How to create a Linux Router
 

I am looking to create a Linux router to share my cable modem connection. I have an old gateway P-II 266 with 64 MB RAM and 4 gig HD. Where do I start. I obvioulsly need 2 NIC's. I need to know what distro would be the easiest to accomplish this task. I also need to know how to set it up in a heterogeneous envirenment. Sorry to say my brother is running a windoz box. Oh well he will switch one day.

If it is to be a router and nothing else then take a look at smoothwall:
http://www.smoothwall.org

I should also point out that smoothwall is a good firewall and cache server amongst other things.

Has anyone had any experience with Coyote? I heard it works create. http://www.coyotelinux.com

Please if you have used this, give me some opinoins on it.

thanks,

If you want the easiest to configure and install, I personally would have to go with smoothwall.

Well if you want just a router why just not get it
LRP
:Pengy:

I just moved my Smoothwall from a K-II 350Mhz machine to an old 100Mhz 486 machine (dang thing is 24.5 inches tall!) with 48Megs of old style RAM and a 240MB harddrive. I have it set up with Green for the NIC connected to my 8 port switch and Red for my External 56K modem. You'll need Orange also, I think, if you choose Smoothwall, since you have the cable modem and a second NIC.

I use DHCP on Smoothwall to give out IP's to my 3 other linux machines and 3 other windows machines. The smoothwall machine gets a dynamic IP from my ISP.

All in all, it's pretty easy and convenient.

edit: Doesn't need a mouse and I'm about to remove the CD-ROM drive also. Doesn't even really need a monitor or a keyboard after installation, unless you need to make some change to it, which I haven't had to do, since it has the Web interface from any other machine in the network. And I'm using the Beta 4 version of Smoothwall.

You could all so try IPCOP, which was developed from smoothwall, but is a much better producted in my opinion, i use it myself. the lastes version has only came out about a month or 2 ago.

Ditto. I would chose IPCOP over Smoothwall anytime.

Well, why is IPCOP better than Smoothwall?

and there there is me:

i say, if you just want a firewall use smoothwall, but if you wanna know what's going on and you wanna get your hands dirty, use iptables.


iptables can handle your firewalling and your routing. i bet if you do a search on LQ for "Router", you'll find tons of examples here.

Why would you want to use iptables for routing?
That is what a routing table is for.

well he'll need to NAT, that's where iptables comes in. The routing table only tells you where to route packets....doesn't handle nating. And of course with iptables you can restrict what gets routed and to where, port based routing rather than just IP based. i.e anything that comes in on port 80 send it to 192.168.1.2 and anything that comes in on port 22 send it to 192.168.2.2. With just a routing table you cant do that.

That's fair enough - it is just that you said "iptables can handle your firewalling and your routing"

it's been a while since i set my IPCOP firewall up, but if i remember correctly, IPCOP had a few more features than the equivelant version of smoothwall, i think webadmin was 1 of them, since it's been a while a can't be sure.

Plus i heard of a large number of people complaining about the support service from smoothwall, some i heard was very unproffessional behavour.