Introduction

CSF (Config Server Firewall) is a free and advanced firewall configuration script designed to provide better security for Linux servers. This tutorial will guide you through the process of installing CSF on Debian 12.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

1. A Debian 12 server
2. SSH access to the server
3. Root or sudo privileges

Step 1: Download and Install CSF

Download and install CSF using the following commands:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y unzip wget
wget https://download.configserver.com/csf.tgz
tar -xzf csf.tgz
cd csf
sudo ./install.sh

Step 2: Configure CSF

Open the CSF configuration file using a text editor:

sudo nano /etc/csf/csf.conf

Review and customize the CSF configuration according to your requirements. You can adjust firewall settings, ports, and other options.

Save the file and exit the text editor.

Step 3: Start CSF

Start CSF and its associated daemon:

sudo csf -r

Step 4: Access CSF in WHM/cPanel (Optional)

If you're using WHM/cPanel, you can access CSF from the WHM interface:

1. Log in to WHM/cPanel.
2. Search for "ConfigServer Security & Firewall" in the search bar.
3. Click on "ConfigServer Security & Firewall" to access CSF settings.

Step 5: Verify CSF Installation

Verify that CSF is installed and running on your Debian 12 server:

sudo csf -v
sudo csf -s

The above commands should display the CSF version and status.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully installed CSF (Config Server Firewall) on Debian 12. You can now use CSF to enhance the security of your server by configuring firewall rules and managing incoming/outgoing traffic.