As of late 2025, ConfigServer has fully open-sourced CSF (ConfigServer Firewall) and moved the official repository to GitHub: https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf

This means you no longer have to download csf.tgz from their old website — you can install the very latest version directly from GitHub.

Supported Operating Systems

• AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, CloudLinux (7, 8, 9)
• CentOS 7 (until EOL)
• RHEL 7/8/9 derivatives
• Ubuntu 20.04/22.04/24.04 (with some caveats for firewalld/systemd)
• Debian 11/12
• cPanel, DirectAdmin, Webmin/Virtualmin, or no control panel at all

Prerequisites

• Root SSH access
• Perl installed (perl package)
• wget, tar, gzip, and standard build tools
• iptables or nftables (CSF auto-detects)
• For cPanel: nothing extra needed — it fully supports CSF

Step-by-Step Installation (Latest Method – December 2025)

# 1. Login as root
sudo su -

# 2. Remove any old CSF installation (safe if not installed)
cd /usr/src
rm -fv csf.tgz
rm -rf csf/

# 3. Download and extract the latest release directly from GitHub
wget https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/archive/refs/tags/v14.XX.tar.gz -O csf-latest.tar.gz
# (Replace v14.XX with the actual latest tag you see on GitHub releases page)
# Or use the direct latest release link (recommended):
wget https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/releases/latest/download/csf.tgz

# Alternative: Always get the absolute latest (even pre-release)
# wget https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/archive/refs/heads/master.tar.gz -O csf-master.tar.gz

tar -xzf csf.tgz
cd csf

# 4. Run the official install script
sh install.sh

If you used the generic GitHub URL method:

# If you downloaded the master branch version:
cd csf-csf-master   # folder name varies
sh install.sh

Universal One-Liner (Always Gets Latest Official Release)

cd /usr/src && \
rm -rf csf* && \
wget https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/releases/latest/download/csf.tgz && \
tar -xzf csf.tgz && \
cd csf && \
sh install.sh

Post-Installation Steps

# 1. Test which modules are installed and working
perl /usr/local/csf/bin/csftest.pl

# You should see no fatal errors (warnings about missing optional modules are fine)

2. Basic cPanel Integration (if using cPanel)

cPanel automatically detects CSF after installation.
Go to WHM → Plugins → ConfigServer Security & Firewall
You will now see the full CSF UI.

3. Disable conflicting firewalls (IMPORTANT)

# If using firewalld (common on Alma/Rocky 8+)
systemctl stop firewalld
systemctl disable firewalld

# If using Ubuntu with ufw
ufw disable

# On cPanel servers with old iptables firewalls
systemctl stop iptables 2>/dev/null
systemctl disable iptables 2>/dev/null

4. Basic Secure Initial Configuration

Edit /etc/csf/csf.conf and consider these recommended settings for a production server:

# Change from TESTING = "1" to "0" when you're ready
TESTING = "0"

# Restrict SSH port (recommended)
TCP_IN = "20,21,25,53,80,110,143,443,465,587,993,995,2077,2078,2079,2080,2082,2083,2086,2087,2095,2096"
TCP_OUT = "1:65535"
UDP_IN = "20,21,53,80,443,2077,2078,2079,2080,2082,2083,2086,2087,2089"
UDP_OUT = "1:65535"

# Change SSH port (optional but recommended)
SSH_PORT = "2222"   # or any high port

# Enable Country Code blocking (optional)
CC_DENY = "CN,RU,KR"   # example: block China, Russia, Korea

# Enable Login Failure Daemon (lfd)
LF_ENABLE = "1"

Then restart CSF:

csf -r

5. Upgrade CSF in the Future (Super Easy Now)

csf -u   # This checks and upgrades from official GitHub automatically

Or force upgrade from latest GitHub:

cd /usr/src
rm -rf csf*
wget https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/releases/latest/download/csf.tgz
tar -xzf csf.tgz
cd csf
sh install.sh
csf -r

Uninstall (if needed)

cd /etc/csf
sh uninstall.sh

Official Links (2025)

• GitHub Repository: https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf
• Releases: https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/releases
• Documentation: https://github.com/ConfigServer/csf/blob/master/README.md

That’s it! You now have the latest open-source CSF installed directly from GitHub, fully compatible with cPanel or any modern Linux server.

Enjoy the faster updates and transparency of the new open-source era of CSF! 🚀