Getting Hands-on with Cockpit on CentOS 7

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Getting Hands-on with Cockpit on CentOS 7

In this hands-on lab, we will be managing two CentOS 7 web server instances using Cockpit. Specifically, we will: - Install and Configure Cockpit on CentOS 7 - Manage Storage Using Cockpit - Manage Networking Using Cockpit - Manage systemd Services Using Cockpit - Patch the CentOS 7 Servers Using Cockpit When the lab is complete, you will have a solid understanding of how to manage a Linux server using Cockpit.

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Lab Info

Level

Intermediate

Last updated

Sep 22, 2025

Duration

1h 0m

Challenge

Install and Configure Cockpit on CentOS 7
Install and Configure Cockpit on CentOS 7 (Duration: 20 minutes):
- Install and configure Cockpit on both instances of CentOS 7
- Configure the Cockpit installation on the first instance to manage the second instance
For more information on installing and configuring Cockpit, see: Running Cockpit — Cockpit Project
Challenge

Manage Storage Using Cockpit
We will take a look at storage management (Duration: 10 minutes):
- Create a new RAID-1 volume (web_data) for website data:
  
  Partition, format, and configure a mount point at /web_data
  
  Use two disks
- Create a new volume group (web_vg):
  
  Add the remaining disk to it
- Create and format a new logical volume for the logs (web_logs):
  
  Create the web_logs logical volume in the web_vg volume group
  
  Format the logical volume
  
  Mount the new logical volume on the /web_logs directory
Configure the storage on both instances as described above.
Challenge

Manage Networking Using Cockpit
We will take a look at network management (Duration: 10 minutes):
- Modify our firewall configuration to enable HTTP traffic
- Monitor network traffic
- Review network interfaces
- Review networking logs
Configure the firewall on both instances as described above.
Challenge

Manage systemd Services Using Cockpit
We’re going to look at using Cockpit to manage systemd services (Duration: 10 minutes):
- Enable the nginx web server service
- Start the nginx web server service
- Confirm that the nginx service is enabled and running
- Connect to the nginx web server via your web browser (on port 80) to confirm the nginx service is working
Configure the nginx service on both instances as described above. Confirm that nginx is working on both instances.
Challenge

Patch the CentOS 7 Servers Using Cockpit

Finally, we will use Cockpit to make sure the CentOS 7 installation on both instances is up-to-date, and if not, update them. We've allocated 10 minutes for this activity. Feel free to explore Cockpit once this is complete!

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