Need help to create Captive Portals using IPtables rules on Ubuntu

Hi,

I am using this thread to create a captive portal: http://www.andybev.com/index.php/Using_iptables_and_PHP_to_create_a_captive_portal

I am running Ubuntu using VMWare on win 7 in unity mode which is all working cool, including networking. I have installed all packages to run apache2, php5, mysql and phpmyadmin and also other packages as listed in by andybev- (which are also working cool)

#  conntrack

# sudo

# psmisc

# PHP

# squid

The flat file used to store details of all registered users is /var/lib/users. Now I have to create the iptables rules, where I am having problem. Andybev just says the following iptables rules are required without elaborating "HOW TO CREATE THESE RULES"

Firewall rules required

 

The following iptables rules are needed in your firewall:

 

IPTABLES=/sbin/iptables

 

# Set the default policy to drop all forwarded packets

$IPTABLES -P FORWARD DROP

 

# Create internet chain

# This is used to authenticate users who have already signed up

$IPTABLES -N internet -t nat

 

 

# Accept all local traffic

$IPTABLES -t nat -A PREROUTING -i eth0 --destination 10.0.0.0/16 -j ACCEPT

 

# First send all traffic via newly created internet chain

# At the prerouting NAT stage this will DNAT them to the local

# webserver for them to signup if they aren't authorised

# Packets for unauthorised users are marked for dropping later

$IPTABLES -t nat -A PREROUTING -j internet

 

 

# Now that we've got to the forward filter, drop all packets

# marked 99 - these are unknown users. We can't drop them earlier

# as there's no filter table

$IPTABLES -t filter -A FORWARD -m mark --mark 99 -j DROP

 

###### INTERNET CHAIN ##########

# Allow authorised clients in, redirect all others to login webserver

# Add known users to the NAT table to stop their dest being rewritten

# Ignore MAC address with a * - these users are blocked

# This awk script goes through the /var/lib/users flat file line by line

awk 'BEGIN { FS="\t"; } { system("$IPTABLES -t nat -A internet -m mac --mac-source "$4" -j RETURN"); }' /var/lib/users

 

# MAC address not found. Mark the packet 99

$IPTABLES -t nat -A internet -j MARK --set-mark 99

# Redirects web requests from Unauthorised users to logon Web Page

$IPTABLES -t nat -A internet -m mark --mark 99 -p tcp --dport 80 -j DNAT --to-destination 10.0.0.1

################################

 

 

# Enable Internet connection sharing

$IPTABLES -A FORWARD -i ppp0 -o eth0 -m state --state ESTABLISHED,RELATED -j ACCEPT

$IPTABLES -A FORWARD -i eth0 -o ppp0 -j ACCEPT

$IPTABLES -t nat -A POSTROUTING -o ppp0 -j MASQUERADE

[/Quote]

 

I am not able to apply these rules. I tried to edit the iptables in /sbin/iptables but realised it is an executable program. I tried running this program on terminal and then execute each iptable rule as given by Andybev, line by line. But I highly doubt if it was meant to be done that way.

 

Please shed some light on iptables rules and fireball so that I can create the captive portal.

 

ps: This captive portal is meant for wired LAN computers. NOT WIFI.