iptables-xml

iptables-xml [options]

-t table
    Specify the table to convert to XML. Defaults to all tables if not specified.
Common tables include 'filter', 'nat', 'mangle', and 'raw'.

-f filename
    Specify the output filename. If not specified, output will be printed to standard output.

-v
    Verbose mode, providing more detailed information during execution.

-h
    Display help message and exit.

The iptables-xml command is a utility for converting iptables firewall rulesets into an XML representation. This allows you to easily back up, migrate, and analyze your firewall configuration. It provides a structured, human-readable format compared to the raw iptables commands. The generated XML output can then be parsed, transformed, or used as input for other tools. The tool retrieves all tables and rules from iptables and formats it into a human readable xml format.
It simplifies tasks like documenting the firewall configuration and comparing the differences between firewall rules on different systems. This can be critical for security audits and compliance checks.
The utility offers options to specify which tables to export and supports various output formats, making it flexible for different use cases.

The XML output will typically consist of a root element containing elements for each table ('filter', 'nat', 'mangle', 'raw'). Within each table element, there will be elements representing chains (e.g., 'INPUT', 'OUTPUT', 'FORWARD') and the rules defined within those chains. Each rule will include attributes detailing the match criteria and the target action.

To save all iptables rules to an XML file named 'firewall.xml':
iptables-xml -f firewall.xml
To save only the 'filter' table to standard output:
iptables-xml -t filter

iptables(8), iptables-save(8), iptables-restore(8)