Chapter

ACL Concepts
07
 Module Objectives
Module Title: ACL Concepts

Module Objective: Explain how ACLs are used as part of a network

security policy.

Topic Title Topic Objective

Purpose of ACLs Explain how ACLs filter traffic.

Wildcard Masks in ACLs Explain how ACLs use wildcard masks.

Guidelines for ACL Creation Explain how to create ACLs.

Types of IPv4 ACLs Compare standard and extended IPv4 ACLs.

4.1 Purpose of ACLs
 What is an ACL?

An ACL is a series of IOS commands that are used to filter packets based on
information found in the packet header. By default, a router does not have any
ACLs configured. When an ACL is applied to an interface, the router performs
the additional task of evaluating all network packets as they pass through the
interface to determine if the packet can be forwarded.
• An ACL uses a sequential list of permit or deny statements, known as
access control entries (ACEs).
Note: ACEs are also commonly called ACL statements.
• When network traffic passes through an interface configured with an ACL,
the router compares the information within the packet against each ACE,
in sequential order, to determine if the packet matches one of the ACEs.
This process is called packet filtering.
 What is an ACL? (Cont.)

Several tasks performed by routers require the use of ACLs to identify traffic:
• Limit network traffic to increase network performance
• Provide traffic flow control
• Provide a basic level of security for network access
• Filter traffic based on traffic type
• Screen hosts to permit or deny access to network services
• Provide priority to certain classes of network traffic
 Packet Filtering

• Packet filtering controls access to a

network by analyzing the incoming
and/or outgoing packets and
forwarding them or discarding them
based on given criteria.
• Packet filtering can occur at Layer 3
or Layer 4.
• Cisco routers support two types of
ACLs:
• Standard ACLs - ACLs only filter at Layer
3 using the source IPv4 address only.
• Extended ACLs - ACLs filter at Layer 3
using the source and / or destination
IPv4 address. They can also filter at Layer
4 using TCP, UDP ports, and optional
protocol type information for finer
control.
 ACL Operation
• ACLs define the set of rules that give added control for packets that enter inbound
interfaces, packets that relay through the router, and packets that exit outbound
interfaces of the router.
• ACLs can be configured to apply to inbound traffic and outbound traffic.
Note: ACLs do not act on packets that originate from the router itself.
• An inbound ACL filters packets before they are routed to the outbound interface.
An inbound ACL is efficient because it saves the overhead of routing lookups if the
packet is discarded.
• An outbound ACL filters packets after being routed, regardless of the inbound
interface.
 ACL Operation (Cont.)

When an ACL is applied to an interface, it follows a specific operating

procedure. Here are the operational steps used when traffic has entered a
router interface with an inbound standard IPv4 ACL configured:
1. The router extracts the source IPv4 address from the packet header.
2. The router starts at the top of the ACL and compares the source IPv4 address to
each ACE in a sequential order.
3. When a match is made, the router carries out the instruction, either permitting or
denying the packet, and the remaining ACEs in the ACL, if any, are not analyzed.
4. If the source IPv4 address does not match any ACEs in the ACL, the packet is
discarded because there is an implicit deny ACE automatically applied to all ACLs.
The last ACE statement of an ACL is always an implicit deny that blocks all
traffic. It is hidden and not displayed in the configuration.
Note: An ACL must have at least one permit statement otherwise all traffic will be
denied due to the implicit deny ACE statement.
 Packet Tracer - ACL Demonstration
In this Packet Tracer, you will complete the following objectives:

• Part 1: Verify Local Connectivity and Test Access Control List

• Part 2: Remove Access Control List and Repeat Test
4.2 Wildcard Masks in ACLs
 Wildcard Mask Overview

A wildcard mask is similar to a subnet mask in that it uses the ANDing process
to identify which bits in an IPv4 address to match. Unlike a subnet mask, in
which binary 1 is equal to a match and binary 0 is not a match, in a wildcard
mask, the reverse is true.
• An IPv4 ACE uses a 32-bit wildcard mask to determine which bits of the
address to examine for a match.
• Wildcard masks use the following rules to match binary 1s and 0s:
• Wildcard mask bit 0 - Match the corresponding bit value in the address
• Wildcard mask bit 1 - Ignore the corresponding bit value in the address
 Wildcard Mask Overview (Cont.)

Last Octet (in

Wildcard Mask Meaning (0 - match, 1 - ignore)
Binary)
0.0.0.0 00000000 Match all octets.
•Match the first three octets
0.0.0.63 00111111 •Match the two left most bits of the last octet
•Ignore the last 6 bits
•Match the first three octets
0.0.0.15 00001111 •Match the four left most bits of the last octet
•Ignore the last 4 bits of the last octet
•Match the first three octets
0.0.0.248 11111100 •Ignore the six left most bits of the last octet
•Match the last two bits
•Match the first three octet
0.0.0.255 11111111
•Ignore the last octet
 Wildcard Mask Types
Wildcard to Match a Host:
• Assume ACL 10 needs an ACE that only permits the host with IPv4 address
192.168.1.1. Recall that “0” equals a match and “1” equals ignore. To match a
specific host IPv4 address, a wildcard mask consisting of all zeroes (i.e., 0.0.0.0) is
required.
• When the ACE is processed, the wildcard mask will permit only the 192.168.1.1
address. The resulting ACE in ACL 10 would be access-list 10 permit 192.168.1.1
0.0.0.0.

Decimal Binary
IPv4 address 192.168.1.1 11000000.10101000.00000001.00000001
Wildcard Mask 0.0.0.0 00000000.00000000.00000000.00000000
Permitted IPv4
192.168.1.1 11000000.10101000.00000001.00000001
Address
 Wildcard Mask Types (Cont.)
Wildcard Mask to Match an IPv4 Subnet
• ACL 10 needs an ACE that permits all hosts in the 192.168.1.0/24 network. The
wildcard mask 0.0.0.255 stipulates that the very first three octets must match
exactly but the fourth octet does not.
• When processed, the wildcard mask 0.0.0.255 permits all hosts in the
192.168.1.0/24 network. The resulting ACE in ACL 10 would be access-list 10
permit 192.168.1.0 0.0.0.255.

Decimal Binary
IPv4 address 192.168.1.1 11000000.10101000.00000001.00000001
Wildcard Mask 0.0.0.255 00000000.00000000.00000000.11111111
Permitted IPv4
192.168.1.0/24 11000000.10101000.00000001.00000000
Address
 Wildcard Mask Types (Cont.)
Wildcard Mask to Match an IPv4 Address Range
• ACL 10 needs an ACE that permits all hosts in the 192.168.16.0/24,
192.168.17.0/24, …, 192.168.31.0/24 networks.
• When processed, the wildcard mask 0.0.15.255 permits all hosts in the
192.168.16.0/24 to 192.168.31.0/24 networks. The resulting ACE in ACL 10 would
be access-list 10 permit 192.168.16.0 0.0.15.255.

Decimal Binary
IPv4 address 192.168.16.0 11000000.10101000.00010000.00000000
Wildcard Mask 0.0.15.255 00000000.00000000.00001111.11111111
192.168.16.0/24 11000000.10101000.00010000.00000000
Permitted IPv4
to
Address
192.168.31.0/24 11000000.10101000.00011111.00000000
 Wildcard Mask Calculation

Calculating wildcard masks can be challenging. One shortcut method is to

subtract the subnet mask from 255.255.255.255. Some examples:
• Assume you wanted an ACE in ACL 10 to permit access to all users in the
192.168.3.0/24 network. To calculate the wildcard mask, subtract the subnet mask
(255.255.255.0) from 255.255.255.255. This produces the wildcard mask 0.0.0.255.
The ACE would be access-list 10 permit 192.168.3.0 0.0.0.255.
• Assume you wanted an ACE in ACL 10 to permit network access for the 14 users in
the subnet 192.168.3.32/28. Subtract the subnet (i.e., 255.255.255.240) from
255.255.255.255. This produces the wildcard mask 0.0.0.15. The ACE would
be access-list 10 permit 192.168.3.32 0.0.0.15.
• Assume you needed an ACE in ACL 10 to permit only networks 192.168.10.0 and
192.168.11.0. These two networks could be summarized as 192.168.10.0/23 which
is a subnet mask of 255.255.254.0. Subtract 255.255.254.0 subnet mask from
255.255.255.255. This produces the wildcard mask 0.0.1.255. The ACE would
be access-list 10 permit 192.168.10.0 0.0.1.255.
 Wildcard Mask Keywords

The Cisco IOS provides two keywords to identify the most common uses of
wildcard masking. The two keywords are:
• host - This keyword substitutes for the 0.0.0.0 mask. This mask states that
all IPv4 address bits must match to filter just one host address.
• any - This keyword substitutes for the 255.255.255.255 mask. This mask
says to ignore the entire IPv4 address or to accept any addresses.
4.3 Guidelines for ACL Creation
 Limited Number of ACLs per Interface
There is a limit on the number of ACLs that can be applied on a router
interface. For example, a dual-stacked (i.e, IPv4 and IPv6) router interface can
have up to four ACLs applied, as shown in the figure.
Specifically, a router interface can have:
• One outbound IPv4 ACL.
• One inbound IPv4 ACL.
• One inbound IPv6 ACL.
• One outbound IPv6 ACL.

Note: ACLs do not have to be configured in

both directions. The number of ACLs and
their direction applied to the interface will
depend on the security policy of the
organization.
 ACL Best Practices
Using ACLs requires attention to detail and great care. Mistakes can be costly in terms
of downtime, troubleshooting efforts, and poor network service. Basic planning is
required before configuring an ACL.

Guideline Benefit

Base ACLs on the organizational security This will ensure you implement organizational
policies. security guidelines.

This will help you avoid inadvertently creating

Write out what you want the ACL to do.
potential access problems.

Use a text editor to create, edit, and save all This will help you create a library of reusable
of your ACLs. ACLs.

Document the ACLs using This will help you (and others) understand
the remark command. the purpose of an ACE.
Test the ACLs on a development network
before implementing them on a production This will help you avoid costly errors.
network.
4.4 Types of IPv4 ACLs
 Standard and Extended ACLs

There are two types of IPv4 ACLs:

• Standard ACLs - These permit or deny packets based only on the source
IPv4 address.
• Extended ACLs - These permit or deny packets based on the source IPv4
address and destination IPv4 address, protocol type, source and
destination TCP or UDP ports and more.
 Numbered and Named ACLs
Numbered ACLs
• ACLs numbered 1-99, or 1300-1999 are standard ACLs, while ACLs numbered 100-
199, or 2000-2699 are extended ACLs.

R1(config)# access-list ?
<1-99> IP standard access list
<100-199> IP extended access list
<1100-1199> Extended 48-bit MAC address access list
<1300-1999> IP standard access list (expanded range)
<200-299> Protocol type-code access list
<2000-2699> IP extended access list (expanded range)
<700-799> 48-bit MAC address access list
rate-limit Simple rate-limit specific access list
template Enable IP template acls
Router(config)# access-list
 Numbered and Named ACLs (Cont.)
Named ACLs
• Named ACLs are the preferred method to use when configuring ACLs. Specifically,
standard and extended ACLs can be named to provide information about the
purpose of the ACL. For example, naming an extended ACL FTP-FILTER is far better
than having a numbered ACL 100.
• The ip access-list global configuration command is used to create a named ACL, as
shown in the following example.

R1(config)# ip access-list extended FTP-FILTER

R1(config-ext-nacl)# permit tcp 192.168.10.0 0.0.0.255 any eq ftp
R1(config-ext-nacl)# permit tcp 192.168.10.0 0.0.0.255 any eq ftp-data
R1(config-ext-nacl)#
 Where to Place ACLs

• Every ACL should be placed where it

has the greatest impact on
efficiency.
• Extended ACLs should be located as
close as possible to the source of the
traffic to be filtered.
• Standard ACLs should be located as
close to the destination as possible.
 Where to Place ACLs (Cont.)

Factors Influencing ACL Placement Explanation

Placement of the ACL can depend on whether or

The extent of organizational control not the organization has control of both the
source and destination networks.
It may be desirable to filter unwanted traffic at
Bandwidth of the networks involved the source to prevent transmission of
bandwidth-consuming traffic.
•It may be easier to implement an ACL at the
destination, but traffic will use bandwidth
unnecessarily.
•An extended ACL could be used on each router
Ease of configuration
where the traffic originated. This would save
bandwidth by filtering the traffic at the source,
but it would require creating extended ACLs on
multiple routers.
 Standard ACL Placement Example

In the figure, the administrator

wants to prevent traffic originating
in the 192.168.10.0/24 network
from reaching the 192.168.30.0/24
network.

Following the basic placement

guidelines, the administrator
would place a standard ACL on
router R3.
 Standard ACL Placement Example (Cont.)

There are two possible interfaces on R3 to

apply the standard ACL:
• R3 S0/1/1 interface (inbound) - The
standard ACL can be applied inbound on
the R3 S0/1/1 interface to deny traffic from
.10 network. However, it would also filter
.10 traffic to the 192.168.31.0/24 (.31 in
this example) network. Therefore, the
standard ACL should not be applied to this
interface.
• R3 G0/0 interface (outbound) - The
standard ACL can be applied outbound on
the R3 G0/0/0 interface. This will not affect
other networks that are reachable by R3.
Packets from .10 network will still be able
to reach the .31 network. This is the best
interface to place the standard ACL to
meet the traffic requirements.
 Extended ACL Placement Example

• Extended ACLs should be located as close

to the source as possible.
• However, the organization can only place
ACLs on devices that they control.
Therefore, the extended ACL placement
must be determined in the context of
where organizational control extends.
• In the figure, for example, Company A
wants to deny Telnet and FTP traffic to
Company B’s 192.168.30.0/24 network
from their 192.168.11.0/24 network,
while permitting all other traffic.
 Extended ACL Placement Example
An extended ACL on R3 would accomplish the task,
but the administrator does not control R3. In
addition, this solution allows unwanted traffic to
cross the entire network, only to be blocked at the
destination.
The solution is to place an extended ACL on R1 that
specifies both source and destination addresses.
There are two possible interfaces on R1 to apply the
extended ACL:
• R1 S0/1/0 interface (outbound) - The extended ACL can
be applied outbound on the S0/1/0 interface. This
solution will process all packets leaving R1 including
packets from 192.168.10.0/24.
• R1 G0/0/1 interface (inbound) - The extended ACL can
be applied inbound on the G0/0/1 and only packets from
the 192.168.11.0/24 network are subject to ACL
processing on R1. Because the filter is to be limited to
only those packets leaving the 192.168.11.0/24 network,
applying the extended ACL to G0/1 is the best solution.
4.5 Module Practice and Quiz
 What Did I Learn In This Module?
• An ACL is a series of IOS commands that are used to filter packets based on information
found in the packet header.
• A router does not have any ACLs configured by default.
• When an ACL is applied to an interface, the router performs the additional task of
evaluating all network packets as they pass through the interface to determine if the
packet can be forwarded.
• An ACL uses a sequential list of permit or deny statements, known as ACEs.
• Cisco routers support two types of ACLs: standard ACLs and extended ACLs.
• An inbound ACL filters packets before they are routed to the outbound interface. If the
packet is permitted by the ACL, it is then processed for routing.
• An outbound ACL filters packets after being routed, regardless of the inbound interface.
• An IPv4 ACE uses a 32-bit wildcard mask to determine which bits of the address to
examine for a match.
• A wildcard mask is similar to a subnet mask in that it uses the ANDing process to identify
which bits in an IPv4 address to match. However, they differ in the way they match binary
1s and 0s. Wildcard mask bit 0 matches the corresponding bit value in the
address. Wildcard mask bit 1 ignores the corresponding bit value in the address.
 What Did I Learn In This Module?
• A shortcut to calculating a wildcard mask is to subtract the subnet mask from
255.255.255.255.
• Working with decimal representations of binary wildcard mask bits can be simplified by
using the Cisco IOS keywords host and any to identify the most common uses of wildcard
masking.
• There is a limit on the number of ACLs that can be applied on a router interface.
• ACLs do not have to be configured in both directions. The number of ACLs and their
direction applied to the interface will depend on the security policy of the organization.
• Standard ACLs permit or deny packets based only on the source IPv4 address.
• Extended ACLs permit or deny packets based on the source IPv4 address and destination
IPv4 address, protocol type, source and destination TCP or UDP ports and more.
• ACLs numbered 1-99, or 1300-1999, are standard ACLs. ACLs numbered 100-199, or 2000-
2699, are extended ACLs.
• Named ACLs is the preferred method to use when configuring ACLs.
• Specifically, standard and extended ACLs can be named to provide information about the
purpose of the ACL.
• Every ACL should be placed where it has the greatest impact on efficiency.
 What Did I Learn In This Module?
• Extended ACLs should be located as close as possible to the source of the traffic to be
filtered. This way, undesirable traffic is denied close to the source network without
crossing the network infrastructure.
• Standard ACLs should be located as close to the destination as possible. If a standard ACL
was placed at the source of the traffic, the "permit" or "deny" will occur based on the
given source address no matter where the traffic is destined.
• Placement of the ACL may depend on the extent of organizational control, bandwidth of
the networks, and ease of configuration.