Red Hat System Administration Fundamentals: RHCSA (EX200) Intensive Workshop

Duration: 35 Hours (5 Days) Focus: Core RHEL Management, Storage, Networking, and Security


Day 1: CLI Mastery and Core System Operations 💻

Module 1: Introduction to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

  • Platform Overview (Understanding RHEL features, support structure, and use cases).
  • Linux Environment (Distinguishing between kernel, shell, and user applications).
  • Command Line Access (Connecting to and navigating the system via the command line interface (CLI)).

Module 2: Essential Tools and File Management

  • Essential Utilities (Using core tools for file viewing, manipulation, and system interaction).
  • File Management (Managing files and directories from the CLI, e.g., cp, mv, rm).
  • Advanced Text Manipulation (Using regular expressions, pipelines (|), and redirects (>, <, >>)).

Module 3: Process and Service Control

  • Process Management (Creating, monitoring, signaling, and killing processes, e.g., ps, top, kill).
  • Service Management (Controlling system services and daemons using systemctl).
  • Logging and Auditing (Analyzing and storing system logs using journalctl and configuring log rotation).

Day 2: Storage Management and Filesystem Hierarchy 💾

Module 4: Filesystems and Hierarchy

  • Filesystem Fundamentals (Understanding standard Linux filesystems and the Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS)).
  • Filesystem Administration (Creating, formatting, labeling, and mounting filesystems).
  • Persistent Mounting (Configuring automatic mounting via /etc/fstab).

Module 5: Logical Volume Management (LVM)

  • LVM Architecture (Understanding Physical Volumes (PVs), Volume Groups (VGs), and Logical Volumes (LVs)).
  • LVM Configuration (Creating, extending, shrinking, and snapshotting storage using LVM).

Module 6: Software Installation and Configuration

  • Package Management (RPM) (Installing, verifying, and querying software packages using the low-level RPM utility).
  • Package Management (YUM/DNF) (Installing and managing packages and dependencies using high-level tools like YUM/DNF).
  • Repository Management (Configuring and prioritizing software repositories).
  • Local Storage Repos (Configuring and using local storage as a package source).

Day 3: System Security and User Access Control 🛡️

Module 7: User and Group Administration

  • Identity Management (Managing users and groups, including creation, modification, and deletion).
  • Security Contexts (Configuring group memberships and user privilege escalation via sudo).

Module 8: File Permissions and ACLs

  • Standard Permissions (Setting file ownership and standard user/group/other permissions).
  • Advanced Permissions (Setting advanced permissions using ACLs (Access Control Lists)).
  • Special Permissions (Understanding and applying SUID, SGID, and sticky bit permissions).

Module 9: System Firewalls

  • Firewall Configuration (Implementing host security by configuring firewall settings, typically using firewalld).
  • Zone and Service Management (Managing firewall zones and allowing/denying specific services).

Day 4: Networking, Boot Process, and Automation 🌐

Module 10: Network Configuration and Management

  • Basic Networking (Configuring static and dynamic network settings for interfaces).
  • Network Troubleshooting (Managing and troubleshooting network settings).
  • Secure Remote Access (Secure SSH configuration, including key-based authentication).
  • High-Availability Networking (Understanding and implementing network teaming or bonding).

Module 11: Boot Process and System Troubleshooting

  • Boot Sequence (Detailed understanding of the RHEL boot process from BIOS to login).
  • Systemd Targets (Managing the system state by controlling systemd targets and service units).
  • Diagnostics (Troubleshooting and resolving common boot and system issues, including filesystem problems).

Module 12: Automated Installation (Kickstart)

  • Kickstart File Creation (Creating and configuring a basic Kickstart file).
  • Installation Automation (Using Kickstart to automate RHEL installations).

Day 5: Enterprise Integration, Virtualization, and Review ☁️

Module 13: Red Hat Identity Management (IdM) Overview

  • IdM Introduction (Overview of Red Hat Identity Management and its role in an enterprise environment).
  • Directory Services (Conceptual understanding of LDAP and Kerberos configuration for centralized authentication).

Module 14: Virtualization and Containers

  • Virtualization Basics (Introduction to virtualization with KVM and libvirt, including creating and managing virtual machines).
  • Container Introduction (Introduction to containers with Podman).
  • Container Management (Managing running containers and creating custom container images).

Module 15: Review and Exam Preparation

  • Comprehensive Review (A comprehensive review of all core RHCSA topics).
  • Exam Strategies (Tips and strategies for managing time and answering performance-based questions).
  • Practice Sessions (Hands-on practice exams and scenario-based exercises).