I have 6 PC's with Linux installed and Cable modem with LAN connection, How can I hookup all these PC's to Internet??

I have 6 PC's with various Linux flavors and Cable modem connection
from Comcast (LAN connection provided on Cable Modem), also 8-port
Linksys switch, How can I hook all these PC's to Network, I have half
dozen extra NIC cards. If I install one extra NIC card in one of the
Linux PC (two NIC cards in one PC) and connect one NIC card to cable
modem and other NIC card to 8-port switch will it work (do I have to do
any configuration)?. Or if I connect cable modem directly to one port
on the switch and other 6 PC's to switch on other 6 slots, will that
work?. Thanks.

GS wrote:

> I have 6 PC's with various Linux flavors and Cable modem connection
> from Comcast (LAN connection provided on Cable Modem), also 8-port
> Linksys switch, How can I hook all these PC's to Network, I have half
> dozen extra NIC cards. If I install one extra NIC card in one of the
> Linux PC (two NIC cards in one PC) and connect one NIC card to cable
> modem and other NIC card to 8-port switch will it work (do I have to do
> any configuration)?. Or if I connect cable modem directly to one port
> on the switch and other 6 PC's to switch on other 6 slots, will that
> work?. Thanks.

You can use one of the computers as a firewall, that included address
translation. Place it between the cable modem and the switch.

If I install extra NIC card and enable firewall from services (service
iptables start) then PC acts as a firewall inbetween my cable modem and
switch right?. do I have to do anything special?. Thanks.

GS wrote:

> If I install extra NIC card and enable firewall from services (service
> iptables start) then PC acts as a firewall inbetween my cable modem
> and switch right?. do I have to do anything special?. Thanks.

Why not make it easy on yourself and just buy an 8-port router?

Malke
--
"I have a cunning plan..."

I want to make my own Router using Linxu Box. Thanks.

GS wrote:

> If I install extra NIC card and enable firewall from services (service
> iptables start) then PC acts as a firewall inbetween my cable modem and
> switch right?. do I have to do anything special?. Thanks.

You could, but it's easier and more secure to use one of those cheap
firewall/router boxes. Also, if you add a 2nd NIC, that computer has to be
on, for the others to access the internet.

On Fri, 28 Jan 2005 08:49:22 -0500, James Knott
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>GS wrote:
>
>> If I install extra NIC card and enable firewall from services (service
>> iptables start) then PC acts as a firewall inbetween my cable modem and
>> switch right?. do I have to do anything special?. Thanks.
>
>You could, but it's easier and more secure to use one of those cheap
>firewall/router boxes. Also, if you add a 2nd NIC, that computer has to be
>on, for the others to access the internet.

People who really should know better keep recommending "those cheap
hardware firewall/boxes". They are neither - they are a hardware NAT
layer, with bugs. They don't do routing, and they are not
particularly good as firewalls. They certainly will cause you grief if
you're looking to do anything past what a windows user would be
expected to want (browse from multiple computers.).

You cannot run virtual domains on apache from behind one, even using
the so-called DMZ, for example. There are also issues with running a
simple apache server behind one if you're trying to do anything but
simple text. Nor will a mail server work properly without you doing
some peculiar configuration dances involving chicken blood.

Calling those things a router is as bad as the "Netscape web
accelerater service" - otherwise known as "configuring squid
properly".

Mike-

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Mike,

If I buy that cheap Router boxes from some shop, those may not work as
a real firewall right?. That is what my idea, I want to make one of my
Linux box as a Router, it might consume more power compare to
commercial firewall boxes getting outside, actually I want to put Linux
firewal code in a customized hardware, where can I find the customized
hardware, so that I can load the Linux code into that and I can
configure that as a Router?.

When you put 2 NICs in one of the Linux machine and provide access to
you other clients its as good as a router.

you can do MASQ or NAT using IPTABLES on it whatever you prefer
depending on your situation.

MASQ if you get Dynamic IP from your ISP. NAT if you get Static IP.

Enable IP forwarding in the machine.

In order to have faster access for your clients you can set it as a
Transparent Proxy also, using Squid, so that common pages are cached.

If you want your linux machine with 2 NIC acts like a true router like
Cisco, you can go ahead with something called "Zebra".

-baruah

On 28 Jan 2005 20:33:44 -0800, "GS" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>Mike,
>
>If I buy that cheap Router boxes from some shop, those may not work as
>a real firewall right?.

Correct.

> That is what my idea, I want to make one of my
>Linux box as a Router, it might consume more power compare to
>commercial firewall boxes getting outside, actually I want to put Linux
>firewal code in a customized hardware, where can I find the customized
>hardware, so that I can load the Linux code into that and I can
>configure that as a Router?.

I'm not certain I understand you, but take a look at the shorewall web
site. There's a special version of shorewall that someone has
optimized to run in a dedicated box... I recall reading about it, but
the details have paged out.

There's also a complete router package - all protocols - available for
linux. Used to be named ALICE, now I believe it's the linux router
project. I'm not sure if it's been optimized for dedicated hardware,
but most 'real' routers I've worked with look a lot more like PCs than
those linksys things. I just took a look thru google to see if I
could find a short description, but there are too many entries listed
under 'linux router' (and have you looked thru there?)

Are you sure you really need a full router? Very few people do. If
this is just for home or small business use, take a look at shorewall
or smoothwall. (or the iptables docs, of course)

Mike-

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