Oskar Andreasson - Iptables Tutorial 1.2.2

I have created a small sample script of how the recent match can be used, which you can find in the Recent-match.txt section.

Briefly, this is a poor replacement for the state engine available in netfilter. This version was created with a http server in mind, but will work with any TCP connection. First we have created two chains named http-recent and http-recent-final. The http-recent chain is used in the starting stages of the connection, and for the actual data transmission, while the http-recent-final chain is used for the last and final FIN/ACK, FIN handshake.

Warning! This is a very bad replacement for the built in state engine and can not handle all of the possibilities that the state engine can handle. However, it is a good example of what can be done with the recent match without being too specific. Do not use this example in a real world environment. It is slow, handles special cases badly, and should generally never be used more than as an example.

For example, it does not handle closed ports on connection, asyncronuous FIN handshake (where one of the connected parties closes down, while the other continues to send data), etc.

Let's follow a packet through the example ruleset. First a packet enters the INPUT chain, and we send it to the http-recent chain.

The first packet should be a SYN packet, and should not have the ACK,FIN or RST bits set. Hence it is matched using the --tcp-flags SYN,ACK,FIN,RST SYN line. At this point we add the connection to the httplist using -m recent --name httplist --set line. Finally we accept the packet.

After the first packet we should receive a SYN/ACK packet to acknowledge that the SYN packet was received. This can be matched using the --tcp-flags SYN,ACK,FIN,RST SYN,ACK line. FIN and RST should be illegal at this point as well. At this point we update the entry in the httplist using -m recent --name httplist --update and finally we ACCEPT the packet.

By now we should get a final ACK packet, from the original creater of the connection, to acknowledge the SYN/ACK sent by the server. SYN, FIN and RST are illegal at this point of the connection, so the line should look like --tcp-flags SYN,ACK,FIN,RST ACK. We update the list in exactly the same way as in the previous step, and ACCEPT it.

At this point the data transmission can start. The connection should never contain any SYN packet now, but it will contain ACK packets to acknowledge the data packets that are sent. Each time we see any packet like this, we update the list and ACCEPT the packets.

The transmission can be ended in two ways, the simplest is the RST packet. RST will simply reset the connection and it will die. With FIN/ACK, the other endpoint answers with a FIN, and this closes down the connection so that the original source of the FIN/ACK can no longer send any data. The receiver of the FIN, will still be able to send data, hence we send the connection to a "final" stage chain to handle the rest.

In the http-recent-final chain we check if the packet is still in the httplist, and if so, we send it to the http-recent-final1 chain. In that chain we remove the connection from the httplist and add it to the http-recent-final list instead. If the connection has already been removed and moved over to the http-recent-final list, we send te packet to the http-recent-final2 chain.

In the final http-recent-final2 chain, we wait for the non-closed side to finish sending its data, and to close the connection from their side as well. Once this is done, the connection is completely removed.

As you can see the recent list can become quite complex, but it will give you a huge set of possibilities if need be. Still, try and remember not to reinvent the wheel. If the ability you need is already implemented, try and use it instead of trying to create your own solution.

State match

The state match extension is used in conjunction with the connection tracking code in the kernel. The state match accesses the connection tracking state of the packets from the conntracking machine. This allows us to know in what state the connection is, and works for pretty much all protocols, including stateless protocols such as ICMP and UDP. In all cases, there will be a default timeout for the connection and it will then be dropped from the connection tracking database. This match needs to be loaded explicitly by adding a -m state statement to the rule. You will then have access to one new match called state. The concept of state matching is covered more fully in the The state machine chapter, since it is such a large topic.

Table 10-28. State match options

Match --state Kernel 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 Example iptables -A INPUT -m state --state RELATED,ESTABLISHED Explanation This match option tells the state match what states the packets must be in to be matched. There are currently 4 states that can be used. INVALID, ESTABLISHED, NEW and RELATED. INVALID means that the packet is associated with no known stream or connection and that it may contain faulty data or headers. ESTABLISHED means that the packet is part of an already established connection that has seen packets in both directions and is fully valid. NEW means that the packet has or will start a new connection, or that it is associated with a connection that has not seen packets in both directions. Finally, RELATED means that the packet is starting a new connection and is associated with an already established connection. This could for example mean an FTP data transfer, or an ICMP error associated with a TCP or UDP connection. Note that the NEW state does not look for SYN bits in TCP packets trying to start a new connection and should, hence, not be used unmodified in cases where we have only one firewall and no load balancing between different firewalls. However, there may be times where this could be useful. For more information on how this could be used, read the The state machine chapter.

Tcpmss match

The tcpmss match is used to match a packet based on the Maximum Segment Size in TCP. This match is only valid for SYN and SYN/ACK packets. For a more complete explanation of the MSS value, see the TCP options appendix, the RFC 793 - Transmission Control Protocol and the RFC 1122 - Requirements for Internet Hosts - Communication Layers documents. This match is loaded using -m tcpmss and takes only one option.

Table 10-29. Tcpmss match options

Match --mss Kernel 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 Example iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --tcp-flags SYN,ACK,RST SYN -m tcpmss --mss 2000:2500 Explanation The --mss option tells the tcpmss match which Maximum Segment Sizes to match. This can either be a single specific MSS value, or a range of MSS values separated by a :. The value may also be inverted as usual using the ! sign, as in the following example: -m tcpmss ! --mss 2000:2500 This example will match all MSS values, except for values in the range 2000 through 2500.

Tos match

The TOS match can be used to match packets based on their TOS field. TOS stands for Type Of Service, consists of 8 bits, and is located in the IP header. This match is loaded explicitly by adding -m tos to the rule. TOS is normally used to inform intermediate hosts of the precedence of the stream and its content (it doesn't really, but it informs of any specific requirements for the stream, such as it having to be sent as fast as possible, or it needing to be able to send as much payload as possible). How different routers and administrators deal with these values depends. Most do not care at all, while others try their best to do something good with the packets in question and the data they provide.

Table 10-30. Tos match options

Match --tos Kernel 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 Example iptables -A INPUT -p tcp -m tos --tos 0x16 Explanation This match is used as described above. It can match packets based on their TOS field and their value. This could be used, among other things together with the iproute2 and advanced routing functions in Linux, to mark packets for later usage. The match takes a hex or numeric value as an option, or possibly one of the names resulting from 'iptables -m tos -h'. At the time of writing it contained the following named values: Minimize-Delay 16 (0x10), Maximize-Throughput 8 (0x08), Maximize-Reliability 4 (0x04), Minimize-Cost 2 (0x02), and Normal-Service 0 (0x00). Minimize-Delay means to minimize the delay in putting the packets through - example of standard services that would require this include telnet, SSH and FTP-control. Maximize-Throughput means to find a path that allows as big a throughput as possible - a standard protocol would be FTP-data. Maximize-Reliability means to maximize the reliability of the connection and to use lines that are as reliable as possible - a couple of typical examples are BOOTP and TFTP. Minimize-Cost means minimizing the cost of packets getting through each link to the client or server; for example finding the route that costs the least to travel along. Examples of normal protocols that would use this would be RTSP (Real Time Stream Control Protocol) and other streaming video/radio protocols. Finally, Normal-Service would mean any normal protocol that has no special needs.

Ttl match

The TTL match is used to match packets based on their TTL (Time To Live) field residing in the IP headers. The TTL field contains 8 bits of data and is decremented once every time it is processed by an intermediate host between the client and recipient host. If the TTL reaches 0, an ICMP type 11 code 0 (TTL equals 0 during transit) or code 1 (TTL equals 0 during reassembly) is transmitted to the party sending the packet and informing it of the problem. This match is only used to match packets based on their TTL, and not to change anything. The latter, incidentally, applies to all kinds of matches. To load this match, you need to add an -m ttl to the rule.

Table 10-31. Ttl match options

Match --ttl-eq Kernel 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 Example iptables -A OUTPUT -m ttl --ttl-eq 60 Explanation This match option is used to specify the TTL value to match exactly. It takes a numeric value and matches this value within the packet. There is no inversion and there are no other specifics to match. It could, for example, be used for debugging your local network - e.g. LAN hosts that seem to have problems connecting to hosts on the Internet - or to find possible ingress by Trojans etc. The usage is relatively limited, however; its usefulness really depends on your imagination. One example would be to find hosts with bad default TTL values (could be due to a badly implemented TCP/IP stack, or simply to misconfiguration). Match --ttl-gt Kernel 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 Example iptables -A OUTPUT -m ttl --ttl-gt 64 Explanation This match option is used to match any TTL greater than the specified value. The value can be between 0 and 255 and the match can not be inverted. It could, for example, be used for matching any TTL greater than a specific value and then force them to a standardized value. This could be used to overcome some simple forms of spying by ISP's to find out if you are running multiple machines behind a firewall, against their policies. Match --ttl-lt Kernel 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 Example iptables -A OUTPUT -m ttl --ttl-lt 64 Explanation The --ttl-lt match is used to match any TTL smaller than the specified value. It is pretty much the same as the --ttl-gt match, but as already stated; it matches smaller TTL's. It could also be used in the same way as the --ttl-gt match, or to simply homogenize the packets leaving your network in general.

Unclean match

The unclean match takes no options and requires no more than explicitly loading it when you want to use it. Note that this option is regarded as experimental and may not work at all times, nor will it take care of all unclean packages or problems. The unclean match tries to match packets that seem malformed or unusual, such as packets with bad headers or checksums and so on. This could be used to DROP connections and to check for bad streams, for example; however you should be aware that it could possibly break legal connections.

What's next?

The last chapter has been about the matches that can be used in iptables and what they are capable of doing. The matching capability of iptables and netfilter is extremely well developed and very flexible as you have seen. The next chapter will discuss the targets in detail and what they are able to do. You will notice in that chapter as well the capabilities of Linux firewalling.

Chapter 11. Iptables targets and jumps

The target/jumps tells the rule what to do with a packet that is a perfect match with the match section of the rule. There are a couple of basic targets, the ACCEPT and DROP targets, which we will deal with first. However, before we do that, let us have a brief look at how a jump is done.

The jump specification is done in exactly the same way as in the target definition, except that it requires a chain within the same table to jump to. To jump to a specific chain, it is of course a prerequisite that that chain exists. As we have already explained, a user-defined chain is created with the -N command. For example, let's say we create a chain in the filter table called tcp_packets, like this:

iptables -N tcp_packets

We could then add a jump target to it like this:

iptables -A INPUT -p tcp -j tcp_packets

We would then jump from the INPUT chain to the tcp_packets chain and start traversing that chain. When/If we reach the end of that chain, we get dropped back to the INPUT chain and the packet starts traversing from the rule one step below where it jumped to the other chain (tcp_packets in this case). If a packet is ACCEPTed within one of the sub chains, it will be ACCEPT'ed in the superset chain also and it will not traverse any of the superset chains any further. However, do note that the packet will traverse all other chains in the other tables in a normal fashion. For more information on table and chain traversing, see the Traversing of tables and chains chapter.