Module 0 – Setup & Essential Linux Foundation (Complete Practical Tutorial
This is the most important foundation module. Without strong Linux skills, tools like Nmap, Burp Suite, and Metasploit become much harder to use effectively.
Goal of this module: Become comfortable moving around Linux, managing files, checking network status, installing tools, and using the terminal efficiently — all within 1–2 days of focused practice.
Recommended Environment: Kali Linux (latest version) or Parrot OS.
1. Navigation & File Operations
These commands help you move around the system and manage files.
1pwd # Print current working directory 2ls -la # List all files (including hidden) with details 3cd /home/kali # Change directory 4mkdir recon # Create a new folder 5cp file.txt backup/ # Copy file 6mv oldname.txt newname.txt # Rename or move 7rm -rf foldername # Delete folder and everything inside (be careful!) 8find / -name "*.conf" 2>/dev/null # Find all .conf files on the system
Practical Example:
1mkdir ~/pentest 2cd ~/pentest 3mkdir recon scans exploits 4ls -la
Practice Task:
Create a folder structure for a practice target (target1), with subfolders for recon, scans, screenshots, and notes.
2. Networking Basics
These commands show your network configuration and open ports.
1ip a # Show IP addresses (modern replacement of ifconfig) 2ip r # Show routing table 3ss -tulnp # Show listening ports with process names (better than netstat) 4netstat -tulnp # Older alternative
Practical Example:
1ip a | grep inet 2ss -tulnp | grep LISTEN
Practice Task:
Find your current IP address and list all ports that are currently listening on your Kali machine.
3. Process & Privilege Management
1whoami # Show current username 2id # Show user ID and groups 3ps aux # Show all running processes 4top # Live process monitor (press q to quit) 5htop # Better version of top (if installed) 6sudo -l # Check what sudo permissions you have
Practical Example:
1ps aux | grep nmap 2sudo -l
Practice Task:
Check which user you are currently logged in as and list all processes related to “python” or “nmap”.
4. Text Search & Extraction
Extremely useful during reconnaissance and log analysis.
1grep -R "password" . # Search for the word "password" recursively 2cat file.txt # Display file content 3less file.txt # View large files page by page 4head -n 20 file.txt # Show first 20 lines 5tail -n 50 file.txt # Show last 50 lines 6tail -f /var/log/syslog # Follow log file in real time
Practical Example:
1grep -R "admin" /etc/ 2>/dev/null 2cat /etc/passwd | head -n 10
Practice Task:
Search your entire home directory for any file containing the word “password” or “secret”.
5. Networking Utilities
1ping -c 4 google.com 2traceroute google.com 3dig example.com ANY 4host example.com 5whois example.com 6nslookup example.com
Practical Example:
1dig tech3space.com MX 2whois tech3space.com
Practice Task:
Perform a full DNS lookup (dig) and WHOIS lookup on any domain of your choice and save the output to a file.
6. Download & Transfer Tools
1wget https://example.com/file.txt 2curl -O https://example.com/file.txt 3scp file.txt user@192.168.1.10:/home/user/ 4nc -lvp 4444 # Listen with netcat
Practical Example:
1wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/danielmiessler/SecLists/master/Discovery/Web-Content/common.txt
7. Package Management & Service Control
1sudo apt update 2sudo apt install nmap 3sudo apt install -y nmap masscan nikto sqlmap gobuster whatweb hydra john hashcat wireshark tshark 4systemctl status ssh 5systemctl start ssh 6systemctl stop ssh
Full Recommended Installation Command:
1sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y nmap masscan nikto sqlmap gobuster dirb dirbuster whatweb wpscan hydra john hashcat wireshark tshark metasploit-framework burpsuite
Power Tips (Use These Daily)
- Save command output:
nmap -sV target | tee scan_results.txt - Run command in background:
nmap -p- target & - Bring background job to foreground:
fg - Search command history: Press
Ctrl + Rand start typing - Become root:
sudo suorsudo -i
Complete Practice Lab (Do This Now)
- Update your system and install the recommended tools.
- Create a clean folder structure for future engagements.
- Find your IP address and list all listening ports.
- Download the SecLists common.txt wordlist using
wget. - Search the wordlist for the word “admin” using
grep. - Run a simple local port scan:
nmap -sV 127.0.0.1 - Save the scan output using
tee.
Once you can do the above comfortably without looking at notes, you are ready for Module 1 – Information Gathering.
Pro Tip: Create a personal cheatsheet file:
1nano ~/linux-cheatsheet.txt
Add all important commands there and keep updating it as you learn.
Would you like me to expand this into a full downloadable cheatsheet or move to Module 1 with the same practical style?