Linux Share a Dial Up Internet Connection

Q. My modem is connected to CentOS Linux server. I'm using wvdial to connect to my ISP; I'd like to connect my laptop via same modem. How do I share a dial up Internet account?

A.. You can use iptables. It supports - IP Masquerading i.e. network address translation (NAT) to share internet.

Connect laptop to Linux box using hub / switch / cross-over Ethernet cable

Dial out using wvdial

Make sure ppp0 is up

Once connected type the following two command at a shell prompt to share ppp0 interface:
# sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=1 # iptables --table nat --append POSTROUTING --out-interface ppp0 -j MASQUERADE

You need to add above rules to your existing iptables scripts. You can also create a script call share.ppp0 at /etc/ppp/ip-up.d/ with above two lines. This script run by the pppd after the link is established.
# cat > /etc/ppp/ip-up.d/share.ppp0
Append following code:
#!/bin/sh sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=1 iptables --table nat --append POSTROUTING --out-interface ppp0 -j MASQUERADE # add other firewall rules below # ....
Save and close the file.

Client Computer Setup

Login to laptop, set Linux server IP address as default gateway IP. Also setup nameserver IP address (NS1 / NS2). Run ping command to test connectivity:
$ ping google.com $ ping linux-box.ip $ nslookup google.com

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Linux Share a Dial Up Internet Connection

Client Computer Setup

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