[ale] recommendations for a..... standalone Linux security firewall...

[Charles Shapiro]

I'm a big phan of SentryCD ( http://www.sentryfirewall.com/ ) , although I
think it's moribund at the moment. It's CD-based but runs boot scripts off a
floppy drive so you can load custom packages or configure it for your
hardware.

I use a couple of same-brand NICs mounted in an el-cheapo used Pentium 2 box
which a buddy of mine fobbed off on me when I took some other hardware I
wanted more from him. I think it has 128MB of memory, which is plenty for
what I'm doing.  You can probably buy an equivalent one at some place like
MicroSeconds ( http://www.microseconds.net/?page=AboutUs&set_location=GA )
for less than $100 if absolutely necessary. Tearing the HD out and running a
CD-based distro will lower your power requirements and keep things quieter
-- definitely an asset in a house where you're paying for heat, cooling and
power.  Plus I think it makes the system more durable. I run the actual
hardware 24/7 on a UPS and eventually the power-supply poops out. When that
happens I spend a couple of hours transferring the NICs and reconfiguring
the software and I'm back on the air. A box run in this fashion usually
lasts 3-4 years for me.

My wireless network is set up with coova ( http://coova.org) on a WRT54GL
connected behind my firewall. I'm still workin' out some details on this,
but it's functional and (reasonably) secure I think. I'm running an open
hotspot with a terms of service page, but coova also has a variety of other
authentication options which might be useful depending on your
circumstances. Much khouler than Linksys's shipped software, yet easier to
configure than raw OpenWRT can be. And I'm with Bruce Schneier  ( (
http://www.wired.com/politics/security/commentary/securitymatters/2008/01/securitymatters_0110)
on offering a cup of internet  to my neighbors.

-- CHS


On Wed, Nov 5, 2008 at 9:19 AM, Jim Lynch <ale_nospam at fayettedigital.com>wrote:

> Geoffrey wrote:
> > Courtney Thomas wrote:
> >
> >> Greetings !
> >>
> >> I want to use a standalone Linux box, possibly running from a CD and
> through
> >> which all must pass, at least from the internet, that will be a firewall
> for
> >> my home LAN. But if running from a CD gains nothing, forget it. I have
> >> several older idle boxes if they'd suffice. I can also go wired or
> wireless,
> >> and am receptive to any setup.
> >>
> >> What recommendation(s) do you have for such a box, please ?
> >>
> >
> > Smoothwall
> >
> >
> Just curious, do you have to have a system with two NICs to run a
> firewall? From a security standpoint, it make sense but is it a
> requirement?
>
> Thanks,
> Jim.
> _______________________________________________
> Ale mailing list
> Ale at ale.org
> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mail.ale.org/pipermail/ale/attachments/20081105/449e7cce/attachment.html