HOME SETUP
-I have several PCs behind a Netgear DSL Router that only does NAT - without SPI (Stateful inspection).

-One of the PCs acts as a NFS/NIS server and one of the PCs is an FTP server that needs to accept a connection because remote users will upload files to that PC.

QUESTION:
Should I just get a better router and forget about IPTABLES, OR do you recommend a GUI frontend like Firestarter??

-I've tried a building a client firewall with IPTABLES and copying it for each client but it seems to complicated and I never get it right.
-The problem with firestarter is that a user can forget to run it + they would need root access in order to run it.

Thanks
-C

I'd upgrade to at LEAST a Netgear with SPI, and you can optionally enable iptables on your PC for a second layer of protection if you wish. USUALLY even the hasbro routers with SPI are sufficient to keep most script kiddies out.