Introduction

This chapter will introduce you to the SonicWALL firewall product. We ll begin by looking at all of the SonicWALL security products, exploring the wide range of products available, and allowing you to determine which is best suited for your security needs. A well-designed and properly implemented security infrastructure must be multitiered. SonicWALL offers three separate security product lines (discussed shortly) that can help mitigate your security risks.

SonicWALL delivers an integrated firewall and virtual private network (VPN) solution, the SonicWALL firewall. The firewall product line has several tiers of appliances and systems. This allows you to choose the right hardware for your network, giving the precise fit for your needs. Recently, SonicWALL also introduced a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) VPN appliance. The SSL-VPN appliances offer a clientless remote access solution. With a clientless VPN approach, you remove the need for software deployment and management of the remote clients. You can easily deploy the SSL portal to thousands of users in mere hours. This is a great boon to any organization.

SonicWALL also offers a Content Security Manager. This appliance helps protect your network from a wide range of threats, including viruses, worms, Trojans, and spyware. It also provides URL (Uniform Resource Locator) filtering to block illicit or questionable websites.

We ll also be looking at the core technologies of the SonicWALL firewalls. These are the frameworks that are used through out this book. This discussion will give you an idea of the features of the SonicWALL firewall and will prepare...