ip6tables
IPv6 packet filter administration tool
TLDR
List all rules
$ sudo ip6tables -L
List rules with line numbers$ sudo ip6tables -L --line-numbers
Accept traffic on port$ sudo ip6tables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 22 -j ACCEPT
Drop traffic from address$ sudo ip6tables -A INPUT -s 2001:db8::1 -j DROP
Delete rule by number$ sudo ip6tables -D INPUT 1
Flush all rules$ sudo ip6tables -F
SYNOPSIS
ip6tables [OPTIONS] [chain] [rule-specification]
DESCRIPTION
ip6tables is the IPv6 packet filter administration tool. It has the same syntax and functionality as iptables but operates on IPv6 traffic. It manages rules for filtering, NAT, and packet mangling.
PARAMETERS
-L, --list
List all rules in the selected chain.-A, --append
Append a rule to the end of chain.-D, --delete
Delete a rule from chain.-I, --insert
Insert a rule at position.-R, --replace
Replace a rule in the selected chain.-F, --flush
Flush (delete all rules in) a chain.-N, --new-chain
Create a user-defined chain.-X, --delete-chain
Delete a user-defined chain.-P, --policy
Set default policy for a chain (ACCEPT/DROP).-Z, --zero
Zero the packet and byte counters.-p, --protocol
Protocol to match (tcp, udp, icmpv6).--dport
Destination port.--sport
Source port.-s, --source
Source address.-d, --destination
Destination address.-i, --in-interface
Interface a packet was received on.-o, --out-interface
Interface a packet is going to be sent on.-j, --jump
Target (ACCEPT, DROP, REJECT, LOG, etc.).-v, --verbose
Verbose output (show counters and interfaces).-n, --numeric
Show numeric addresses and ports instead of resolving names.--line-numbers
Show rule numbers when listing.
INSTALL
sudo pacman -S iptables
sudo apk add iptables
sudo zypper install iptables
brew install iptables
nix profile install nixpkgs#iptables
CAVEATS
IPv6 and IPv4 rules are managed separately. Rules are not persistent by default - use ip6tables-save/restore. Consider migrating to nftables for unified IPv4/IPv6 management.
HISTORY
ip6tables is the IPv6 counterpart to iptables, part of the netfilter framework. It is being superseded by nftables.
SEE ALSO
iptables(8), ip6tables-save(8), nft(8)
