Top 9 Amazing Linux Distros for System Administrator

Being a part of the open source eco-system, Linux distros have had the advantage of regular upgrades something that is in an instant attention grabber. 

1.Debian
Debian is an operating system composed of free software mostly carrying the GNU General Public License. Debian systems can use either the Linux kernel (known as the Debian GNU/Linux distribution), the FreeBSD kernel (known as the Debian GNU/kFreeBSD distribution) or, more recently, the GNU Hurd kernel (more precisely, the GNU Mach microkernel and its servers; known as the Debian GNU/Hurd distribution). Debian GNU/Linux is one of the most popular Linux distributions for personal computers and network servers.

Target Users: System Administrators and Advanced users. 

2.Gentoo
Gentoo Linux is a computer operating system based on the Linux kernel and built using the Portage package management system. It is distributed as free and open source software. Gentoo package management is designed to be modular, portable, easy to maintain, and flexible.

Target Users: For those who already know their way in Linux

3.Ubuntu
Ubuntu is a Debian-based Linux operating system, with Unity as its default desktop environment (GNOME was the previous desktop environment). The Ubuntu project is publicly committed to the principles of open source development; people are encouraged to use free software, study how it works, improve upon it, and distribute it.

Target Users: Newbies

4.Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a Linux distribution developed by Red Hat and targeted toward the commercial market. Red Hat Enterprise Linux is released in server versions for x86, x86-64, Itanium, PowerPC and IBM System z, and desktop versions for x86 and x86-64. 

Target Users: System administrators

5.CentOS
CentOS is a Linux distribution that attempts to provide a free enterprise class computing platform which has 100 per cent binary compatibility with its upstream source, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

Target Users: Anyone who wants to test the working of server on Desktop

6.Fedora
Fedora is an operating system based on the Linux kernel, developed by the community-supported Fedora Project and owned by Red Hat. Fedora contains software distributed under a free and open source license and aims to be on the leading edge of such technologies.

Target Users: For those who want to taste bleeding-edge technology and can’t wait for the program to get stable

7.Kali Linux
Kali Linux is a Debian-derived Linux distribution designed for digital forensics and penetration testing. Kali Linux is preinstalled with numerous penetration-testing programs, including nmap (a port scanner), Wireshark (a packet analyser), John the Ripper (a password cracker), and Aircrack-ng (a software suite for penetration-testing wireless LANs).

Target Users: For penetration testers or ethical hackers

8.Arch Linux
Arch Linux is a Linux-based operating system for i686 and x86-64 computers. It is composed predominantly of free and open source software, and supports community involvement. The design approach of the development team focuses on elegance, code correctness, minimalism, and simplicity, and expects the user to be willing to make some effort to understand the system's operation.

Target Users: geeky distro

9.OpenSuse
openSUSE is a general purpose operating system built on top of the Linux kernel, developed by the community-supported openSUSE Project and sponsored by SUSE and a number of other companies. It comes in several editions for the x86 and x86-64 architectures.

Target Users: System Administrators

What is Wireless Network Security. Learn The Basics

Keep your wireless network safe from prying eyes at all times

Hackers are becoming more and more sophisticated each day and making use of some of the most thought-bred effective tools that guarantee complete attack and kill! While everyone can't be a tech-buff so as to know all about protecting yourself, there are some basics that you should know so you don't end up in trouble anytime soon.

Basic Terminology

1.Service Set Identifier (SSID)

Case sensitive, 32 alphanumeric character unique identifier attached to the header of packets sent over a wireless local-area network (WLAN) that acts as a password when a mobile device tries to connect to the basic service set (BSS); a component of the IEEE 802.11 WLAN architecture.

2.Wireless Access Point (WAP)
A wireless Access Point (AP) is a device that allows wireless devices to connect to a wired network using Wi-Fi, or related standards. The AP usually connects to a router (via a wired network) as a standalone device, but it can also be an integral component of the router itself.

3.Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID)
A unique 48 bit key that forms the MAC address of WAP or wireless router.

4.Beacon frame
One of the management frames in IEEE 802.11 based WLANs that contains all the information about the network. Beacon frames are transmitted periodically to announce the presence of a Wireless LAN. Beacon frames are transmitted by the Access Point (AP) in an infrastructure BSS. In IBSS network beacon generation is distributed among the stations.

5.Wireless Equivalent Privacy (WEP)
An encryption scheme used to encrypt the WiFi data streams comprising of an encryption key and Initialisation Vector (IV). It uses a 64bit or 128bit key.

Securing Your Wireless Network

1.MAC filtering
MAC Filtering refers to a security access control method whereby the 48-bit address assigned to each network card is used to determine access to the network. MAC addresses are uniquely assigned to each card, so using MAC filtering on a network permits and denies network access to specific devices through the use of blacklists and whitelists.

2.Hiding SSID
Wireless devices can only connect to WAP via a known SSID. Therefore it's ideal you hide SSID. 

3.Encryption Keys
WEP is easily cracked within minutes even by the most mediocre of hackers out there. Those of you who were under the contention that WEP was really safe, well, think again! It is high time that you set your wireless routers up and change your wireless encryption from WEP to WPA2 security which is new and much stronger. 

4.Intrusion detection system
Intrusion detection system (IDS) is a device or software application that monitors network or system activities for malicious activities or policy violations and produces reports to a management station. IDS come in a variety of “flavors” and approach the goal of detecting suspicious traffic in different ways.

Best Online Data Backup & Synchronization Tools

Hard disks and flash drives are passe. This is the era of the cloud. Make full use of it.

Hard disks and flash drives are passe. This is the era of the cloud. Make full use of it! 

We live in the era of cloud technology and big data to say the least is the increasing talk of the town. Backing up your crucial files online is the way to go today with both the average user as well as bigger organisations making full use of technology. Here are 10 online data backup and synchronisation tools for you. 

1.CX.com
The CX storage infrastructure is designed to run from any datacenter and storage environment. CX uses the Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) due to its carefully engineered design that meets our requirements for scalability, durability, speed, low-cost, and simplicity.

2.MyPC Backup
MyPCBackup takes the security and privacy of your data very seriously. All your files are encrypted with the same security as banks use.

3.iDrive
Online backup for unlimited PCs, Macs, iPhones, iPads, Android devices and Facebook pictures into a single account.

4.CloudMe
CloudMe is a free and open service to store and make all your files available in the cloud through an easy to use Blue Folder.

5.SugarSync
SugarSync's cloud storage works in the background so your most important data is always backed up online and available to you — regardless of your location or the computer you are using. 

6.Syncplicity
Syncplicity is an enterprise-grade online file sharing and mobile collaboration solution. Backed by EMC, it provides users with an experience they love and gives IT the security and control it needs.

7.Duplicati
Duplicati is a free backup client that securely stores encrypted, incremental, compressed backups on cloud storage services and remote file servers. 

8.BuddyBackup
BuddyBackup gives you unlimited online backups of your files for free, by allowing you to easily and securely backup your data onto your buddies.

9.CrashPlan
Only CrashPlan offers totally free local and offsite backup. A subscription to our cloud backup service gets you continuous backup, mobile file access and lots more. 

10.Comodo Backup
You can try 10 GB of highly secure, online storage which you can access from anywhere and sync between computers.

How to Dual-Booting With Windows 8 And Linux

Here are six ways to set up multi-booting with Windows 8 and Linux:

1. Install the Linux GRUB bootloader
-Install the Linux GRUB bootloader as the default boot object.

-The catch here is you need to have a UEFI-compatible Linux distribution (openSuSE, Fedora, Linux Mint and Ubuntu).

-When you install a UEFI-compatible Linux distribution and everything works well, you will get the GRUB boot menu after a reboot. You can then choose either Linux or Windows 8 to boot from it. 

2. Use the BIOS Boot Select Key
-There's a possibility that doing everything of the above still gets you nowhere, and you're still getting Windows rather than Linux after reboot.

-In that case you can use the BIOS Boot Selection option (activated by pressing a special key that varies between systems during the power-on or reboot process.) 

-Pressing the special key will interrupt the Windows boot process and you will get a list of available operating systems (Windows 8 and Linux).

3. Enable 'Legacy Boot'
-Some systems make it difficult to enable Legacy Boot. The option might be well hidden in the BIOS configuration, or require a BIOS password before they will let you change it. 

-Legacy Boot allows you to install more or less any Linux distribution, without worrying about UEFI compatbility.

4. Try a workaround
-There is a "next boot" option available, which specifices a one time boot configuration. 

-If it is set the system will try to boot that item first, and will also clear that setting so that on the next boot it goes back to using the default boot sequence list. 

-The next boot configuration can be set from Linux using efibootmgr -n XXXX, where XXXX is the item number from the boot list.

-Add the efibootmgr command to the Linux startup scripts. Every time you boot Linux, it would reset the value so that it would boot Linux again the following time.

5. Trick the default boot process
-Put the Linux shim.efi (or grubx64.efi) image where the Windows Boot Manager is normally located. This is a cleaver trick to trick the default boot process. 

6. Install a different Boot Manager 
-rEFInd has the advantage of being able to boot almost anything - Windows, Linux, MacOS. It automatically finds whatever might be on the disk and then presents you with a boot selection list. 

Source: ZDNet

You Can Buy And Sell App Source Codes

Want to sell an app on Android or iOS? You don't always have to write your own source code

Here are 11 websites that will aid you in the transactions.

1. ChupaMobile
This is perhaps the top website for buying and selling of Android and iOS app source codes. It has a huge collection of games and apps and is very easy to navigate through. You can also sort the listings by frameworks.

2. Apptopia

This is amongst the best sources for buying completed apps. Moreover, you don't just purchase the source code, you purchase the entire app, which includes the intellectual property rights and others. 

3. CodeCanyon
If you have an Envato account then this website would be a good choice for you. They do not have a very huge collection yet, but being part of the Envato family makes payment processing etc. easier.

4. Bluecloud Solutions
This website is quite useful for anyone looking to start a business with the next app they buy. You of course do not want to buy something that's not up to the mark, so you will need to choose only the good ones. This website makes the choice for you and shows only the apps that have potential.

5. BinPress
This website hosts source code from open source projects on the internet, desktop PCs and for mobile devices. 

6. AppCoda
If you're looking to buy stuff only for iOS apps then this is the way to go. 

7. Sell My App
Although this website sells completed app source codes from the Android, iOS, BlackBerry and @ Windows apps, it is tilted towards iOS, with a bigger collection.

8. SellMyAppz.com
This website has a pretty large selection of apps for both Android and iOS operating systems.

9. CodeStore
Here you can purchase four types of app templates. These include comic book app template, a photo showcase app template, story book app template and coloring book app template.

10. AppSplit
This follows a practice similar to Ebay, but for app source codes. You have to bid on the app against others and the can win only if your bit is i

11. Sellfy
This is an ecommerce portal where you can setup your own shop and sell your apps, ebooks, software and other things.

10 Awesome Things You Can Do On Your Linux

Using Windows/Mac should not deter you from enjoying the finer things in life

Well, here are 10 such tricks only Linux can offer: 

1. Get malware free environment

-Rest assured your Linux-powered device will not be affected by viruses.

-Not every file found in the wild is executed in Linux.

-Does not allow auto-runs every time you plug a new disk.

2. Make upgrade without rebooting

-Every time you install software in Windows, it will ask you to reboot. However, with Linux you're saved the trouble!

3. You can also maintain the timestamp

-You can know when a file was last accessed with the help of 'touch' command.

-Prevents anyone from stealthily touching your files as it maintains a timestamp.

-Further, there is no limit in length for a filename.

4. You can search and install software easily

-Synaptic Package manager gives you access to most significant software packages from one source. Simply select your preference using drop down box to get the software that suits you best.

5. You can keep your system on for hundreds of hours and still have good processing speed

-Linux can clock several hours with multiple users using it and still runs at usual speed unlike Windows.

6. Move bootable drives between machines without re-installing them

-Each time you add RAM, Windows will always ask you to re-install. This is not the case with Linux.

7. Get software issues solved through forums

-If something goes wrong in Windows, you have to run to an expert to fix it. With Linux, you have discussion forums to help you achieve the same.

8. Get all your hardware supported

-Test all our hardware using live CD before installing the OS.

9. Choose your customised OS from hundreds of distributors

-Linux is just the engine and different operating systems are built around it. You can hand pick the one that suits your need.

10. Install Linux for “free” and keep your Windows

-You can install Linux in a separate drive and keep your Windows as well.

-Also you can run Windows applications on Linux platform using WINE.

Source: Silicon India