Firewall reccommendation

The SonicWALL TZ150 is a 10 user device and the 170 is I think 25, so the 170 would work and the 150 not. I don't think there's a larger user limit for the 150 in a 25 node version or not. I only know of a 10 node/user version.

I think however the SonicWALL is an awesome choice however for features and price. I own the 150 and

I think is the cheapest, at least that I've seen. I have the subscriptions for support 24x7, gateway antivirus, ips as well. it all works wonderfully in my opinion. the ease of use for the SonicOS is awesome and it's a clean nice interface. soncwall.com and sonicguard.com also have a link to the admin demo you can try. you get the sonicOS enhanced version and can use it online. it's there to show you all the features and how to set up stuff, it even includes the built in help. it's really cool i think. easy to use.

Hi Dwight,

You may wish to investigate the Firewall Appliance Category of Cisco's Product Advisor:

Sincerely,

Brad Reese BradReese.Com Cisco Certified Network Enginner Jobs United Kingdom: 44-20-70784294 U.S. Toll Free: 877-549-2680 International: 828-277-7272 Fax: 775-254-3558 Website:

Sonicwall is better and cheaper however so going to cisco is not that good of an idea. well, i say sonicwall is better only means cheaper and has in my opinion all the features you'd want.

I called sonicquard and the 170 is what makes the most sense. It comes

10,25, unlimited and it is upgradeable from level to the next.

I see watchguard has a similar box in the firebox x15, but it looks like the sonics are easier to configure.

Have you checked out smoothwall, it runs on a single standard garden variety PC, the configuration can be done through the web browser. it can be configured to utilize one, two or three net work cards.

also have a commercial version as well.

DT

Dwight wrote:

Why? Sonic is cheaper and does everything well, everything I'd want. plus the watchguard doesn't do some things that the sonicwalls do. i don't think so. but i forget. they cost way more money tho.

I've used both and would always pick a WG over anything Sonic makes, same for Netscreen. At the same time, a PIX would always be my last choice.

Yeah, I've got a TZ150 and love it, except for a few minor bugs. Support, i have several tickets open for a week plus with no fixes yet. They however have been nice on the phone, but hard to understand so i just get level 2 only which is in the U.S and much better.

Actually Cisco has stuff all features compared to the Sonicwall, Netscreen, and even Watchguard options. If you choose a Cisco product for security these days you're nuts... they were ok in the '90's.

I like the sonics.

That said, I need to qualify it- their soho stuff SUCKS compared to the enterprise level stuff. TZ170, tz150, TZ-anything, soho3, etc - do not use! the firmware for them is almost alwayys buggy, and gets fixed last. The quality of the higher end stuff gets more attention from the developers. If you want a sonicwall, do not get anything less than a pro2040, but i'd recommend at least a pro3060. I have a 4060 here.

Buy their soho stuff and expect to hear an indian accented guy with no idea about anything when you call tech support. Expect them to keep trying to close out any trouble tickets you have open without themn actually resolving them.

Buy the "pro" series with the enhanced OS and you get a completely different experience. Knowledgeable guys that will actually go and check with the developement team for you on the status of bugs, etc. Prompt email responses. Top notch support.

(I have both types of sonic boxes here where I work, so this is from experience)

The intrusion protection is cool (basically a snort like ids built into the box - but it's a seperate subscription), also -- rbl dns blacklist support, live wirespeed virus scanning of tcp streams (comes with the intrusion prevention subscription), ospf support, good integration with

3rd party content filters, etc. Oh, and they now do tagged vlans as well. Each vlan can have it's own security settings / nat / filter rules.

Not a lot of boxes out there with all those features.

But i do NOT recommend the low end (non-pro series) sonics.

I've had issues when Sonic and their support staff. There is nothing I've seen of the Sonic units that WatchGuard doesn't offer, and while the may cost more, cost is relative to function and performance vs how much you're willing to pay for those two.

Yea, WG includes that in a subscription too, depending on the model you may get free for the first year.

I like the WebBlocker functions and I run several subnets behind each DMZ and LAN port, each with their own rules too.

I don't like the PIX from a management point of view, it's so much easier to train a non-technical person on a pretty GUI like the Sonic, Netscreem or even the WG units.

Dwight,

You might want to look at the Nayika firewall model NFW-111L. It compares favorably with the equivalent CISCO firewall (spec wise) but is better priced. It has 2 gigabit ports in case you upgrade your network in future, and can service upto 400 workstations.

Regards,

Nayan.

Dwight wrote: