How important are flexibility and a rich feature set to you? If these elements are your top considerations, then the Astaro Security Gateway should be high on your short list. With roots in the Linux world, the Astaro is a serious firewall with serious capabilities for a distributed enterprise UTM box.
Although not a top performer by any stretch, the system truly stood out because of its kitchen-sink take on features, including proxies, cache, server load balancing, destination NAT, routing, bridging, packet filters, IDS/IPS functions, anti-virus, anti-spam, and so on. Along with a Web GUI not tied to any particular browser, this system has a bit of extra security with user and admin log-ins on different TCP ports.
[ Read the overall results of the InfoWorld Test Center's great UTM challenge. Read the other reviews: SonicWall NSA E7500 | WatchGuard Firebox Peak X5500e | ZyXel ZyWall USG1000 | Compare the UTMs feature by feature. ]
Most products in the UTM category reward careful study before the management interface is touched. WatchGuard, in particular, requires a fair amount of planning before deployment because of its whitelist approach to traffic flow (you start by allowing all outbound traffic). For the Astaro, though, our suggestion is to try clicking on stuff; there are lots of buttons and widgets that give you access to features.
An upside, this method of learning is likely to expand your concept of what the system can do for you. The downside is that it tends to expose drawbacks in the user interface. One that threw us for a bit was the side-by-side red/green button that served to turn interfaces on/off. We were expecting it to be merely an indicator and not a button. If you're one of the many men who are somewhat color-blind, you'll want to pay very close attention to starting states and make sure you keep track of what you've done, since the green and red buttons won't really help you.
| Test Center Scorecard | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |
| 15% | 15% | 15% | 15% | 15% | 15% | 10% | ||
| Astaro Security Gateway ASG425 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7.3 Good |
This whitepaper explains the terminology and concepts behind Data Replication technologies and establishes some sizing rules through worked examples. Learn the new paradigm in disaster tolerance—protect data anywhere.
Download now »
Server virtualization is a popular option for dealing with mounting datacenter costs. Another equally promising approach is the use of an Application Delivery Controller. Citrix NetScaler provides a low-cost way for organizations to reduce their server count and accrue cost savings from a reduction in space, cooling, power and personnel.
Download now »
The emergence of WLANs has created a new breed of security threats to enterprise networks.
Included in HP ProCurve WLAN solutions is security technology that alleviates threats from WLANs through:
* Monitoring wireless activity inside and out of the enterprise
* Classifying WLAN transmissions into harmful and harmless
* Preventing transmissions that pose a security threat to the enterprise network
* Locating participating devices for physical remediation
Effectively address data protection challenges, implementing solutions that help store and protect business–critical data while cutting costs and improving efficiency and reliability.
Download now »
Sign up to receive InfoWorld Resource Alerts
This white paper provides guidance on how to develop a strategic approach to managing and monitoring logs, a key function required for compliance with many regulatory mandates and a critical defense against security threats.
Download now! »
Learn about the processes and technologies that support security information management (SIM) operations, as well as the business case for SIM. The series examines different options for implementing SIM and gives you evaluation criteria for selecting the best option for your organization.
Download now! »
Learn the strategies, actions, and capabilities that Best-in-Class organizations employ and technologies they choose to obtain superior performance against various security performance metrics. This report provides guidelines for identifying which security solutions to consume as a MSS and defines best practices for choosing and managing MSSPs.
Download now! »
34 Recommendations
