[ale] Helping a friend select Firewall/NAT

[Denny Chambers]

I have not looked at their product listing in quite a while. But a few 
years back I used the linux based WatchGuard VPN firewall, with good 
success.

Byron A Jeff wrote:
> One of the admins on another mailing list I inhabit made the following request:
>
>   
>> Is there a router that is bigger than a SOHO (e.g. Linksys, Netgear) and
>> smaller than a full on Cisco rack mount $K monster? Or does anyone have a
>> Cisco monster just "laying about"? Yeah right! ;)
>>
>> Another of my little linksys boxes (a BEFSR41) has fried and I would like to
>> be able to run 2 or 3 IP addresses off of one more professional router at
>> the office. The current Cisco boxes are a bit more expensive that what I can
>> get the boss to swing for.
>> http://www.pcuniverse.com/product.asp?pid=3858385&m_id=32 ASA 5505 firewall
>> at $600
>>
>> Is there a low hundreds DSL Firewall Router that will support 2 or more IP
>> addresses on the WAN side and NAT and port forwarding on the LAN side?
>>     
>
> I'm sure the standard recommendation would be some older PC hardware, a couple
> of NICs and appropriate (and probably Linux based) software.
>
> Here's the rub: the guy has been burned by Linux boxes three times in the
> past. Each of his setups have been hacked.
>
> So he's understandably a bit gun shy about going down that road again.
>
> So I wanted to know if anyone had any recommendations about software that
> has a reasonable chance of being secure out of the box. He's not a Linux
> guy, so an interface that's in the same ballpark as the Linksys or Ciscos
> would be preferable.
>
> Personally I'm using Smoothwall. I've seen recommendations for IPCop though
> I haven't used it personally.
>
> My admin is a Windows guy. Trusts windows 98 (poor fella!). So any 
> recommendations that are Windows based are also acceptable.
>
> Thanks for anything you can offer,
>
> BAJ
> _______________________________________________
> Ale mailing list
> Ale at ale.org
> http://www.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>
>
>