— Keep It Clean, Recoverable, and Easy to Maintain
Why This Matters
A solid firewall config can take hours to build — but minutes to lose.
Whether it’s:
- A reboot gone wrong
- A bad rule blocking your access
- An upgrade that resets the config
- Or simply forgetting what each rule does…
You need a system to keep your firewall alive, readable, and resilient.
🔁 1. Regular Backups and Exports
📍 Difference Between Backup and Export:
| Type | What it does |
|---|---|
backup | Binary file of full system config (not readable/editable) |
export | Human-readable script you can tweak or version control |
📥 How to Backup:
/system backup save name=firewall_config
You’ll get a file like firewall_config.backup in Files — download it to your PC!
📤 How to Export Firewall Only:
/export file=firewall_export
You’ll get firewall_export.rsc.
You can edit, version in Git, or apply on other routers.
🧼 2. Use Comments Everywhere
Every rule, every address list, every NAT line — must have a comment.
Example:
/ip firewall filter
add chain=input src-address-list=TRUSTED_IPS action=accept comment="Allow remote Winbox"
/ip firewall nat
add chain=dstnat dst-port=443 action=dst-nat to-addresses=192.168.88.100 comment="HTTPS to NAS"
It’s not optional — future you will thank you.
📚 3. Group Rules Logically
Use grouping by chain and purpose, for example:
- Section 1: Input chain
- Section 2: Forward chain (LAN access)
- Section 3: Forward chain (guest/VPN)
- Section 4: NAT rules
- Section 5: Special protections (DoS, brute-force)
- Section 6: Logging and drops
You can even add empty comment rules as section headers:
/ip firewall filter
add comment="=== INPUT CHAIN START ==="
📈 4. Monitor With Logging (But Not Too Much)
Logging is great — until it crashes your CPU.
Tips:
- Only log important drops, like SSH brute-force or port scans
- Use
log-prefix=to easily grep or filter - Use log limits to reduce spam:
add chain=input src-address-list=SSH_BRUTE action=drop log=yes log-prefix="SSH_BRUTE " log-disabled=no
🔒 5. Lock Yourself Out? Here’s the Rescue Plan
If you apply a bad rule and lose access — do one of the following:
Option 1: MAC Winbox
- Connect directly via Winbox using MAC address
- It bypasses IP settings
- Only works in L2
Option 2: Netinstall Reset
- Use MikroTik’s Netinstall to reflash router
- You’ll need physical access and boot from Netinstall server
🧠 6. Pro Tips From the Field
✔️ Use Address Lists for everything — even internal networks
✔️ Document every rule in a .md or .rsc file
✔️ Export rules monthly and save in Git or cloud
✔️ Use scheduled scripts to check config or notify you
✔️ Disable unused services in /ip service
✅ Final Summary
🎯 You’ve now built a fully functional, professional-grade MikroTik firewall with:
- Clear input/forward logic
- Dynamic protection against attacks
- NAT and Hairpin NAT
- Scalable address lists
- Clean, well-commented rules
- Backups, logging, and recovery plans