Lynis Remote Deployment Summary

Date: 2026-03-10 Status: ✅ COMPLETE (peter audit in progress) Architecture: Remote-execution via SSH

Deployment Summary

Successfully deployed remote Lynis audit capability to willie and peter. All audits are orchestrated from alfred and results are centrally stored in alfred's blueteam database.

Servers Deployed

1. Alfred (Local) - Execution: Local python script - Hardening Index: 64/100 - Status: ✅ COMPLETE

2. Willie (AWS EC2) - Execution: Remote via SSH - Hardening Index: 64/100 - Status: ✅ COMPLETE

3. Peter (Production) - Execution: Remote via SSH - Hardening Index: Pending - Status: ⏳ AUDIT RUNNING (~10+ minutes for large production server)

Architecture

Remote-Execution Model

┌──────────┐
│  Alfred  │ (Control Server - localhost)
└─────┬────┘
      │
      ├─ Run: python3 lynis-auditor.py alfred
      │  └─ Local Lynis execution
      │  └─ Direct database storage
      │
      ├─ SSH: willie (mailcow.tailce791f.ts.net)
      │  └─ Run: sudo lynis audit system
      │  └─ Retrieve: /var/log/lynis-report.dat
      │  └─ Parse and store in alfred database
      │
      └─ SSH: peter (webhost.tailce791f.ts.net)
         └─ Run: sudo lynis audit system
         └─ Retrieve: /var/log/lynis-report.dat
         └─ Parse and store in alfred database

┌──────────────────┐
│ blueteam.lynis_* │ (PostgreSQL on alfred)
└──────────────────┘

Benefits

Central Data Storage - All results in one database
No Remote DB Access - Simpler security model
Consistent Architecture - Matches compliance scanner
Single Source of Truth - One dashboard for all servers

Scripts Created

1. audit-remote-server.sh (New)

Purpose: Run Lynis audit on a remote server via SSH

Usage:

bash scripts/audit-remote-server.sh <server-name> <ssh-host> <ssh-key>

Example:

bash scripts/audit-remote-server.sh willie mailcow.tailce791f.ts.net ~/.ssh/bq_laptop_rsa

Process: 1. SSH to remote server 2. Run sudo lynis audit system remotely 3. Retrieve /var/log/lynis-report.dat via SSH 4. Parse report file locally 5. Store findings in alfred's blueteam database

2. audit-all-servers.sh (New)

Purpose: Audit all three servers with one command

Usage:

bash scripts/audit-all-servers.sh

Process: - Audits alfred (local) - Audits willie (remote via SSH) - Audits peter (remote via SSH) - Displays combined security posture

Current Security Posture

Scores

Server	Compliance	Lynis Hardening	Combined	Status
alfred	100/100	64/100	82.0/100	✓ Good
willie	100/100	64/100	82.0/100	✓ Good
peter	95/100	Pending	Pending	⏳ Audit Running

Findings Summary

Alfred: - Tests: 283 - Warnings: 2 (medium) - Suggestions: 55 (low) - Unresolved: 57

Willie: - Tests: 263 - Warnings: 1 (medium) - Suggestions: 48 (low) - Unresolved: 49

Peter: - Pending audit completion

Installation Details

Willie Deployment

# Install Lynis
ssh ubuntu@mailcow.tailce791f.ts.net "sudo apt-get install -y lynis"

# Verify installation
ssh ubuntu@mailcow.tailce791f.ts.net "lynis show version"
# Output: 3.0.9

# Run first audit
bash scripts/audit-remote-server.sh willie mailcow.tailce791f.ts.net ~/.ssh/bq_laptop_rsa

# Result: Hardening Index 64/100

Peter Deployment

# Install Lynis
ssh ubuntu@webhost.tailce791f.ts.net "sudo apt-get install -y lynis"

# Verify installation
ssh ubuntu@webhost.tailce791f.ts.net "lynis show version"
# Output: 3.0.9

# Run first audit (in progress)
bash scripts/audit-remote-server.sh peter webhost.tailce791f.ts.net ~/.ssh/webhost_key

# Status: Running (10+ minutes for large production server)

Database Integration

Schema: blueteam (PostgreSQL on alfred)

Tables: - lynis_audits - Audit summary records - lynis_findings - Individual warnings/suggestions

Views: - v_latest_lynis_audits - Most recent audit per server - v_security_posture - Combined compliance + Lynis scores - v_unresolved_lynis_findings - Actionable remediation list

Query Examples:

-- View all server scores
SELECT * FROM blueteam.v_security_posture ORDER BY combined_score DESC;

-- View willie findings
SELECT * FROM blueteam.v_unresolved_lynis_findings
WHERE server_name = 'willie'
ORDER BY severity;

-- View hardening trend
SELECT server_name, audit_date, hardening_index
FROM blueteam.lynis_audits
ORDER BY server_name, audit_date DESC;

Next Steps

Immediate (After Peter Audit Completes)

Verify Peter Results sql SELECT * FROM blueteam.v_latest_lynis_audits WHERE server_name = 'peter';
Review Combined Security Posture sql SELECT * FROM blueteam.v_security_posture;
Identify High-Priority Findings sql SELECT * FROM blueteam.v_unresolved_lynis_findings WHERE severity IN ('high', 'medium') ORDER BY severity, server_name;

Short-Term (Next 7 Days)

Configure Automated Scanning
Add weekly cron job on alfred
Email alerts for hardening index drops
Address Medium-Severity Findings
SMTP banner information disclosure
System reboot requirements
Redis configuration hardening
Dashboard Integration
Add Lynis tab to security dashboard UI
Display hardening trends
Show top findings across all servers

Medium-Term (Next 30 Days)

Establish Baseline Targets
Production servers: 80+ hardening index
Document acceptable exceptions
Track improvement over time
Create Remediation Playbooks
Common finding fixes
Automated remediation scripts
Resolution tracking
Security Posture Monitoring
Weekly audit execution
Trend analysis
Compliance reporting

Troubleshooting

Long Audit Times on Production Servers

Symptom: Peter audit taking 10-15 minutes Cause: Large number of files in WordPress installations Solution: Normal behavior - production servers with many files take longer Mitigation: Run audits during low-traffic periods

SSH Connection Issues

Symptom: "Connection refused" or "Permission denied" Cause: SSH keys not configured or firewall blocking Solution: Use correct SSH key for each server: - willie: ~/.ssh/bq_laptop_rsa - peter: ~/.ssh/webhost_key

Database Connection Errors

Symptom: "Connection refused" to PostgreSQL Cause: PostgreSQL not configured for remote access Solution: Use remote-execution architecture (current implementation) - Run audits via SSH - Store results locally on alfred - No remote database connections needed

Git Commits

1. Lynis Integration (ad52209) - Initial Lynis deployment - Database schema - Local auditor script - Documentation

2. Sudoers Configuration (74bb270) - Passwordless sudo for Lynis - Report file read permissions - Alfred configuration

3. Remote Execution Scripts (7287af9) - audit-remote-server.sh - audit-all-servers.sh - Remote deployment to willie and peter

Files Modified/Created

New Scripts: - scripts/audit-remote-server.sh (263 lines) - scripts/audit-all-servers.sh (45 lines)

Modified Scripts: - scripts/lynis-auditor.py - Added sudo for report reading

New Documentation: - findings/LYNIS_DEPLOYMENT_2026-03-10.md - findings/LYNIS_REMOTE_DEPLOYMENT_2026-03-10.md (this file)

Configuration: - /etc/sudoers.d/90-lynis-cyber-guardian (alfred)

Success Criteria

✅ Lynis installed on all three servers
✅ Remote audit execution working
✅ Central database storage on alfred
✅ Alfred audit complete (64/100)
✅ Willie audit complete (64/100)
⏳ Peter audit in progress
✅ Combined security posture view working
✅ Documentation complete

Performance Metrics

Audit Execution Times

Server	Type	Duration	Tests	Findings
alfred	Local	~75s	283	57
willie	Remote (AWS)	~120s	263	49
peter	Remote (Production)	~600s+	Pending	Pending

Note: Peter's longer execution time is expected due to: - Large production WordPress installation - Multiple sites and files - Comprehensive file system scanning

References

Lynis Documentation: https://cisofy.com/lynis/
CIS Benchmarks: https://www.cisecurity.org/cis-benchmarks
Compliance Scanner: findings/COMPLIANCE_TEST_REPORT_2026-03-10.md
Lynis Integration Docs: docs/LYNIS_INTEGRATION.md

Deployment Status: ✅ COMPLETE (awaiting peter audit completion) Next Action: Monitor peter audit, verify results, configure automation

End of Report

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