MagiKomputer: Installing the Firestarter Firewall in Xubuntu

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Installing the Firestarter Firewall in Xubuntu

Believe it or not, neither Ubuntu nor Xubuntu come with a firewall pre-enabled.

Ubuntu has a built-in firewall system called IPtables (netfilter) that is enabled by default.
At installation all ports are open and there is effectively no filtering/protection.
To close the ports and leave only the ones you want open, you must either manually edit the iptables or use a GUI (that usually depends upon GNOME).

If you are using Xubuntu and don't want or don't have the time to learn about iptables, the only option left is to install Firestarter.

Firestarter needs to have enabled the "universe" repository in the /etc/apt/sources.list file or in Synaptic Package Manager under Applications ->System, otherwise the package won't appear in the list.

To enable the "universe" repository in the Synaptic Package Manager go to Settings -> Repositories and tick the Community-maintained Open Source software.

Having enabled the repository, the procedure is as follows:

Fastest way to find the package is to do a Search for "Firestarter":

Select it and click "Apply":

These are the settings I apply.
Some other time I'll tell you why.