Use Case 1: Start the daemon

auditd

Motivation: Starting the auditd daemon is the first step to enable auditing on a Linux system. This command initializes the audit subsystem and begins monitoring system events for auditing purposes.

Arguments: None.

Example Output:

Starting audit daemon: [OK]

Use Case 2: Start the daemon in debug mode

auditd -d

Motivation: Debug mode enables verbose logging, making it useful for troubleshooting and diagnosing issues with the auditd daemon. It helps in analyzing any problems or errors encountered during its operation.

Arguments:

• -d: Runs the auditd daemon in debug mode.

Example Output:

Starting audit daemon in debug mode...
Initialized message queue: queue=AUDIT_LOG_START pid=1234
...
Debug mode enabled.

Use Case 3: Start the daemon on-demand from launchd

auditd -l 

Motivation: This command starts the auditd daemon on demand from launchd, which is the service management framework on macOS. It allows the daemon to be launched automatically when required, ensuring auditing functions are always available.

Arguments:

• -l: Starts the auditd daemon on-demand from launchd.

Example Output:

auditd launched on-demand by launchd.

Conclusion

The auditd command is a powerful tool for enabling auditing and monitoring system events on Linux systems. It can be used to start the daemon, enable debug mode for troubleshooting, and launch the daemon on demand from launchd on macOS. Understanding the different use cases and their respective arguments helps system administrators effectively utilize the command for auditing purposes.