Your software release may not support all the features documented in this module. For the latest caveats and feature information, see
Bug Search Tool and 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 module.
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.
IP uses four key mechanisms in providing its service: Type of Service (ToS), Time to Live (TTL), options, and header checksum.
The options, commonly referred to as IP options, provide for control functions that are required in some situations but unnecessary for the most common communications. IP options include provisions for time stamps, security, and special routing.
IP options may or may not appear in datagrams. They must be implemented by all IP modules (host and gateways). What is optional is their transmission in any particular datagram, not their implementation. In some environments the security option may be required in all datagrams.
The option field is variable in length. There may be zero or more options. IP options can have one of two formats:
Format 1: A single octet of option-type
Format 2: An option-type octet, an option-length octet, and the actual option-data octets
The option-length octet counts the option-type octet, the option-length octet, and the option-data octets.
The option-type octet is viewed as having three fields: a 1-bit copied flag, a 2-bit option class, and a 5-bit option number. These fields form an 8-bit value for the option type field. IP Options are commonly referred to by their 8-bit value.
For a complete list and description of IP Options, refer to RFC 791,
Internet Protocol at the following URL:
http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc791.html
Benefits of Filtering IP Options
Filtering of packets that contain IP Options from the network relieves downstream devices and hosts of the load from options packets.
This feature also minimizes load to the Route Processor (RP) for packets with IP Options that require RP processing on distributed systems. Previously, the packets were always routed to or processed by the RP CPU. Filtering the packets prevents them from impacting the RP.
Benefits of Filtering on TCP Flags
The ACL TCP Flags Filtering feature provides a flexible mechanism for filtering on TCP flags. Without this feature, when multiple flags are specified on the access control entry (ACE), the packet will be allowed if one of the flags is a match . This behavior allows for a security loophole, because packets with all flags set could get past the access control list (ACL). The ACL TCP Flags Filtering feature allows you to select any combination of flags on which to filter. The ability to match on a flag set and on a flag not set gives you a greater degree of control for filtering on TCP flags, thus enhancing security.
Because TCP packets can be sent as false synchronization packets that can be accepted by a listening port, it is recommended that administrators of firewall devices set up some filtering rules to drop false TCP packets.
The ACEs that make up an access list can be configured to detect and drop unauthorized TCP packets by allowing only the packets that have a very specific group of TCP flags set or not set. The ACL TCP Flags Filtering feature gives users a greater degree of packet-filtering control in the following ways:
Users can select any desired combination of TCP flags on which to filter TCP packets.
Users can configure ACEs in order to allow matching on a flag that is set, as well as on a flag that is not set.
TCP Flags
The table below lists the TCP flags, which are further described in RFC 793,
Transmission Control Protocol.
Table 1
TCP Flags
TCP Flag
Purpose
ACK
Acknowledge flag--Indicates that the acknowledgment field of a segment specifies the next sequence number the sender of this segment is expecting to receive.
FIN
Finish flag--Used to clear connections.
PSH
Push flag--Indicates the data in the call should be immediately pushed through to the receiving user.
RST
Reset flag--Indicates that the receiver should delete the connection without further interaction.
SYN
Synchronize flag--Used to establish connections.
URG
Urgent flag--Indicates that the urgent field is meaningful and must be added to the segment sequence number.
Benefits of Using the ACL-Named ACL Support for Noncontiguous Ports
This feature greatly reduces the number of ACEs required in an access control list to handle multiple entries for the same source address, destination address, and protocol. If you maintain large numbers of ACEs, we recommend that you use this feature to consolidate existing groups of access list entries wherever it is possible and also when you create new access list entries. When you configure access list entries with noncontiguous ports, you will have fewer access list entries to maintain.
Complete these steps to configure an access list to filter packets that contain IP options and to verify that the access list has been configured correctly.
Note
The ACL Support for Filtering IP Options feature can be used only with named, extended ACLs.
Resource Reservation Protocol (RSVP) Multiprotocol Label Switching Traffic Engineering (MPLS TE), Internet Group Management Protocol Version 2 (IGMPV2), and other protocols that use IP options packets may not function in drop or ignore mode if this feature is configured.
On most Cisco devices, a packet with IP options is not switched in hardware, but requires control plane software processing (primarily because there is a need to process the options and rewrite the IP header), so all IP packets with IP options will be filtered and switched in software.
Apply the access list to an interface or reference it from a command that accepts an access list.
Note
To effectively eliminate all packets that contain IP Options, we recommend that you configure the global ipoptionsdrop command.
Filtering Packets That Contain TCP Flags
The task in this section configures an access list to filter packets that contain TCP flags and verifies that the access list has been configured correctly.
Note
TCP flag filtering can be used only with named, extended ACLs.
The ACL TCP Flags Filtering feature is supported only for Cisco IOS XE ACLs.
In releases prior to Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1, the following CLI format could be used to configure a TCP flag-checking mechanism:
permittcpanyanyrst
In Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1 and later releases, the following CLI format that represents the same ACE can be used:
permittcpanyanymatch-any+rst
Both the CLI formats are accepted; however, if new keywords
match-all or
match-any are chosen, they must be followed by new flags that are prefixed with "+" or "-". It is advisable to use only the old format or the new format in a single ACL. You cannot mix and match the old and new CLI formats.
Caution
If a router having ACEs with the new syntax format is reloaded with an version of Cisco IOS XE software that does not support the ACL TCP Flags Filtering feature, the ACEs will not be applied, leading to possible security loopholes.
Router(config-ext-nacl)# deny tcp any any match-all -ack -fin
(Optional) Specifies a
deny statement in named IP access list mode.
This access list happens to use a
permit statement first, but a
deny statement could appear first, depending on the order of statements you need.
Use the TCP command syntax of the
deny command.
Any packet that does not have the ACK flag set, and also does not have the FIN flag set, will not be allowed to pass the named access list acl-extd-1 in Step 3.
See the
deny(IP) command for additional command syntax to permit upper-layer protocols (ICMP, IGMP, TCP, and UDP).
Step 6
Repeat Step 4 or Step 5 as necessary, adding statements by sequence number where you planned. Use the
nosequence-number command to delete an entry.
Allows you to revise the access list.
Step 7
end
Example:
Router(config-ext-nacl)# end
(Optional) Exits the configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Step 8
showipaccess-listsaccess-list-name
Example:
Router# show ip access-lists kmd1
(Optional) Displays the contents of the IP access list.
Review the output to confirm that the access list includes the new entry.
Apply the access list to an interface or reference it from a command that accepts an access list.
Configuring an Access Control Entry with Noncontiguous Ports
Perform this task to create access list entries that use noncontiguous TCP or UDP port numbers. Although this task uses TCP ports, you could use the UDP syntax of the
permit and
deny commands to filter noncontiguous UDP ports.
Although this task uses a
permit command first, use the
permit and
deny commands in the order that achieves your filtering goals.
Note
The ACL--Named ACL Support for Noncontiguous Ports on an Access Control Entry feature can be used only with named, extended ACLs.
Router(config-ext-nacl)# permit tcp any eq telnet ftp any eq 450 679
Specifies a
permit statement in named IP access list configuration mode.
Operators include
lt (less than),
gt (greater than),
eq (equal),
neq (not equal), and
range (inclusive range).
If the operator is positioned after the source and source-wildcard arguments, it must match the source port. If the operator is positioned after the destination and destination-wildcard arguments, it must match the destination port.
The
range operator requires two port numbers. You can configure up to 10 ports after the
eq and
neqoperators. All other operators require one port number.
To filter UDP ports, use the UDP syntax of this command.
Router(config-ext-nacl)# deny tcp any neq 45 565 632
(Optional) Specifies a
deny statement in named access list configuration mode.
Operators include
lt (less than),
gt (greater than),
eq (equal),
neq (not equal), and
range (inclusive range).
If the
operator is positioned after the
source and
source-wildcard arguments, it must match the source port. If the
operator is positioned after the
destination anddestination-wildcard arguments, it must match the destination port.
The
range operator requires two port numbers. You can configure up to 10 ports after the
eq and
neqoperators. All other operators require one port number.
To filter UDP ports, use the UDP syntax of this command.
Step 6
Repeat Step 4 or Step 5 as necessary, adding statements by sequence number where you planned. Use the
nosequence-number command to delete an entry.
Allows you to revise the access list.
Step 7
end
Example:
Router(config-ext-nacl)# end
(Optional) Exits named access list configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Step 8
showipaccess-listsaccess-list-name
Example:
Router# show ip access-lists kmd1
(Optional) Displays the contents of the access list.
Review the output to verify that the access list displays the new entries that you created.
Consolidating Access List Entries with Noncontiguous Ports into One ACL
Perform this task to consolidate a group of access list entries with noncontiguous ports into one access list entry.
Although this task uses TCP ports, you could use the UDP syntax of the
permit and
deny commands to filter noncontiguous UDP ports.
Although this task uses a
permit command first, use the
permit and
deny commands in the order that achieves your filtering goals.
7. Repeat Steps 5 and 6 as necessary, adding
permit or
deny statements to consolidate access list entries where possible. Use the
nosequence-number command to delete an entry.
8.end
9.showipaccess-listsaccess-list-name
DETAILED STEPS
Command or Action
Purpose
Step 1
enable
Example:
Router> enable
Enables privileged EXEC mode.
Enter your password if prompted.
Step 2
showipaccess-listsaccess-list-name
Example:
Router# show ip access-lists mylist1
(Optional) Displays the contents of the IP access list.
Review the output to see if you can consolidate any access list entries.
Step 3
configureterminal
Example:
Router# configure terminal
Enters global configuration mode.
Step 4
ipaccess-listextendedaccess-list-name
Example:
Router(config)# ip access-list extended mylist1
Specifies the IP access list by name and enters named access list configuration mode.
Step 5
no [sequence-number]permitprotocolsourcesource-wildcarddestinationdestination-wildcard [optionoption-name] [precedenceprecedence] [tostos] [log] [time-rangetime-range-name] [fragments]
Example:
Router(config-ext-nacl)# no 10
Removes the redundant access list entry that can be consolidated.
Repeat this step to remove entries to be consolidated because only the port numbers differ.
After this step is repeated to remove the access list entries 20, 30, and 40, for example, those entries are removed because they will be consolidated into one
permit statement.
If a
sequence-number is specified, the rest of the command syntax is optional.
Router(config-ext-nacl)# permit tcp any neq 45 565 632 any eq 23 45 34 43
Specifies a
permit statement in named access list configuration mode.
In this instance, a group of access list entries with noncontiguous ports was consolidated into one
permit statement.
You can configure up to 10 ports after the
eq and
neq operators.
Step 7
Repeat Steps 5 and 6 as necessary, adding
permit or
deny statements to consolidate access list entries where possible. Use the
nosequence-number command to delete an entry.
Allows you to revise the access list.
Step 8
end
Example:
Router(config-std-nacl)# end
(Optional) Exits named access list configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC mode.
Step 9
showipaccess-listsaccess-list-name
Example:
Router# show ip access-lists mylist1
(Optional) Displays the contents of the access list.
Review the output to verify that the redundant access list entries have been replaced with your new consolidated entries.
Example: Filtering Packets That Contain IP Options
The following example shows an extended access list named mylist2 that contains access list entries (ACEs) that are configured to permit TCP packets only if they contain the IP Options that are specified in the ACEs:
ip access-list extended mylist2
10 permit ip any any option eool
20 permit ip any any option record-route
30 permit ip any any option zsu
40 permit ip any any option mtup
The
showaccess-list command has been entered to show how many packets were matched and therefore permitted:
Router# show ip access-list mylist2
Extended IP access list test
10 permit ip any any option eool (1 match)
20 permit ip any any option record-route (1 match)
30 permit ip any any option zsu (1 match)
40 permit ip any any option mtup (1 match)
Example: Filtering Packets That Contain TCP Flags
The following access list allows TCP packets only if the TCP flags ACK and SYN are set and the FIN flag is not set:
ip access-list extended aaa
permit tcp any any match-all +ack +syn -fin
end
The
showaccess-list command has been entered to display the ACL:
Device# show access-list aaa
Extended IP access list aaa
10 permit tcp any any match-all +ack +syn -fin
Example: Creating an Access List Entry with Noncontiguous Ports
The following access list entry can be created because up to ten ports can be entered after the
eq and
neq operators:
ip access-list extended aaa
permit tcp any eq telnet ftp any eq 23 45 34
end
Enter the
showaccess-lists command to display the newly created access list entry.
Router# show access-lists aaa
Extended IP access list aaa
10 permit tcp any eq telnet ftp any eq 23 45 34
Example: Consolidating Existing Access List Entries into One Access List Entry with Noncontiguous Ports
The
showaccess-lists command is used to display a group of access list entries for the access list named abc:
Router# show access-lists abc
Extended IP access list abc
10 permit tcp any eq telnet any eq 450
20 permit tcp any eq telnet any eq 679
30 permit tcp any eq ftp any eq 450
40 permit tcp any eq ftp any eq 679
Because the entries are all for the same
permit statement and simply show different ports, they can be consolidated into one new access list entry. The following example shows the removal of the redundant access list entries and the creation of a new access list entry that consolidates the previously displayed group of access list entries:
ip access-list extended abc
no 10
no 20
no 30
no 40
permit tcp any eq telnet ftp any eq 450 679
end
When the
showaccess-lists command is reentered, the consolidated access list entry is displayed:
Router# show access-lists abc
Extended IP access list abc
10 permit tcp any eq telnet ftp any eq 450 679
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Feature Information for Using an IP Access List for Filtering
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 2
Feature Information for Creating an IP Access List for Filtering
Feature Name
Releases
Feature Configuration Information
ACL--DHCP Matching
Cisco IOS XE Release 3.5S
In Cisco IOS XE Release 3.5S, support was added for the Cisco ASR 903 Router.
ACL--Named ACL Support for Noncontiguous Ports on an Access Control Entry
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
This feature allows you to specify noncontiguous ports in a single access control entry, which greatly reduces the number of entries required in an access control list when several entries have the same source address, destination address, and protocol, but differ only in the ports.
No commands were introduced or modified for this feature.
ACL Support for Filtering IP Options
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
This feature allows you to filter packets having IP options, in order to prevent routers from becoming saturated with spurious packets.
No commands were introduced or modified for this feature.
ACL TCP Flags Filtering
Cisco IOS XE Release 2.1
This feature provides a flexible mechanism for filtering on TCP flags. It allows you to select any combination of flags on which to filter. The ability to match on a flag set and on a flag not set gives you a greater degree of control for filtering on TCP flags, thus enhancing security.
No commands were introduced or modified for this feature.
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Any Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and phone numbers used in this document are not intended to be actual addresses and phone numbers. Any examples, command display output, network topology diagrams, and other figures included in the document are shown for illustrative purposes only. Any use of actual IP addresses or phone numbers in illustrative content is unintentional and coincidental.