About

About This Site

Welcome to brank.me, my corner of the internet where I document system administration procedures, security practices, and hard-won operational knowledge. This site serves as both a personal reference and a resource for fellow sysadmins navigating the complexities of modern infrastructure.

Philosophy

I believe in the Unix philosophy: tools should do one thing well, systems should be understandable, and documentation should be comprehensive. OpenBSD exemplifies these principles - it’s secure by default, well-documented, and built by people who understand that simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

What You’ll Find Here

Runbooks: Step-by-step procedures for common (and uncommon) system administration tasks. Each runbook follows a consistent format with clear prerequisites, definitions, and verification steps.

Technical Posts: Deep dives into specific technologies, security practices, and lessons learned from real-world deployments.

Security Focus: Many posts center around security hardening, threat modeling, and building robust, defendable systems.

Background

I’ve been working in system administration and information security for over 15 years, with a particular focus on Unix-like systems and network security. My experience spans from an ISP in the public sector to enterprise environments, always with an emphasis on building secure, maintainable systems.

Why OpenBSD?

OpenBSD has been my primary operating system for personal use since 2005. Its focus on security, code correctness, and excellent documentation aligns perfectly with my approach to system administration. The base system includes everything needed for most server deployments, reducing complexity and attack surface.

Disclaimer

The procedures and configurations documented on this site reflect my personal experience and preferences. Always test in a non-production environment first, and adapt configurations to your specific requirements and security policies.