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A firewall is a vital component in protecting a computer system, or network of computers from external attack (typically from an internet connection). Any computer connected directly to an internet connection must run a firewall to protect against malicious activity. Similarly, any internal network must have some form of firewall between it and an external internet connection.
Ubuntu Linux is supplied with powerful firewall technology known as ''iptables'' built-in. Entire books can, and indeed have, been written about configuring iptables. If you wouild like to learn about ''iptables'' we recommend [http://www.linuxtopia.org/Linux_Firewall_iptables/index.html Linux Firewall Configuration - Packet Filtering and iptables]. Fortunately Ubuntu Linux also provides some tools which make firewall configuration for the average user easy. This chapter will cover the steps necessary to configure an Ubuntu Linux firewall using those tools.
== Ubuntu Linux Firewall Options ==
Ubuntu Linux provides two firewall configuration options. The first is a basic yet effective and easy to use firewall configuration system called ''lokkit''. Another, more advanced, option is called ''Firestarter''. And yet another option is to use a tool called ''Guarddog''.
In this chapter we will explore ''lokkit '' and in the next chapter ([[Using Firestarter to configure an Ubuntu Linux Firewall]]) we will look at the Firestarter firewall configuration tool in more detail.
== Configuring a Basic Ubuntu Linux Firewall ==