Dear All,
I want to protect my company's network against attacks, because we are now connected to a public network through a Cisco Router 805 series (Planning to use a Cisco 1800 series. We are network of 50 users.
I want a suggestion as to whether to go for a Firewall Device / Software. which one is recommended?
There are many firewall devices that are out there. The Cisco ASA 5505 would be a good choice for a company of your size and they are not all that expensive. Sonicwall makes a popular line of products as well. I have installed both, but I am partial to the Cisco. The disadvantage of the Cisco is a steeper learning curve. The sonicwall has a very friendly user interface, and if you do not have the resources to have the pix installed it may be better choice. If you are purchasing an
1800 ISR (Integrated Services Router) the HISEC package is an option that includes a stateful firewall, vpn, and the capbilities of the PIX. When I was consulting I had begin to direct many of my customers that direction.Free version
Use the commercial version for bigger business installations that require more support.
GUI administration is awesome and simple, very secure firewall. Base install of the free version can run on old 486 hardware just fine, the more plugins installed the more speed and memory may be needed. Mostly if using content filtering uses a lot more memory since loaded into memory upon startup. I have the free version running with Dansguardian plugin for content filtering and ClamAV plugin for virus scanning on a
400mhz machine with 512mb memory with three network connections and it screams. one network that connect with DSL modem running PPPoE, one network for a DMZ and the other network for internal. Handles DHCP and also ties into most dynamic DNS providers for those without a static IP for DNS services. this is the typical setup I use for most installations.Check it out.
Mohamed wrote:
Take a look at Fortigate UTM devices at
Hi Mohamed,
You may wish to investigate the Cisco Product Advisor:
http://64.224.10.185/sbnd/child/1.0/index.asp and finally the Cisco Solution Designer:
Brad Reese
2007 Cisco Salary RatesCabling-Design.com Forums website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.