[PLUG] Got hacked last night - HELP!

[Jeme A Brelin]

On Tue, 5 Oct 2004, Bill Thoen wrote:
> Or I can switch horses altogether and install Slackware (for example)
> and have an altogether new learning curve.
>
> All the while I'll be under constant attack by destructives more
> knowledgeable than I using automated hacking tools who will bring it all
> crashing down again if I miss even the smallest security patch or make
> the tiniest mistake in security configuration.

Or you can install Debian, run chron-apt whilst you sleep and get an email
every day that tells you whether or not you have to upgrade anything.

As for configurations, Debian comes with sane defaults and doesn't
automatically start things that you didn't explicitly ask to have running.

There will certainly be a learning curve to the packaging system and a few
nuts and bolts re: the location of some configuration files, but most of
that you'll get no matter which direction you move.

Going back to RH8 doesn't seem like a smart move, though.

You can always bring the box down to the clinic and have someone help you
with the new installation and configuration.

I understand your reluctance to use Debian.  It really does sound cultish
the way folks insist that it's so wonderful all the time and that
everything else sucks by comparison.  My first impulse is to avoid that
kind of thing, too.  But in this case, we really are talking about
something that will give you what you want and not what you don't want.
And as much as I believe that diversity is the key to a healthy system
resistant to disease, I have to say that if you want a hassle-free Linux
system, Debian is the first choice.

Yes, this is flame-war country.  I'm not going to argue the point with
anyone, but in your particular circumstance, Bill, this seems like the
appropriate solution.  You want easy, reliable security updates, sane
defaults, you don't want to get left out in the cold, and you've got
oldish hardware.  So there's my advice.

J.
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     Jeme A Brelin
    jeme at brelin.net
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