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A Checklist Of Methods To Secure Your Dedicated Server

Posted by Marketing Tactics - 08/08/09 at 10:08:33 pm

Congratulations, you have your own dedicated web server! Now all you have to do is secure it against the attack of thousands of would-be hackers so that all of your hard work doesn’t go to waste. Following simple tips and guides, the process won’t be too stressing for you.

Start a security plan right away. Decide who is going to have access to what, when, and for what reasons. This not only includes anyone you want to give access to the server, but also users who will visit your website. Sometimes you may allow users to upload files and have permissions to delete certain things- be very careful in what you allow at this point as this is dangerous.

A server straight out of the box will be near useless to you. If you want to provide your back end and the front end functionality, you will have to install modules. Modules are small scripts and programs that allow you to do things such as use a language or program to run your server. Update are frequent, and should be downloaded to avoid certain security risks.

The languages you support will be your down fall if you don’t know how to code in them. Languages are so powerful that you can easily delete your entire website with a single line of code, depending on which language you are using. Obviously there should be security measures in place to not allow regular website users to execute such code. Something such as the SQL injection is something to avoid.

Any services you are not using should be disabled promptly. Sometimes your server will come with ports and programs running that you not only don’t need, but won’t be monitoring as a result. Telnet is an example of a service that few have a real need for, and can be used to gain entry into a server. Find out how to change and close ports to avoid destruction that could be otherwise avoided with a few minutes of time.

Server administrators always make backups from time to time. And this just isn’t because of bad users that want to ruin your server for fun- it’s because sometimes there are bugs in code, accidents, and other odd happenings that can’t be explained. If solutions don’t seem to work out, having a back up is always something that can be done as a last resort- and they are easy to do as well.

Closing Comments

Security awareness will keep your boat afloat in the stormy weathers of the Internet. Remember that these tips and more should be kept in mind, and perhaps buying a book on the procedure wouldn’t be a bad idea. A good web host should also give you proper tips to follow in securing your server for you.

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