OpenSCAP
OpenSCAP is a set of tools for checking system configuration against SCAP security baselines such as those in the SCAP Security Guide.
Legal & ethical use. Use this tool only on systems, networks and data that you own or have explicit written permission to test. Unauthorised access or scanning can break computer-misuse laws (for example Pakistan's Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, and equivalents elsewhere). Practise in your own lab or in authorised environments such as CTFs.
What it is used for
- Check a Linux server against a hardening profile
- Generate HTML compliance reports
Key features
- SCAP content support
- HTML report generation
- Remediation scripts
Installation
Install the `openscap-scanner` and `scap-security-guide` packages from your distribution.
Beginner usage guide
List the available profiles for your OS, evaluate one against a test VM and review the failed rules in the HTML report.
Example commands
Run these only against your own lab or authorised targets. Placeholder addresses such as 192.0.2.x are documentation ranges.
Evaluate a profile (example)
oscap xccdf eval --profile xccdf_org.ssgproject.content_profile_standard --report report.html /usr/share/xml/scap/ssg/content/ssg-ubuntu2204-ds.xmlContent paths and profile IDs depend on your OS and package version; list them with `oscap info`.
References
Source verification
Last reviewed: 2026-10-27
Links checked over HTTP: 2026-10-27 07:51 UTC — official: 200, docs: 200, repo: 200
Commands were written from the official documentation and have not been executed on this site; test them in your lab.