Hard links and soft links in Linux both use the ln command but behave very differently. This practical guide explains exactly how each works, when to use which, and how to avoid the common pitfalls that catch even experienced sysadmins.
Category: Blog
Linux Server Health Checks: 10 Metrics Every Sysadmin Should Monitor
Servers give you warnings before they fail. Most sysadmins performing Linux server monitoring miss them because they’re watching the wrong numbers. The metrics that actually matter are one level deeper: iowait instead of CPU percentage, active swap paging instead of memory usage, inode counts instead of just disk space. If you’re not tracking them, you’re […]
Mastering Linux Administration: 20 Powerful Commands to Know
Linux is a powerful and versatile operating system that can be used for a wide range of purposes. For many system administrators, the command line interface is the primary way to interact with the system. Countless Linux commands can be used to perform various tasks, from simple file management to complex network configurations. However, even […]
How I Chose the Best Managed Network Switch for My Home Lab
Update (one year later): The verdict is in. I went with the TP-Link SG2210XMP-M2, and after a full year in the rack it’s been running flawlessly: fanless, multigig, VLANs and not a single issue. Full reasoning below. Recently, I started the process of upgrading my home network to give myself more room to experiment and […]
Docker Alternative: Podman on Linux
This article is inspired by our LinuxCommunity.io forum discussion thread (thanks to users @tmick and @shybry747 for the feedback). Let’s walk through what Podman is and how to use it as a Docker alternative on Linux. Expect a practical guide on installing Podman, running containers with it, and understanding the basics. Containers have become the […]
Network Rack for Small Office (Build Guide)
Last week I walked into an empty 5 × 4 ft storage room. By the end of the week, that blank space held a fully functional network core designed to keep a small professional office online through power cuts, ISP hiccups, and future growth. If you run a home office or manage IT for a […]
watch Command in Linux: Real-Time Monitoring with Examples
The watch command runs any Linux command repeatedly at a set interval and displays the output full-screen, making it one of the quickest ways to monitor live system activity without writing a script. This guide covers all the key options with practical examples for real sysadmin use cases.
Linux Troubleshooting: These 4 Steps Will Fix 99% of Errors
I’ll admit, I hesitated a bit before writing this post. The whole point of this linuxblog.io and linuxcommunity.io forum is to bring together like-minded Linux users and professionals so we can troubleshoot, share ideas, and learn from one another. For a moment I thought, is it really productive for me to publish something that shows […]
Nginx tuning tips: HTTPS/TLS – Turbocharge TTFB/Latency
Nginx TLS tuning won’t fix a slow application, but it does cut handshake overhead and improve connection reuse, which shaves milliseconds off every HTTPS request. This guide covers the TLS, HTTP/2, and HTTP/3 settings I use to keep Nginx fast without giving up modern security. The goal is lower TTFB (Time To First Byte) and […]
Linux tmpfs for Speed and Temporary Storage
tmpfs lets you mount a filesystem entirely in RAM. Here is how Linux already uses it, how to create your own mounts, and where it actually makes sense to use one.
