ubuntu firewall spec

[Dave Kempe]

Hi,
I was wondering why we should create a new firewall tool when there are 
good ones our there already? In particular I use shorewall from simple 
to complex setups and believe that its perfectly suited to the task of 
being Ubuntu's default firewall.
There is absolutely no point in reinventing the wheel.
Just wanted to discuss before editing the wiki pages with an entirely 
different direction.

FWIW, I believe shorewall should be the default firewall, because it 
meets the requirements. It may need a slight extension to allow a 
run-parts directory for rules, but this would be a simple inclusion in 
the existing scripts. Shorewall gives the user a powerful abstract way 
of defining firewall rules, and is a joy to use when situations get more 
complex. It can also do traffic control and shaping, and has all the 
options we may need to go from simple to complex easily. Along with a 
massive community, active development, and it would be suitable for 
server and desktop. Write a gui for it if you want, or an ebox module, 
but don't rewrite the tool please.

thanks

dave