SEC.01

The playbook

The run starts read-only: the recon probes decide what happens next. The steps that follow are adapted to the distribution and state found — a real machine is rarely clean.

  1. 01reconthe distribution: apt (Debian/Ubuntu) or dnf (RHEL/Fedora/Rocky/Alma)
  2. 02reconnftables present?
  3. 03reconfirewalld or UFW active → STOP (do not stack two firewalls)
  4. 04reconexisting tables (docker, f2b, crowdsec, servor_filter) — the recipe leaves them alone
  5. 05reconthe effective SSH port(s) (sshd_config or ssh.socket on Ubuntu ≥ 22.10) — this port must stay open
  6. 06reconTCP/UDP ports listening publicly (WireGuard, games… to add or flag)
  7. 07reconnumber of established SSH sessions to preserve (adjust the port)
  8. 08reconfile loaded at boot: /etc/nftables.conf (Debian/Ubuntu) or /etc/sysconfig/nftables.conf (RHEL)
  9. 09actInstall nftablesverify
  10. 10actWrite and validate the Servor rulesetverify
  11. 11actArm the safety net (auto-removal in 10 min)verify
  12. 12actApply the rulesetdestructiveverify
  13. 13actLoad at bootverify
  14. 14actDisarm the safety net (after checking SSH access)verify

SEC.02

What it verifies

Each step ships its own check. The run only moves on when the check passes, so what the recipe reports as done is what is actually on the server.

  1. 01Install nftablesVerified bynft --version
  2. 02Write and validate the Servor rulesetVerified bynft -c -f /etc/servor/nftables-servor.nft && echo ok
  3. 03Arm the safety net (auto-removal in 10 min)Verified bysystemctl is-active servor-fw-guard.timer
  4. 04Apply the rulesetVerified bynft list chain inet servor_filter input | grep 'tcp dport'
  5. 05Load at bootVerified bynft -c -f /etc/nftables.conf && systemctl is-enabled nftables
  6. 06Disarm the safety net (after checking SSH access)Verified bysystemctl is-active servor-fw-guard.timer

SEC.03

Guardrails

Non-negotiable instructions the run must respect, whatever it finds on the server.

The effective SSH port MUST be in the ruleset, and established,related accepted (agent outbound tunnel). STOP if firewalld or UFW is active. Never nft flush ruleset nor systemctl restart nftables: only touch the servor_filter table. Always nft -c before applying, safety net armed before apply, disarmed only after verification.

SEC.04

Variables

What you choose before launching — the recipe fills in the rest.

NameMeaning
${ports}Public TCP ports to open (besides SSH)

SEC.05

How a recipe runs in Servor

Servor is zero-knowledge: the platform cannot execute anything on its own. When you launch this recipe, a run reads the reconnaissance, plans the steps and asks for your approval. Each approved command is signed by your browser — with a key the server never sees — then relayed verbatim to the agent, which verifies the signature locally before executing.

recipe — fail2ban_setup150+ in catalogue
security4 steps · low risk · idempotentrun
reconsshd present? ufw active? existing jails?✓
actinstall fail2ban · write default jails✓
actenable service · restart sshd (safe)✓
verifytest ban 60s · jails active · sshd alive✓

search by intent — type “firewall”, get ufw

  • 01Read-only reconnaissance before any change
  • 02Every command signed by your browser, approved by you
  • 03Each step verified before the run moves on, every run kept in the history

SEC.06

Deploy on Servor button

Maintain nftables firewall or a project that needs it? Put this button in your README or on your site: one click and your users install it on their own server.

Deploy on ServorDark background
Deploy on ServorLight background
[![Deploy on Servor](https://servor.app/badges/deploy-on-servor.svg)](https://servor.app/deploy/nftables-baseline)

SEC.07

Verified recipe

Run this recipe on your server

Connect a server, launch the recipe, and approve each step as Servor executes and verifies it. Free plan, no card required.