Centos Disable Firewall and SELinux | Tips

Learn how to disable Firewall and SELinux in CentOS with ease. Our Server Management Support team is here to help you with your questions and concerns.

CentOS Disable Firewall and SELinux | Tips

Security-Enhanced Linux, also known as SELinux offers a strong access control mechanism.

It is developed by the National Security Agency (NSA). SELinux enables sysadmins to fine-tune user and application access to resources. Furthermore, it boosts the overall security of a Linux server.

Before we dive into the nitty-gritty of SELinux configurations, we have to disable both the firewall and SELinux temporarily.

So, to disable the firewall on boot, run this command:

# systemctl disable firewalld.service

To disable SELinux, we have to open the `/etc/selinux/config` file and change the line:

SELINUX=[...]

to

SELINUX=disabled

Now, we can check the status of SELinux with the following code:

• # sestatus
• # getenforce
• # cat /etc/selinux/config

Understanding SELinux Modes

The `/etc/selinux/config` file acts as the control center for SELinux on the system. The `SELINUX=` line will have one of these three values:

• Enforcing: SELinux security policy is enforced.
• Disabled: SELinux policy is not loaded.
• Permissive: SELinux prints warnings.

Furthermore, the `SELINUXTYPE=` line can have one of these values:

• Targeted: Targeted processes are protected.
• Minimum: Modification of targeted policy.
• mls: Multi Level Security protection.

Our experts would like to point out that disabling SELinux is not a good idea due to potential security risks.

How to Modify SELinux Modes

We can easily change the SELinux mode with the setenforce command.

For example, we can put SELinux in enforcing mode as seen here:

$ sudo setenforce Enforcing

$ sestatus

Or

We can put SELinux in permissive (disabled) mode as seen here:

$ sudo setenforce Permissive

$ sestatus

$ getenforce

Furthermore, we can disable SELinux permanently by editing the `/etc/selinux/config` file:

$ sudo vi /etc/selinux/config

Then, set `SELINUX` to disabled:

SELINUX=disabled

After making the change, we have to save and close the file and reboot the Linux system.

We can check if SELinux has been disabled with these commands

$ getenforce

$ sestatus

As seen above, navigating through SELinux is a delicate balance between security and system functionality. While temporary measures may be needed in certain cases, a permanent solution must carefully consider the potential risks.

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Conclusion

In brief, our Support Experts demonstrated how to disable Firewall and SELinux in CentOS with ease.