Debian / Ubuntu Linux: Install SquidGuard Web Filter Plugin For Squid 3.x To Block Unwanted Sites

SquidGuard is a free and open-source plugin for Squid that can be used to block access to unwanted websites. It uses a set of rules and blacklists to determine which sites should be blocked, and can be configured to allow or deny access based on various criteria such as the user's IP address or group membership.

To install SquidGuard on Debian or Ubuntu Linux, you will need to follow these steps:

1. Install the necessary packages:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install squid3 squidguard

2. Create a configuration directory for SquidGuard:

sudo mkdir /etc/squidguard

3. Create a default configuration file for SquidGuard:

sudo touch /etc/squidguard/squidGuard.conf

4. Edit the Squid configuration file ("/etc/squid3/squid.conf") and add the following lines to enable SquidGuard:

url_rewrite_program /usr/bin/squidGuard -c /etc/squidguard/squidGuard.conf

5. Restart Squid to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart squid3

6. Configure the blacklists and rules for SquidGuard. You can find detailed instructions for configuring SquidGuard in the official documentation: http://www.squidguard.org/Doc/configure.html

It's worth noting that SquidGuard requires a separate configuration for each domain or subdomain you want to block. You may also need to configure additional measures, such as URL filtering or content categorization, to more effectively block access to inappropriate or unwanted content.