Is Firewall built in ?

glenn69 · 08-31-2003, 06:14 PM

I have redHat 9 up and running. During installation it configured a firewall with medium security as the default. i accepted the default because i wasn't sure about the whole firewall thingy.

In Windows I use ZoneAlarm firewall because we have wireless internet, and I believe I need it.

Question: is Linux already running a firewall like ZoneAlarm for me, or do I have to explicitly run one for Linux? If I do need one, which one?

synaptical · 08-31-2003, 07:19 PM

i think iptables is the "built in" linux firewall, but comparing it to zone alarm would be like comparing a pocket calculator to Deep Blue.

there are various front ends for it though, including one in webmin, so look around and see what suits you best.

contrasutra · 08-31-2003, 07:22 PM

If you have Wireless, the best security is to enable WEP (Wired Equivalent Protocol).

You have to enable this on your router. Almost all have it.

It encrypts the data as its trasfered.

Mathieu · 08-31-2003, 09:45 PM

If you want to learn how to use iptables (the built-in Linux firewall),
take a look at the documentation and tutorials on Netfilter / iptables
http://www.netfilter.org/

Or you can use one of these GUI tools.
http://firestarter.sourceforge.net/
http://www.shorewall.net/
http://www.ipcop.org/
http://www.fwbuilder.org/