# trimstray/the-practical-linux-hardening-guide

This guide details creating a secure Linux production system. OpenSCAP (C2S/CIS, STIG).

Repository: https://github.com/trimstray/the-practical-linux-hardening-guide
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/the-practical-linux-hardening-guide
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: linux, linux-hardening, linux-security, security, hardening, audit, guide, manual, checklist, cis, pci-dss, openscap, redhat-enterprise-linux, centos
Last push: 2024-11-19T14:02:37+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2888, "days_push": 652, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 10821, forks 691 (observed 2026-08-28T04:10:44.406254+00:00)

## What it is
A practical guide for hardening GNU/Linux production systems, covering CIS, STIG, NIST, and PCI-DSS compliance with step-by-step instructions and OpenSCAP tooling. It targets minimal RHEL7 and CentOS 7 installations and consolidates internal and external threat mitigations in one document.

## Use cases
- harden a linux production server
- apply CIS benchmark to RHEL
- audit linux systems with OpenSCAP
- meet PCI-DSS compliance on linux
- learn linux security best practices
- create a STIG-compliant centos system

## When to choose
- you need a curated, standards-based linux hardening reference
- you run RHEL or CentOS and want CIS/STIG-aligned guidance
- you want practical step-by-step hardening instructions rather than abstract theory

## When to avoid
- you need hardening for non-RHEL distributions like Debian or Arch
- you want automated enforcement rather than a manual guide
- you need exhaustive coverage of every hardening rule

## Facets
- artifact type: learning-resource
- maturity: maintenance
- function: security, documentation
- domain: security, operating-systems, developer-tools
- platform: self-hosted
- tags: linux-hardening, cis-benchmark, openscap, stig, pci-dss, security-guide, rhel, centos, checklist, linux

## Member repositories
- trimstray/the-practical-linux-hardening-guide (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:10:44.406254+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T17:17:38.791178+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/trimstray/the-practical-linux-hardening-guide (fetched 2026-08-28T04:10:44.406254+00:00, sha acbe9881045f)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.