10.

Figure 1.10: Setting the Time Zone

Root Account Configuration

All Linux systems have an administrative account, root. This account has access to everything on
the computer; it’s similar to the Administrator account in Windows systems. As the power of root
in Linux is so broad, it’s critical that you make accessing the root account as difficult as possible.
Choose a secure password for the root account – one that consists of both upper and lowercase

letters, as well as numbers and special characters – and enter it into the fields as shown in Figure
1.11. It is recommended that you record your root password somewhere and keep it safe.

Did u know? If you forget the password, it becomes very difficult to gain access to your
machine should things go wrong.

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