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1.1.2.6.1 Ensure separate partition exists for /var/log

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Information

The /var/log directory is used by system services to store log data.

The default installation only creates a single / partition. Since the /var/log directory contains log files which can grow quite large, there is a risk of resource exhaustion. It will essentially have the whole disk available to fill up and impact the system as a whole.

Configuring /var/log as its own file system allows an administrator to set additional mount options such as noexec/nosuid/nodev . These options limit an attackers ability to create exploits on the system. Other options allow for specific behavior. See man mount for exact details regarding filesystem-independent and filesystem-specific options.

As /var/log contains log files, care should be taken to ensure the security and integrity of the data and mount point.

Solution

For new installations, during installation create a custom partition setup and specify a separate partition for /var/log.

For systems that were previously installed, create a new partition and configure /etc/fstab as appropriate.

Impact:

Resizing filesystems is a common activity in cloud-hosted servers. Separate filesystem partitions may prevent successful resizing, or may require the installation of additional tools solely for the purpose of resizing operations. The use of these additional tools may introduce their own security considerations.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/18211

Item Details

References: CSCv7|6.4

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: d95865ea83cc2afe7f9226a2d2fa944f91b1847780f3d154699e37b2d379b5a3