How to Install and Configure FreeIPA on Rocky Linux

FreeIPA is a powerful open-source Identity Management system that provides a centralized authentication and authorization solution for Linux-based networks. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the process of how to install and configure FreeIPA on Rocky Linux, a popular and reliable Linux distribution.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, ensure that you have the following:

A fresh installation of Rocky Linux
Root access or a user with sudo privileges

How to Install and Configure FreeIPA on Rocky Linux

Update Your Rocky Linux System

First, let’s update your system to the latest package versions. Open a terminal and run the following command:

sudo dnf update -y

Install FreeIPA Server on Rocky Linux

To install the FreeIPA server package, run the following command:

sudo dnf install -y ipa-server ipa-server-dns

This command will install the necessary packages for FreeIPA and its DNS module.

Configure FreeIPA Server on Rocky Linux

Now that the packages are installed, it’s time to configure the FreeIPA server. To do this, execute the following command:

sudo ipa-server-install --setup-dns

The installation process will prompt you for various details, such as the realm name, directory manager password, and admin password. Make sure to provide appropriate values for these fields.

Once the configuration process is complete, you should see a message indicating that the FreeIPA server has been successfully configured.

Start and Enable FreeIPA Services in Linux

To start and enable the FreeIPA services at boot, run the following commands:

sudo systemctl start ipa
sudo systemctl enable ipa

Configure Firewall Rules on Linux

In order to allow access to the FreeIPA server, you’ll need to configure the firewall. To do this, execute the following commands:

sudo firewall-cmd --add-service={http,https,dns,ntp,ldap,ldaps,kerberos,kpasswd} --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

These commands will open the necessary ports for the services used by FreeIPA.

Test FreeIPA Installation

To test your FreeIPA installation, open a web browser and navigate to the following URL:

https://ipa.your-domain.com

Replace ipa.your-domain.com with the actual domain name or IP address of your FreeIPA server. You should see the FreeIPA web interface, where you can log in using the admin user and the password you set during the configuration process.

That’s it! You have successfully installed and configured FreeIPA on Rocky Linux.