# Ensure separate partition exists for /var/tmp

Necessity: Separating the /var/tmp directory onto its own partition is a critical security measure. It allows for the application of specific, restrictive mount options such as 'nodev', 'nosuid', and 'noexec'. These options prevent the execution of programs, block device access, and disable the set-user-identifier bit on files within /var/tmp, effectively mitigating risks from malicious executables or scripts uploaded to this world-writable location. It also contains filesystem usage, preventing a denial-of-service attack where an attacker fills /var/tmp to exhaust space on the root filesystem, which could render the system unstable or unusable.

Auditing and Remediation: The audit script verifies the system's current state by checking the mount table to determine if /var/tmp is a separate filesystem. The remediation process is manual and complex, involving partitioning a disk, creating a filesystem, configuring the system to mount it at boot via /etc/fstab, and carefully migrating any existing data from the old /var/tmp directory.

Recommended State Rationale: The recommended state for all levels (Basic, Moderate, and Strict) is 'mounted' because this is a foundational, binary security control. There is no intermediate state. Implementing this control according to best practices, such as those defined by CIS Benchmarks, provides a fundamental layer of defense against common attack vectors and improves overall system resilience. The lack of variation in recommendations underscores its non-negotiable role in a secure system configuration.

## Recommended State Configuration

| Security Level | Value |
|----------------|-------|
| **Basic** | `['mounted']` |
| **Moderate** | `['mounted']` |
| **Strict** | `['mounted']` |
| **Type** | `ENUM` |

## Audit Script Working

shell script that checks if /var/tmp is mounted on a separate partition. The script must use a command like 'findmnt --noheadings --target /var/tmp' or parse '/proc/mounts'. It should output 'mounted' if /var/tmp is a distinct mount point, and 'not mounted' otherwise. The output must consist of only one of these two strings.

## Remediation Script Working

Due to the destructive and system-specific nature of disk partitioning, fully automated remediation is not feasible. Write a shell script that accepts one argument. If the argument is 'mounted', the script should check for an available block device and guide the system administrator through the manual steps of partitioning, formatting, updating /etc/fstab, and migrating data. The script itself should not perform these actions but should return 'false' to indicate that manual intervention is required.

