CompTIA Linux+ study plan
CompTIA Linux+ · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
System Management
Create and verify ext4 and XFS filesystems plus a swap area on a spare virtual disk using parted, mkfs, and blkid
Mount storage persistently by UUID in /etc/fstab and confirm a clean reboot with no failed mounts
Locate disk space consumers with df, du, lsof, and find, including a deleted-but-still-open file scenario
Manage services and boot behavior with systemctl, including enabling, disabling, masking, and switching default targets
Your checkpoint
A rebuilt test VM whose added disk, swap, and mounts survive a reboot with an empty 'systemctl --failed' output and a written fstab/automount cheat sheet.
System Management & Troubleshooting
Trace a failed boot to its root cause using journalctl -b, systemd-analyze, and emergency/rescue target isolation
Set and persist kernel tunables with sysctl and drop-in files under /etc/sysctl.d
Collect and compare performance data from top, vmstat, iostat, sar, and free to name the actual bottleneck
Regenerate an initramfs and reinstall GRUB2 on a VM after deliberately breaking the bootloader
Your checkpoint
A boot-failure runbook documenting three deliberately broken VM boot scenarios, the evidence command used for each, and the exact fix that restored the system.
Troubleshooting
Isolate a network fault by separating DNS, routing, and firewall causes using ip, ss, dig, traceroute, and tcpdump
Repair package and dependency breakage using rpm -V, dpkg --verify, and transaction history rollback in dnf or apt
Resolve resource exhaustion incidents covering full inodes, full disks, file-descriptor limits, and OOM kills
Apply a five-step troubleshooting method to practice scenarios and record the hypothesis before each command run
Your checkpoint
A troubleshooting log of ten scenarios containing symptom, hypothesis, evidence command, and fix, plus a score of at least 80% on a 40-question Domain 5 practice set.
Services and User Management
Create, modify, lock, and expire accounts with useradd, usermod, chage, and /etc/login.defs defaults
Write a sudoers policy with visudo using aliases and command restrictions, then validate it with sudo -l
Build a shared group directory using SGID, umask, and ACLs so members collaborate without world access
Enable and verify unit files with systemctl and diagnose a non-starting unit through systemctl status and journalctl -u
Your checkpoint
A provisioned VM with five role-based users, three groups, one SGID shared directory, and a working sudo policy, proven by a re-runnable verification script that exits 0.
Services and User Management & Security
Harden SSH with key-based authentication, disabled root login, and restricted sshd_config options verified via ssh -v
Audit privileged and interactive access using sudo logging, last, lastb, and w, and identify anomalous sessions
Expose one network service through firewalld or ufw and confirm only intended ports answer using ss -tulpn
Control service exposure by comparing start, reload, stop, and mask behavior and confirming the resulting socket state
Your checkpoint
A hardening report for one VM containing an sshd_config diff, the full firewall rule listing, and an open-port inventory that matches the documented intended exposure.
Security
Set ownership, modes, and special bits, then hunt world-writable and SUID files with find expressions
Switch SELinux or AppArmor between modes, apply contexts or profiles, and remediate a denial using AVC or audit log evidence
Enforce password quality and account lockout through pwquality.conf and faillock or pam_faillock settings
Investigate a simulated compromise by correlating auth logs, sudo entries, and unexpected cron or systemd unit entries
Your checkpoint
A completed security audit checklist for one VM plus a written incident write-up for a simulated compromise that cites the specific log lines used as evidence.
Automation, Orchestration, and Scripting
Write bash scripts with conditionals, loops, functions, argument parsing, and meaningful exit codes that pass shellcheck
Automate a provisioning task for users, packages, and config files so a second run changes nothing
Schedule the automation through both cron and a systemd timer with captured output and error handling
Version-control the scripts with git and enforce host state from a single Ansible-style playbook run
Your checkpoint
A git repository holding three shell scripts and one playbook that takes a bare VM to a defined state with a single command, demonstrated by an idempotent second run.
System Management & Services and User Management & Security & Automation, Orchestration, and Scripting & Troubleshooting
Re-drill the weakest objectives identified by practice-exam analytics across all five domains
Complete two full-length timed practice exams and trace every missed item back to its root cause
Re-verify hands-on speed with a 45-minute lab covering storage, users, services, and security together
Consolidate a personal command reference for the twenty commands missed most often during practice
Your checkpoint
Two timed practice exams scored at 85% or higher plus a prioritized list of remaining weak objectives with a dated remediation plan.
Milestones
Week 2: Rebuild a VM from a broken bootloader to a clean multi-user boot without notes, and explain each recovery command out loud.
Week 4: Pass a 50-question mixed Domain 1 and 5 practice set at 80% or higher, and show the working user/group/sudo VM to a study partner.
Week 6: Complete the full security audit checklist on a fresh VM unassisted in under 60 minutes with every SELinux or AppArmor denial resolved.
Week 8: Score 85% or higher on two timed full-length practice exams and run the week 7 provisioning repo against a clean VM without manual fixes.