Module II
Linux Basics
A good ethical hacker or penetration tester, you need to be
conversant with Linux, which is by far one of the most powerful operating
systems.
It is compatible with a wide variety of related tools and software, whereas
other operating systems such as Mac and Windows support fewer of these
software and tools.
“Which Linux distro should I use?”
tons of Linux distros such as Ubuntu, Fedora, Knoppix, and
BackTrack you can use any Linux distro you want as all work in a
similar manner.
I suggest you use BackTrack if you really wish to dig deeper into
this subject because it is all encompassing from a penetration
tester’s perspective.
Major Linux Operating Systems
Before talking about BackTrack, let’s take a look at some of the Linux-based
distros that you will encounter very often:
Redhat Linux—Used mostly for administration purpose.
Debian Linux—Designed for using only in open source software.
Ubuntu Linux—Designed mostly for personal use.
Mac OS X—Used in all Apple computers.
Solaris—Used in many commercial environments.
BackTrack Linux—Used mostly for penetration testing.
Linux is an open-source operating system like other operating
systems such as Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS, iOS, Google
android, etc. An operating system is a software that enables the
communication between computer hardware and software. It
conveys input to get processed by the processor and brings output
to the hardware to display it.
Evolution of Linux OS
The Linux OS was developed by Linus Torvalds in 1991, which
sprouted as an idea to improve the UNIX OS. He suggested
improvements but was rejected by UNIX designers. Therefore, he
thought of launching an OS, designed in a way that could be
modified by its users.
Nowadays, Linux is the fastest-growing OS. It is used from phones
to supercomputers by almost all major hardware devices.
What is Linux used for?
Server OS for web servers, database servers, file servers, email servers
and any other type of shared server. Designed to support high-volume and
multithreading applications, Linux is well-suited for all types of server
applications
Structure Of Linux Operating System
Linux kernel is the core part
of the operating system. It
establishes communication
between devices and
software. Moreover, it
manages system resources.
It has four responsibilities:
1. Device Management
2. MM
3. Process Management
4. Handling Systems
Calls
File Structure inside of Linux
On a Linux system, most
everything is a file, and if it is
not a file, then it is a process.
Here is a general diagram for
file structure in Linux
Directories—Files that are lists of other files.
Special file—The mechanism used for input and output. /dev are special
files.
Links—A system to make file or directory visible in multiple parts of the
systems.
Sockets—A special file type, similar to TCP/IP sockets providing inter-
process networking.
Pipes—More or less like sockets; they form a way for process to
communicate with each other with out using network socket
Common Applications of Linux
Here are some of the common applications that you would most probably encounter
with any Linux flavor you use:
◾ Apache—This is an open source web server. Most of the web runs on the Apache
web server.
◾ MySQL—This is the most popular database used in Unix-based systems.
◾ Sendmail—This is a free Linux-based mail server. It is available inside both open
source and commercial versions.
◾ Postfix—This can be used as a send-mail alternative.
◾ PureFTP—This is the default ftp server used for almost all Unix-based systems.
◾ Samba—This provides file and printer sharing services. The best part is that it can
easily integrate with Windows-based systems.
BackTrack
. BackTrack is a Linux penetration testing distro developed by
Offensive Security especially for ethical hackers and penetration
testers. It contains all the popular tools and software used for pen
testing a variety of services, networks, and devices.
How to Get BackTrack 5 Running
Now that you have a basic idea of what BackTrack is and
why it is used, it’s time to install BackTrack on our box
and get things going. There are many ways you can get
BackTrack up and running. I install BackTrack on a
virtualization software such as VMware or virtual box.
Personally, I am a fan of virtual box, since it does not take
much of my computer’s memory. Therefore, what we will
learn next is how to install BackTrack on virtual box.
What is BackTrack used for?
Its only purpose is to test your network, devices, and systems for
security vulnerabilities. BackTrack is packed with every security and
hacker tool used by security professionals and professional hackers. If you're
looking for all of the tools in one place, this is it.
What is BackTrack 5 used for?
BackTrack is a penetration testing and security auditing distribution
that comes with a myriad of wireless networking tools used to
simulate network attacks and detect security loopholes.
What is BackTrack on computer?
Backtracking is a class of algorithm for finding solutions to some computational
problems, notably constraint satisfaction problems, that incrementally builds
candidates to the solutions, and abandons a candidate ("backtracks") as soon as
it determines that the candidate cannot possibly be completed to a valid solution
Is BackTrack still used?
The team over at Offensive Security have decided to discontinue the Backtrack
moniker, replacing it with Kali Linux 1.0.
What is the advantage of backtracking?
Backtracking searches all possible ways to solve a problem. It basically
does this by trying to find out all the possible solutions to a current problem
and chooses the best solution among them
Why is it called backtracking?
Because at first you check drawers in the first room, but it's not found, so
you backtrack out of the first room to check the drawers in the next room.
It's also called Trial & Error.
