This module describes the basic tasks to configure an application-level gateway (ALG) with Network Address Translation (NAT). This module also provides information about the protocols that use ALGs for IP header translation.
NAT performs translation services on any TCP/UDP traffic that does not carry source and destination IP addresses in the application data stream. Protocols that do not carry the source and destination IP addresses include HTTP, TFTP, telnet, archie, finger, Network Time Protocol (NTP), Network File System (NFS), remote login (rlogin), remote shell (rsh) protocol, and remote copy (rcp).
Specific protocols that embed the IP address information within the payload require the support of an ALG. NAT requires a variety of ALGs to handle application data stream (Layer 7) protocol-specific services such as translating embedded IP addresses and port numbers in the packet payload and extracting new connection/session information from control channels.
NAT supports virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) for protocols that have a supported ALG.
The Support for IPsec ESP Through NAT feature provides the ability to support multiple concurrent IPsec Encapsulating Security Payload (ESP) tunnels or connections through a NAT device configured in Overload or Port Address Translation (PAT) mode.
Your software release may not support all the features documented in this module. For the latest feature information and caveats, see the release notes for your platform and software release. To find information about the features documented in this module, and to see a list of the releases in which each feature is supported, see the Feature Information Table at the end of this document.
Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco software image support. To access Cisco Feature Navigator, go to
www.cisco.com/go/cfn. An account on Cisco.com is not required.
Prerequisites for Using Application Level Gateways with NAT
Before performing the tasks in this module, you should be familiar with the concepts described in the “Configuring NAT for IP Address Conservation” module.
All access lists required for use with the tasks in this module should be configured prior to beginning the configuration task. For information about how to configure an access list, see the “IP Access List Sequence Numbering” document.
Before performing the tasks in this module, you should verify that the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and H.323 are not disabled. SIP and H.323 are enabled by default.
Information About Using Application-Level Gateways with NAT
IPsec is a set of extensions to the IP protocol family in a framework of open standards for ensuring secure private communications over the Internet. Based on standards developed by the IETF, IPsec ensures confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity of data communications across the public network and provides cryptographic security services.
Secure tunnels between two peers, such as two routers, are provided and decisions are made as to which packets are considered sensitive and should be sent through these secure tunnels, and which parameters should be used to protect these sensitive packets by specifying characteristics of these tunnels. When the IPsec peer receives a sensitive packet, it sets up the appropriate secure tunnel and sends the packet through the tunnel to the remote peer.
IPsec using Encapsulating Security Payload (ESP) can pass through a router running NAT without any specific support from it as long as Network Address Port Translation (NAPT) or address overloading is not configured.
There are a number of factors to consider when attempting an IPsec VPN connection that traverses a NAPT device that represents multiple private internal IP addresses as a single public external IP address. Such factors include the capabilities of the VPN server and client, the capabilities of the NAPT device, and whether more than one simultaneous connection is attempted across the NAPT device.
There are two possible methods for configuring IPsec on a router with NAPT:
Encapsulate IPsec in a Layer 4 protocol such as TCP or UDP. In this case, IPsec is sneaking through NAT. The NAT device is unaware of the encapsulation.
Add IPsec-specific support to NAPT. IPsec works with NAT in this case as opposed to sneaking through NAT. The NAT Support for IPsec ESP-- Phase II feature provides support for Internet Key Exchange (IKE) and ESP without encapsulation in tunnel mode through a Cisco IOS router configured with NAPT.
We recommend that TCP and UDP be used when conducting IPsec sessions that traverse a NAPT device. However, not all VPN servers or clients support TCP or UDP.
SPI Matching
SPI matching is used to establish VPN connections between multiple pairs of destinations. NAT entries will immediately be placed in the translation table for endpoints matching the configured access list..
NAT enables customers to deploy private IP addresses within their network and translate the private IP addresses to public IP addresses when connecting to the Internet or when interconnecting with another corporate network.
NAT support for the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) adds the ability to deploy NAT on VoIP solutions based on SIP.
With NAT ALGs, customers can control their IP address scheme and include complete support for H.323 v2 gatekeeper designs.
ESP entries in the translation table are normally delayed from being transmitted until a reply is received from the destination. With predictable security parameter indexes (SPIs) and SPI matching, the delay can be eliminated because SPI entries are matched. Some third-party concentrators require both source ports and incoming ports to use port 500. Use the
ip nat service preserve-port command to preserve the ports rather than changing them, which is required with regular NAT.
Voice and Multimedia over IP Networks
SIP is a protocol developed by the IETF Multiparty Multimedia Session Control (MMUSIC) Working Group. The Cisco SIP functionality equips Cisco routers to signal the setup of voice and multimedia calls over IP networks. SIP provides an alternative to H.323 within the VoIP internetworking software.
Session Description Protocol (SDP) is a protocol that describes multimedia sessions. SDP may be used in SIP message bodies to describe multimedia sessions used for creating and controlling multimedia sessions with two or more participants.
The NAT Support for SIP feature allows SIP embedded messages passing through a router configured with NAT to be translated and encoded back to the packet. An ALG is used with NAT to translate the SIP or SDP messages.
Note
By default support for SIP is enabled on port 5060. Therefore, NAT-enabled devices interpret all packets on this port as SIP call messages. If other applications in the system use port 5060 to send packets, the NAT service may corrupt the packet as it attempts to interpret the packet as a SIP call message.
NAT Support of H.323 v2 RAS
Cisco IOS NAT supports all H.225 and H.245 message types, including those sent in the Registration, Admission, and Status (RAS) protocol. RAS provides a number of messages that are used by software clients and VoIP devices to register their location, request assistance in call setup, and control bandwidth. The RAS messages are directed toward an H.323 gatekeeper.
Some RAS messages include IP addressing information in the payload, typically meant to register a user with the gatekeeper or learn about another user already registered. If these messages are not known to NAT, they cannot be translated to an IP address that will be visible to the public.
In Cisco IOS Release 12.2(2)T and later releases, embedded IP addresses can be inspected for potential address translation. Prior to Cisco IOS Release 12.2(2)T, NAT did not support H.323 v2 RAS messages.
NAT Support for H.323 v3 and v4 in v2 Compatibility Mode
H.323 is an ITU-T specification for transmitting audio, video, and data across packet networks. NAT supports four versions of the H.323 protocols: Version 1, Version 2, Version 3, and Version 4. The NAT Support for H.323 v3 and v4 in v2 Compatibility Mode feature enables NAT routers to support messages coded in H.323 Version 3 and Version 4 when these messages contain fields that are compatible with H.323 Version 2. This feature does not support H.323 capabilities introduced in H.323 Version 3 and Version 4, such as new message types or new fields that require address translation.
NAT H.245 Tunneling Support
The NAT H.245 Tunneling Support feature supports H.245 tunneling in H.323 ALGs. The H.245 tunneling supports H.245 tunnel messages that are needed to create a media channel setup.
For an H.323 call to take place, an H.225 connection on TCP port 1720 must be opened. When the H.225 connection is opened, the H.245 session is initiated and established. The H.323 connection can take place on a separate channel other than the H.225 or it can be done by using H.245 tunneling on the same H.225 channel whereby the H.245 messages are embedded in H.225 messages and sent on the previously established H.225 channel.
If the H.245 tunneled message is not understood by NAT, the media address or the port number is left untranslated by NAT, resulting in media traffic failure. The H.245 FastConnect procedures will not help if the H.245 tunneled message is not understood by NAT because FastConnect is terminated as soon as an H.245 tunneled message is sent.
NAT Support of Skinny Client Control Protocol
Cisco IP phones use the SCCP to connect with and register to Cisco CallManager.
To be able to configure Cisco IOS NAT between the IP phone and Cisco CallManager in a scalable environment, NAT needs to be able to detect the SCCP and understand the information passed within the messages. Messages flow back and forth that include IP address and port information used to identify other IP phone users with which a call can be placed.
The SCCP client to Cisco CallManager communication typically flows from inside to outside. Domain Name System (DNS) should be used to resolve the Cisco CallManager IP address connection when the Cisco CallManager is on the inside (behind the NAT device), or static NAT should be configured to reach the Cisco CallManager in the inside.
When an IP phone attempts to connect to the Cisco CallManager and it matches the configured NAT rules, NAT will translate the original source IP address and replace it with one from the configured pool. This new address will be reflected in the Cisco CallManager and be visible to other IP phone users.
NAT Support of SCCP Fragmentation
Skinny Client Control Protocol (SCCP) messages, also called Skinny control messages, are exchanged over TCP. If either the IP phone or the Cisco Unified CallManager is configured to have a TCP maximum segment size (MSS) lower than the Skinny control message payload, the Skinny control message is segmented across multiple TCP segments. Prior to the introduction of this feature, Skinny control message exchanges used to fail during TCP segmentation because the NAT Skinny ALG was not able to reassemble Skinny control messages. The NAT SCCP Fragmentation Support feature adds support for TCP segments for the NAT Skinny ALG and fragmented payloads that requires an IP translation or a port translation is no longer dropped.
Skinny control messages can also be IP fragmented by using Virtual Fragmentation Reassembly (VFR).
In Cisco IOS Release 15.1(3)T and later releases, NAT works with SCCP phones Version 17 and higher.
NAT Segmentation with Layer 4 Forwarding
The NAT Segmentation with Layer 4 Forwarding feature is implemented for the H.323, Skinny Client Control Protocol (SCCP), and the TCP Domain Name System (DNS) protocol. NAT supports the processing of segmented H.323, SCCP, or TCP DNS messages that are split across multiple packets.
Layer 4 forwarding or TCP proxy is responsible for session handling that includes setting sequence numbers in order, acknowledging the numbers in a packet, resegmenting the translated packet if it is larger than the maximum segment size (MSS), and handling retransmissions in case of packet loss. Layer 4 forwarding also handles out-of-order packets and these packets are buffered and not dropped. Layer 4 forwarding buffers received packets and notifies the NAT ALG when an in-order packet is available, sends acknowledgments to end hosts for received packets, and sends translated packets that it receives from the NAT ALG back into the output packet path.
Restrictions
The NAT Segmentation with Layer 4 Forwarding feature does not work when:
Firewalls are configured using the
ipinspectname command. (Context-Based Access Control (CBAC) firewalls are not supported. Zone-based firewalls are supported.)
H.323, SCCP, or TCP DNS messages are larger than 18 KB.
Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) is configured.
NAT and the Cisco Unified CallManager are configured on the same device. In this case, a colocated solution in Call Manager Express is used.
NAT Virtual Interface (NVI) is configured.
Stateful Network Address Translation (SNAT) is enabled.
The
match-in-vrf keyword is configured along with the
ipnatinsidesource command for packet translation.
The packets are IPv6 packets.
How to Configure Application-Level Gateways with NAT
IPsec ESP Through NAT provides the ability to support multiple concurrent IPsec ESP tunnels or connections through a Cisco IOS NAT device configured in Overload or PAT mode.
Perform this task to configure IPsec ESP through NAT.
Note
IPsec can be configured for any NAT configuration, not just static NAT configurations.
Router(config)# ip nat service list 10 IKE preserve-port
Specifies IPsec traffic that matches the access list to preserve the port.
Enabling SPI Matching on the NAT Device
Note
SPI matching is disabled by default.
Security parameter index (SPI) matching is used to establish VPN connections between multiple pairs of destinations. NAT entries are immediately placed in the translation table for endpoints matching the configured access list. SPI matching is available only for endpoints that choose SPIs according to the predictive algorithm implemented in Cisco IOS Release 12.2(15)T.
The generation of SPIs that are predictable and symmetric is enabled. SPI matching should be used in conjunction with NAT devices when multiple ESP connections across a NAT device are desired.
Before You Begin
Cisco IOS software must be running on both the source router and the remote gateway enabling parallel processing.
Note
SPI matching must be configured on the NAT device and both endpoint devices.
>
SUMMARY STEPS
1.enable
2.configureterminal
3.ipnatservicelistaccess-list-numberESPspi-match
DETAILED STEPS
Command or Action
Purpose
Step 1
enable
Example:
Router> enable
Enables privileged EXEC mode.
Enter your password if prompted.
Step 2
configureterminal
Example:
Router# configure terminal
Enters global configuration mode.
Step 3
ipnatservicelistaccess-list-numberESPspi-match
Example:
Router(config)# ip nat service list 10 ESP spi-match
Specifies an access list to enable SPI matching.
This example shows how to enter ESP traffic matching list 10 into the NAT table, making the assumption that both devices are Cisco devices and are configured to provide matchable SPIs.
Enabling SPI Matching on Endpoints
Before You Begin
Cisco software must be running on both the source device and the remote gateway, enabling parallel processing.
Note
Security parameter index (SPI) matching must be configured on the Network Address Translation (NAT) device and on both endpoint devices.
Exits global configuration mode and enters privileged EXEC mode.
Enabling MultiPart SDP Support for NAT
The MultiPart SDP Support for NAT feature provides support for the multipart Session Description Protocol (SDP) in a SIP ALG. MultiPart SDP support for NAT is disabled by default.
Note
NAT translates only embedded IPv4 addresses.
SUMMARY STEPS
1.enable
2.configureterminal
3.ipnatserviceallow-multipart
4.exit
5.showipnattranslations
DETAILED STEPS
Command or Action
Purpose
Step 1
enable
Example:
Device> enable
Enables privileged EXEC mode.
Enter your password if prompted.
Step 2
configureterminal
Example:
Device# configure terminal
Enters global configuration mode.
Step 3
ipnatserviceallow-multipart
Example:
Device(config)# ip nat service allow-multipart
Enables multipart SDP.
Step 4
exit
Example:
Device(config)# exit
Exits global configuration mode and enters privileged EXEC mode.
Step 5
showipnattranslations
Example:
Device# show ip nat translations
(Optional) Displays active NATs.
Configuring NAT Between an IP Phone and Cisco CallManager
This section describes configuring Cisco’s Skinny Client Control Protocol (SCCP) for Cisco IP phone to Cisco CallManager communication. The task in this section configures NAT between an IP phone and Cisco CallManager.
SUMMARY STEPS
1.enable
2.configureterminal
3.ipnatserviceskinnytcpportnumber
DETAILED STEPS
Command or Action
Purpose
Step 1
enable
Example:
Router> enable
Enables privileged EXEC mode.
Enter your password if prompted.
Step 2
configureterminal
Example:
Router# configure terminal
Enters global configuration mode.
Step 3
ipnatserviceskinnytcpportnumber
Example:
Router(config)# ip nat service skinny tcp port 20002
Configures the skinny protocol on the specified TCP port.
Configuration Examples for Using Application-Level Gateways with NAT
The Cisco Support and Documentation website provides online resources to download documentation, software, and tools. Use these resources to install and configure the software and to troubleshoot and resolve technical issues with Cisco products and technologies. Access to most tools on the Cisco Support and Documentation website requires a Cisco.com user ID and password.
Feature Information for Using Application-Level Gateways with NAT
The following table provides release information about the feature or features described in this module. This table lists only the software release that introduced support for a given feature in a given software release train. Unless noted otherwise, subsequent releases of that software release train also support that feature.
Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco software image support. To access Cisco Feature Navigator, go to
www.cisco.com/go/cfn. An account on Cisco.com is not required.
Table 1 Feature Information for Using Application-Level Gateways with NAT
Feature Name
Releases
Feature Configuration Information
ALG—H.323 v6 Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.6S
The ALG—H.323 v6 supports the parsing of H.323 v6 packets and the inspection and translation of IPv4 address information in H.323 messages.
ALG—SCCP Version 17 Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.5S
The ALG—SCCP Version 17 Support feature enables the SCCP ALG to parse SCCP Version 17 packets. Cisco Unified Communications Manager 7.0 and IP phones that use Cisco Unified Communications Manager 7.0 support only SCCP Version 17 messages. The SCCP Version 17 packets support IPv6 packets. The SCCP ALG supports the inspection and translation of IPv4 address information in SCCP messages.
NAT ALG—SIP REFER Method
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.2S
The NAT ALG—SIP REFER method feature supports two types of call transfers, unattended (blind) transfer and attended (consultative) transfer.
NAT ALG—SIP Trunking Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.2S
The NAT ALG—SIP Trunking Support feature uses a local database to store all media-related information within a SIP trunk. Call IDs of each call are used to index this local database.
NAT Basic H.323 ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
NAT requires a variety of ALGs to handle Layer 7 protocol-specific services such as translating embedded IP addresses and port numbers in the packet payload and extracting new connection/session information from control channels. The NAT Basic H.323 ALG support feature provides these specific services for H.323 messages.
NAT DNS ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The NAT DNS ALG Support feature supports translation of DNS packets.
NAT FTP ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The NAT FTP ALG Support feature supports translation of FTP packets.
NAT H.323 RAS
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.4
NAT supports all H.225 and H. 245 message types, including those sent in the Registration, Admission, and Status (RAS) protocol. RAS provides a number of messages that are used by software clients and VoIP devices to register their location, request assistance in call setup, and control bandwidth. The RAS messages are directed toward an H.323 gatekeeper.
NAT ICMP ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The NAT ICMP ALG Support feature supports translation of ICMP packets.
NAT NetBIOS ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.1S
NAT provides Network Basic Input Output System (NetBIOS) message translation support. The NAT NetBIOS ALG Support feature introduced the following command to display NetBIOS-specific information for a device: show platform hardware qfp [active | standby] feature alg statistics netbios.
NAT NetMeeting Directory (LDAP)
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.4
The NAT NetMeeting Directory (LDAP) feature provides ALG support for NetMeeting directory LDAP messages.
NAT RCMD ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.1S
NAT provides remote command execution service (RCMD) message translation support.The NAT RCMD ALG Support feature introduced the following command to display RCMD-specific information for a device: show platform software trace message process qfp active.
NAT RTSP ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.1S
The NAT RTSP ALG Support feature provides RTSP message translation support.
NAT—SCCP for Video
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.4
The NAT—SCCP for Video feature provides SCCP video message translation support.
NAT—SIP ALG Enhancement for T.38 Fax Relay
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.4.1
The NAT—SIP ALG Enhancement for T.38 Fax Relay feature provides translation support for SIP ALG support of T.38 Fax Relay over IP.
NAT—SIP Extended Methods
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.4
The NAT—SIP Extended Methods feature supports extended methods for SIP.
NAT Support of IP Phone to Cisco CallManager
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The NAT Support of IP Phone to Cisco CallManager feature adds NAT support for configuring Cisco SCCP for a Cisco IP phone-to- Cisco CallManager communication.
NAT Support for IPsec ESP—Phase II
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The NAT Support for IPsec ESP-- Phase II feature provides support for Internet Key Exchange (IKE) and ESP without encapsulation in tunnel mode through a device configured with NAPT.
NAT Support for SIP
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.2S
The NAT Support for SIP feature adds the ability to deploy NAT between VoIP solutions based on SIP.
NAT TFTP ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The NAT TFTP ALG Support feature supports translation of TFTP packets.
NAT VRF-Aware ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.5
The NAT VRF-Aware ALG Support feature supports VPN routing and forwarding (VRF) for protocols that have a supported ALG.
NAT vTCP ALG Support
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.1S
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.2S
The NAT vTCP ALG Support feature provides vTCP support to handle TCP segmentation and reassembling for ALG.
Support for IPsec ESP Through NAT
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
The Support for IPsec ESP Through NAT feature provides the ability to support multiple, concurrent IPsec ESP tunnels or connections through a NAT device configured in Overload or PAT mode.