How To Install srm on CentOS 8

srm is Secure file deletion

Introduction

In this tutorial we learn how to install srm on CentOS 8.

What is srm

srm is a secure replacement for rm(1). Unlike the standard rm, it overwrites the data in the target files before unlinkg them. This prevents command-line recovery of the data by examining the raw block device. It may also help frustrate physical examination of the disk, although it’s unlikely that completely protects against this type of recovery.

We can use yum or dnf to install srm on CentOS 8. In this tutorial we discuss both methods but you only need to choose one of method to install srm.

Install srm on CentOS 8 Using dnf

Update yum database with dnf using the following command.

sudo dnf makecache --refresh

The output should look something like this:

CentOS Linux 8 - AppStream                                       43 kB/s | 4.3 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - BaseOS                                          65 kB/s | 3.9 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - ContinuousRelease                               43 kB/s | 3.0 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - Extras                                          23 kB/s | 1.5 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - FastTrack                                       40 kB/s | 3.0 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - HighAvailability                                36 kB/s | 3.9 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - Plus                                            24 kB/s | 1.5 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - PowerTools                                      50 kB/s | 4.3 kB     00:00    
Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux Modular 8 - x86_64           13 kB/s | 9.2 kB     00:00    
Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 8 - x86_64                   24 kB/s | 8.5 kB     00:00    
Metadata cache created.

After updating yum database, We can install srm using dnf by running the following command:

sudo dnf -y install srm

Install srm on CentOS 8 Using yum

Update yum database with yum using the following command.

sudo yum makecache --refresh

The output should look something like this:

CentOS Linux 8 - AppStream                                       43 kB/s | 4.3 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - BaseOS                                          65 kB/s | 3.9 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - ContinuousRelease                               43 kB/s | 3.0 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - Extras                                          23 kB/s | 1.5 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - FastTrack                                       40 kB/s | 3.0 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - HighAvailability                                36 kB/s | 3.9 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - Plus                                            24 kB/s | 1.5 kB     00:00    
CentOS Linux 8 - PowerTools                                      50 kB/s | 4.3 kB     00:00    
Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux Modular 8 - x86_64           13 kB/s | 9.2 kB     00:00    
Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux 8 - x86_64                   24 kB/s | 8.5 kB     00:00    
Metadata cache created.

After updating yum database, We can install srm using yum by running the following command:

sudo yum -y install srm

How To Uninstall srm on CentOS 8

To uninstall only the srm package we can use the following command:

sudo dnf remove srm

srm Package Contents on CentOS 8

/usr/bin/fill_test
/usr/bin/srm
/usr/lib/.build-id
/usr/lib/.build-id/88
/usr/lib/.build-id/88/947842b4eee6e0c8e5c6d81ecd40905c1c9de6
/usr/lib/.build-id/a6
/usr/lib/.build-id/a6/bb1a513f8cacf706ff4c30018563add15edcad
/usr/share/doc/srm
/usr/share/doc/srm/AUTHORS
/usr/share/doc/srm/ChangeLog
/usr/share/doc/srm/NEWS
/usr/share/doc/srm/README
/usr/share/doc/srm/TODO
/usr/share/licenses/srm
/usr/share/licenses/srm/COPYING
/usr/share/man/man1/srm.1.gz

References

Summary

In this tutorial we learn how to install srm on CentOS 8 using yum and dnf.