Linux guides
19 guides in Maintenance & Troubleshooting · intermediate.
Boot a Raspberry Pi from NVMe or USB SSD
Update EEPROM firmware, configure boot order, clone your SD image, and verify performance booting a Pi 4 or Pi 5 from USB SSD or NVMe.
Offsite Backups to Backblaze B2 / R2 / S3
Back up Linux servers to Backblaze B2, Cloudflare R2, or AWS S3 using rclone, restic, and BorgBackup—with lifecycle policies and restore testing.
Monitor a Server with node_exporter
Install Prometheus node_exporter as a hardened systemd service, configure scraping, and set up Grafana dashboards for full server observability.
Linux Server Disaster Recovery Checklist
A practical Linux server disaster recovery checklist: what to back up, RTO/RPO planning, immutable off-site copies, automated restore drills, and verification.
Snapshot Backups with Btrfs and Snapper
Set up Btrfs subvolumes, configure Snapper for automated snapshots, integrate with GRUB for bootable recovery points, and perform full system rollbacks.
Schedule Backups with systemd Timers
Use systemd timers to schedule reliable backups with OnCalendar, RandomizedDelaySec, and Persistent=true — replacing cron with better logging and catch-up runs.
Recover a Broken Package Database
Fix half-installed packages, corrupt RPM databases, and broken apt/dpkg states with targeted recovery commands for Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, and RHEL systems.
Troubleshoot a Linux Bootloader (GRUB, systemd-boot)
Step-by-step repair guide for GRUB and systemd-boot on UEFI and legacy BIOS systems, covering BLS entries, dual-boot fixes, and EFI partition recovery.
Recover a Linux System from a Live USB
Boot a live USB, mount your broken Linux install, chroot into it, and fix the most common failures: bad fstab, forgotten passwords, and broken GRUB.
Diagnose and Fix "No Space Left" When Disk Is Empty (Inodes)
"No space left" with gigabytes free? You've hit inode exhaustion. Learn how to confirm it, find the culprit directories, clean up millions of files, and prevent recurrence.
Debug systemd Units that Won't Start
Learn a repeatable workflow to debug systemd services that won't start: status output, journalctl, systemd-analyze verify, and safe override.conf patches.
Back Up Linux with Borg or restic
Set up encrypted, deduplicated backups with BorgBackup or restic: local and remote repos, retention pruning, restoring files, and systemd timer scheduling.
How to Reset the Linux Network Stack
Reset a broken Linux network stack without rebooting: restart NetworkManager or systemd-networkd, flush the DNS cache, renew DHCP leases, and clear stale routes.
How to Recover Deleted Files on Linux with PhotoRec
Accidentally deleted files on Linux? PhotoRec scans raw disk sectors to recover documents, images, and more — no filesystem needed. Here's exactly how.
How to Fix dpkg "Broken Packages" Errors
Fix dpkg broken package errors step by step: configure pending packages, repair dependencies with apt --fix-broken, force-remove stuck packages, and rebuild the dpkg database.
How to Recover a Forgotten Root Password
Forgot the Linux root password? Boot into single-user mode or use rd.break to reset it safely, with steps for Debian, Fedora/RHEL, and Arch.
How to Manage Disk Partitions on Linux
Learn to create, resize, and format Linux disk partitions using fdisk and parted, covering GPT, ext4/xfs/btrfs filesystems, fstab, and safe resizing procedures.
How to Diagnose High CPU and Memory Usage
Learn to diagnose Linux CPU and memory problems using top, htop, load average, and the OOM killer log—from spotting runaway processes to preventing OOM kills.
How to Fix a Broken GRUB Bootloader
Fix a broken GRUB bootloader by booting from live media, chrooting into your installed system, reinstalling GRUB, and regenerating grub.cfg — covers BIOS/MBR and UEFI/GPT.