When you’re setting up the infrastructure for your data center, you’ll make plenty of choices about protecting your servers. You’ll choose sturdy server cabinets and decide on appropriate server rack sizes, arrange hot or cold aisle containment solutions, and nail that perfect cable management. Now, take a tiny bit of time to set up the three easiest methods for protecting your servers’ data.
SSH Keys
Cryptographic SSH keys are relatively quick and easy to set up. A private and public key pair is created, and then the private key is kept secret and secure by the user. The public key can be shared with anyone who the user wishes to have access to the network.
When password-based logins are used, unsavory users can attempt over and over to gain access to your server. Modern computing hardware can easily run through password possibilities and find the correct one with enough time. Setting up SSH key authentication lets you disable password-based authentication and make cracking your system just a little more difficult. On top of that, computers have a hard time cracking SSH keys simply due to them having many more characters to guess than a typical password.
VPNs / Private Networks
Private networks are set up to only be available to certain servers or users. A virtual private network (VPN), is a way to create secure connections between two or more remote computers and present the connection as if it were a local private network. Using a VPN basically maps out a private network that only your servers can see.
Consistent Service Auditing
Service auditing means taking a good look through your system to know what services are running on it, which ports those services are using for communication, and what protocols are accepted. Look for red flags, clear out junk, and use the data you glean for other security measures like configuring your firewall settings.
These are just three of the easiest, least time-consuming methods you can use to keep your servers safe and flying under the radar of malicious users. Remember that server rack sizes and color-coded twist ties don’t mean much when your data itself is compromised. Consider future measures like pushing data to the cloud, which is arguably more secure than traditional storage and also saves money for around 82% of companies. Keep big improvements in mind, but just start with basic security and be vigilant!