The netfilter.org "iptables" project

iptables is the userspace command line program used to configure the Linux 2.4.x and later packet filtering ruleset. It is targeted towards system administrators.

Since Network Address Translation is also configured from the packet filter ruleset, iptables is used for this, too.

The iptables package also includes ip6tables. ip6tables is used for configuring the IPv6 packet filter.

iptables requires a kernel that features the ip_tables packet filter. This includes all 2.4.x and later kernel releases.

The current development version of iptables can be accessed at https://git.netfilter.org/iptables/.

We now also provide daily Development snapshots. They are available from the following location: ftp://ftp.netfilter.org/pub/iptables/snapshot (or one of our mirrors).

iptables was mostly written by the netfilter core team, but has received numerous contributions from lots of individuals over the last five years. We do not provide an exhaustive list here. All contributors are named in the git commit messages, though.