1. Introduction

The purpose of this document is to give an overview of the networking capabilities of the Linux operating system. Although one of the strengths of Linux is that plenty of information exists for nearly every component of it, most of this information is focused on implementation. New Linux users, particularly those coming from a Windows environment, are often unaware of the networking possibilities of Linux. This document aims to show a general picture of such possibilities with a brief description of each one and pointers for further information. The information has been gathered from many sources: HOWTOs, faqs, projects' web pages and my own hands-on experience. Full credit is given to the authors of these other sources. Without them and their programs this document would have not been possible or necessary.