Originally posted by: Hotlock
Get Red Hat Linux 9, just DO NOT upgrade to kernal 2.6 A HUGE hole was found in it to allow hackers to shut down the server and possibly damage the equipment.
Were your heard that? What kernel version?
Link???
I personally would avoid Redhat 9, it's obsolete and the only support you can find for it would be from the Fedora Legacy project (if you realy want it).
I'd try out Knoppix, if you like that you can install it on your harddrive. Otherwise Fedora, Mandrake, Suse will provide a quick means to get a full Linux system up and running, baring any hardware compatability issues (I usually only realy worry about nforce-based boards, a handfull of different types of wireless cards, and ATI video cards).
edit:
Found it, I think. It's a dos attack on the packet logging facilities of iptables in the Linux kernel. A specially crafted packet will cause it to crash.
Kernels 2.6.8 and newer are invunerable. Anybody with older kernels and are using Iptables-based firewalls (ie average linux software firewall), needs to upgrade to a 2.6.8.1 or newer version. (kernel is currently 2.6.9)
article:
http://www.techworld.com/opsys.../index.cfm?NewsID=2498
Secuna:
http://secunia.com/advisories/11202/
Saying it would allow attackers to damage the equiment is a vast overstatement and incorrect, if this is the hole you were talking about.