Preface
IPCop is a Linux-based, stateful firewall distribution that sits in between your Internet connection and your network and directs traffic using a set of rules framed by you. It provides most of the features that you would expect a modern firewall to have, and what is most important is that it sets this all up for you in a highly automated and simplified way.
This book is an easy-to-read guide to using IPCop in a variety of different roles within the network. The book is written in a very friendly style that makes this complex topic easy and a joy to read. It first covers basic IPCop concepts, then moves to introduce basic IPCop configurations, before covering advanced uses of IPCop. This book is for both experienced and new IPCop users.
What This Book Covers
Chapter 1 briefly introduces some firewall and networking concepts. The chapter introduces the roles of several common networking devices and explains how firewalls fit into this.
Chapter 2 introduces the IPCop package itself, discussing how IPCop's red/orange/blue/green interfaces fit into a network topology. It then covers the configuration of IPCop in other common roles, such as those of a web proxy, DHCP, DNS, time, and VPN server.
Chapter 3 covers three sample scenarios where we learn how to deploy IPCop, and how IPCop interfaces connect to each other and to the network as a whole.
Chapter 4 covers installing IPCop. It outlines the system configuration required to run IPCop, and explains the configuration required to get IPCop up and running.
Chapter 5 explains how to employ the various tools IPCop provides us with to administer, operate, troubleshoot, and monitor our IPCop firewall.
Chapter 6 starts off with explaining the need for an IDS in our system and then goes on to explain how to use the SNORT IDS with IPCop.
Chapter 7 introduces the VPN concept and explains how to set up an IPSec VPN configuration for a system. Special focus is laid on configuring the blue zone—a secured wireless network augmenting the security of a wireless segment, even one already using WEP or WPA.
Chapter 8 demonstrates how to manage bandwidth using IPCop making use of traffic-shaping techniques and cache management. The chapter also covers the configuration of the Squid web proxy and caching system.
Chapter 9 focuses on the vast range of addons available to configure IPCop to suit our needs. We see how to install addons and then learn more about common addons like SquidGuard, Enhanced Filtering, Blue Access, LogSend, and CopFilter.
Chapter 10 covers IPCop security risks, patch management, and some security and auditing tools and tests.
Chapter 11 outlines the support IPCop users have in the form of mailing lists and IRC.