Firestarter : For a Secure Linux System

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We can’t say that Linux is completely secure, we can say that it is less vulnerable to viruses than a Windows system… So its worthy to think about the security of your Linux system at least for a while. Mainly there are many ways which you can protect your system, using a good firewall is one of them. So lets see how to protect your Linux system with a good firewall…

What is a Firewall ?

Well… according to Wikipedia “A firewall is a part of a computer system or network that is designed to block unauthorized access while permitting authorized communications.” In simple terms, firewalls do not scan and remove viruses from your system… they prevent viruses and unauthorised people (hackers) from getting into your system by scanning all the incoming and outgoing traffic.

What is Firestarter ?

Firestarter is an easy to use, very powerful and open source firewall built to protect Linux systems. Unlike most of the other systems, this firewall is very easy to use because 1) It have a good graphical user interface 2) It have an initial wizard which walks you through setting up your firewall. Pretty interesting isn’t it? Lets see some other features of Firestarter :

Open Source software, available free of charge
User friendly, easy to use, graphical interface
A wizard walks you through setting up your firewall on your first time
Suitable for use on desktops, servers and gateways
Real-time firewall event monitor shows intrusion attempts as they happen
Enables Internet connection sharing, optionally with DHCP service for the clients
Allows you to define both inbound and outbound access policy
Open or stealth ports, shaping your firewalling with just a few mouse clicks
Enable port forwarding for your local network in just seconds
Option to whitelist or blacklist traffic
Real time firewall events view
View active network connections, including any traffic routed through the firewall
Advanced Linux kernel tuning features provide protection from flooding, broadcasting and spoofing
Support for tuning ICMP parameters to stop Denial of Service (DoS) attacks
Support for tuning ToS parameters to improve services for connected client computers
Ability to hook up user defined scripts or rulesets before or after firewall activation
Supports Linux Kernels 2.4 and 2.6

How to install it in your system ?

For Ubuntu Users :

Open the terminal (In the main menu, go to Applications > Accessories > Terminal) and enter the following command :

sudo apt-get install firestarter

After installing to run the program go to Applications > Internet > Firestarter

For other users :

Firestarter is already there in most of the Linux repositories, so you can install it from your package manager. Or if its not there follow the instructions in this page : http://www.fs-security.com/download.php

Screen-shots :

Update : Firestarter is abounded by its developers! More information at : What is the Best Firewall for Ubuntu? UFW or Firestarter?

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Firestarter : For a Secure Linux System

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