Guides & Tutorials

Cron is the standard Linux job scheduler. It runs commands or scripts at specified times and intervals.

Open the Crontab Editor

crontab -e

Cron Syntax

# m  h  dom  mon  dow  command
  0  2   *    *    *   /usr/bin/backup.sh

This runs the script every day at 2:00 AM.

Common Examples

# Every 5 minutes
*/5 * * * * /usr/bin/check.sh

# Every Monday at midnight
0 0 * * 1 /usr/bin/weekly.sh

View Scheduled Jobs

crontab -l

Managing storage devices is a core Linux administration skill. This guide covers identifying, formatting, and mounting drives on any Linux distribution.

List Available Drives

lsblk
sudo fdisk -l

Format a Partition

sudo mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdb1

Mount the Drive

sudo mkdir /mnt/data
sudo mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt/data

Persist Mount on Boot

Add to /etc/fstab:

/dev/sdb1  /mnt/data  ext4  defaults  0  2

UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall) is the default firewall tool for Ubuntu. It simplifies iptables configuration with an easy command-line interface.

Install and Enable UFW

sudo apt install ufw
sudo ufw enable

Allow Common Services

sudo ufw allow ssh
sudo ufw allow http
sudo ufw allow https

Check Status

sudo ufw status verbose

Block a Specific IP

sudo ufw deny from 192.168.1.100

Password-based SSH login is vulnerable to brute-force attacks. SSH key authentication is faster and significantly more secure.

Generate a Key Pair

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "[email protected]"

Copy the Public Key to the Server

ssh-copy-id user@server-ip

Disable Password Login

Edit /etc/ssh/sshd_config and set:

PasswordAuthentication no
PubkeyAuthentication yes

Then restart SSH: sudo systemctl restart sshd

LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) is a classic web server stack. This guide installs and configures all four components on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.Install Apachesudo apt update sudo apt install apache2Install MySQLsudo apt install mysql-server sudo mysql_secure_installationInstall PHPsudo apt install php libapache2-mod-php php-mysqlTest the SetupCreate a test file at /var/www/html/info.php with <?php phpinfo();…

BitLocker encrypts your entire drive to protect data from unauthorized access. This guide walks through enabling BitLocker on Windows 10 and 11 Pro editions.RequirementsA TPM 1.2 or later chip is required (or you can enable software-based encryption via Group Policy).Enable BitLockerOpen Control Panel > System and Security > BitLocker Drive Encryption and click Turn on BitLocker next to your drive.Save Your Recovery KeyStore…

PowerShell provides powerful cmdlets for managing Windows services — starting, stopping, querying status, and configuring startup type.

List All Services

Get-Service

Start and Stop a Service

Start-Service -Name "wuauserv"
Stop-Service -Name "wuauserv"

Change Startup Type

Set-Service -Name "Spooler" -StartupType Disabled

Find Services by Status

Get-Service | Where-Object { $_.Status -eq "Running" }

Creating a local user account allows someone to use your PC without a Microsoft account. Follow these steps to add a new user in Windows 10.Via SettingsGo to Settings > Accounts > Family & other users and click Add someone else to this PC. Choose I don't have this person's sign-in information, then Add a user without a Microsoft account.Via Command Promptnet user NewUsername StrongPassword /add net localgroup…

Windows Defender Firewall controls which network traffic is allowed in and out of your system. This guide explains how to create inbound and outbound rules using the GUI and netsh.Open the Advanced Firewall ConsoleRun wf.msc from the Run dialog to open the Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security console.Create an Inbound RuleClick Inbound Rules > New Rule. Choose Port, set TCP/UDP and the port number, then choose Allow or…

Windows Task Scheduler lets you automate scripts, programs, and maintenance jobs on a time-based or event-based trigger. This guide covers creating a basic scheduled task from the GUI and from PowerShell.Create a Task via GUIOpen Task Scheduler from the Start menu. Click Create Basic Task and follow the wizard to set a trigger (Daily, Weekly, etc.) and action (Start a Program).Create a Task via PowerShell$action = New-ScheduledTaskAction…