Linux – 100+ Lab Exercises Roadmap (Basic, Intermediate, Advanced)

🔰 Basic Level (30+ Exercises)

Objective: Build foundational command-line skills, understand the Linux file system, and navigate through essential operations.

File System Navigation & Management

Navigate directories using cd, ls, pwd.
Create, delete, and move files/directories with touch, rm, mv, cp, mkdir.
Explore file permissions using chmod, chown, umask.
Use find and locate to search files.
Use df, du, and lsblk for disk space analysis.

Basic Command-Line Utilities

Redirect input/output using >, >>, 2>, |, tee.
Use cat, more, less, head, tail.
Archive files using tar, gzip, bzip2, zip.
Learn and use grep, awk, cut, sed.
Manage processes using ps, top, htop, kill.

User & Group Management

Create and delete users (useradd, userdel).
Create and manage groups (groupadd, gpasswd).
Set user passwords and switch users (passwd, su, sudo).
Assign users to groups and configure /etc/sudoers.
Understand /etc/passwd, /etc/group, and /etc/shadow.

File Permissions & Ownership

Change file ownership (chown, chgrp).
Use symbolic and octal modes to set permissions.
Configure default file permissions via umask.
Set SUID, SGID, and Sticky Bit.
Test permission changes in shared directories.

🚀 Intermediate Level (40+ Exercises)

Goal: Gain practical experience with shell scripting, package management, system services, and network configuration.

Shell Scripting & Automation

Write basic shell scripts using bash.
Accept user input and arguments in scripts.
Use conditionals (if, elif, case) in scripts.
Implement loops (for, while, until).
Automate tasks using cron (crontab) and at.

Package & Software Management

Install and remove packages with apt, yum, dnf.
Manage repositories and GPG keys.
Compile software from source using make and gcc.
Create and install .deb or .rpm packages.
Maintain system updates and upgrades.

Networking & Connectivity

Check network interfaces using ip, ifconfig, nmcli.
Configure static IPs and DNS.
Use ping, traceroute, netstat, ss.
Scan ports with nmap, test services with telnet, nc.
Transfer files using scp, rsync, sftp.

System Services & Logs

Use systemctl to manage services.
Analyze logs via journalctl and /var/log/.
Enable/disable startup services.
Monitor resource usage with iostat, vmstat, sar.
Check system boot and uptime information.

🧠 Advanced Level (40+ Exercises)

Goal: Master Linux administration, performance tuning, security, and advanced scripting techniques.

Security & Access Control

Set up and configure iptables, firewalld, or ufw.
Implement SELinux or AppArmor.
Configure and monitor fail2ban.
Manage SSH keys and restrict SSH access.
Conduct file integrity checks with aide or tripwire.

Advanced Shell & Tools

Debug scripts with set -x and trap.
Use functions and error handling in Bash scripts.
Schedule job dependencies with anacron.
Automate system reports (disk, memory, logs).
Use expect for automating interactive sessions.

Server & Service Management

Set up and secure an Apache/Nginx server.
Install and configure an FTP/SFTP server.
Deploy and manage MySQL/PostgreSQL servers.
Configure DNS using bind9.
Implement load balancing using HAProxy.

Virtualization & Containers

Install and manage VMs with KVM/QEMU.
Use virt-manager and virsh CLI.
Run containers using Docker on Linux.
Manage cgroups and namespaces.
Set up LXD/LXC containers.

Performance Tuning & Monitoring

Monitor system with top, iotop, glances, dstat.
Optimize memory usage and swappiness.
Tweak kernel parameters with sysctl.
Profile performance with perf, strace.
Analyze boot time with systemd-analyze.

Capstone Projects

Set up a complete LAMP/LEMP stack from scratch.
Automate server hardening via Bash scripts.
Create a log monitoring and alerting solution.
Configure a secure file transfer system with auditing.
Deploy and benchmark containerized apps on Linux.

✅ Tools & Utilities

vim, nano, tmux, screen, ssh, scp, rsync
bash, cron, systemd, tcpdump, nmap
firewalld, iptables, ufw, SELinux, AppArmor