home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- IP Masquerading lets you run multiple machines on a network behind a
- Linux box so that all the machines (including the Linux masquerade box)
- appear as a single IP address to the outside world.
-
- The main use of masquerading is when your ISP only gives you one IP
- address and wants to charge like a wounded bull for multiple IP
- addresses. Instead of paying your ISP large amounts of money for a
- separate address for each of your machines, funnel them all through a
- Linux box running IP masquerading. Even when you have multiple IP
- addresses, you can still use masquerading if you want to hide your
- internal networks from the rest of the world.
-
- To activate IP masquerading, compile the kernel with IP Forwarding, IP
- Firewalling and IP Masquerading, the first two options must be on
- before you can see the masquerade option. Also consider using the
- ipautofw and ICMP masquerading suboptions.
-
- Some of the masq code is in the kernel, some is in modules so you have
- to make zImage and make modules. There are masq helper modules to
- handle special protocols, you only need to load a helper module if you
- want to use the corresponding protocol. Helper modules have to be
- explicitly loaded (usually from somewhere in /etc/rc.d), they cannot be
- loaded using kerneld. The current helper modules are ip_masq_ftp,
- ip_masq_irc, ip_masq_raudio, ip_masq_cuseeme, ip_masq_vdolive,
- ip_masq_quake.
-
- All of the modules can take a parameter specifying the port they work
- on - ie ftp handles connections to port 21 by default. This parameter,
- which can be ommitted to take the default port(s) makes the command
- line look like this
- insmod ip_masq_raudio.o ports=7070,7071,7072
- Up to 12 ports can be specified (this value can be changed if you
- recompile).
-
- Masquerading is more of a server function than a single user function.
- Using it correctly requires some knowledge of TCP, UDP, IP and a high
- level understanding of some protocols. For more details on IP
- masquerading, visit
- http://www.indyramp.com/masq/
- and read the HOWTO.
-
- There is a mailing list covering use of masqueraing, information can
- be found on the indyramp web site given above - please read the basic
- information before posting to the mailing list.
-
- Other information on masquerading can be found at
- http://www.wwonline.com/~achau/ipmasq/
-
- March 5, 1997
- Keith Owens
- Nigel Metheringham
-