Hardware Firewall advice

[dotman]

I've got a client who has a business that has two computers in the office. One running POS software to process credit cards and the other for email and office tasks.

He's working on becoming PCI compliant and needs to segment the two boxes and setup some outbound traffic rules. He'd like to keep the cost below $500 and preferable one with a GUI for easy configuration of those rules. He shouldn't need an IDS (intrusion detection scan) which usally ups the price and would probably include a subscription fee.

Any advice on model and make, or where I could find good info on one that would do the job? I've heard of cisco, sonic wall, juniper and Fortigate. Thanks.

dot.

[bhaveshp]

Our Juniper SSG-5 firewall should fit the requirements nicely. Has a nice Web UI for firewall rule configs.

/disclaimer yada yada yada ;-)

[M A V I C]

Having someone who can properly configure the firewall is more important than the model of firewall.

[ztirffritz]

Setting up a firewall correctly is not easy. I've used Cisco PIX firewalls and they were rock-solid, but a pain to configure. Watchguard Firebox is much easier to configure and just about as solid.

[Buzz]

MAVIC not speak w/ forked tongue... he (or she) who administereth firewall more important cog than actual firewall being administered. look into available support for all models under consideration.

[dotman]

Thanks,

looking at the ssg-5. they have a support plan and the firewall supports our needs. Any other suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

dot.

[Filliam H. Muffman]

A corollary to what M A V I C said: a Linux box acting as a firewall with the right person running it is superior to any hardware firewall. If you have the right person, a $100 PC is all you need.

If you pay for a hardware firewall and do not have your own geek to set it up and tweak it as needed, you might want some sort of support contract where you get a guaranteed response time. Paying for a contract and then having to wait a week for someone to show up can really kill productivity. Try to find out how a company responds when there is a problem.