Firewalls

Firewall

        When it comes to firewalls there are three main firewalls to look at. The first is network layer firewalls, second is application layer firewalls, and third is proxy firewalls.  To protect a network the best, understanding firewalls is the best way.

        First thing is network layer firewall and how it protects a network. A network layer firewall will make its security decisions on the sources address, destination address and ports in individual IP packets. The simplest router is the network layer firewall and does not make any complicated decisions about the data packets and who they are talking to.

        Secondly an application layer firewalls are hosts to the proxy server and does not permit traffic directly between networks. An application layer firewall will do elaborate logging and examinations of all traffic passing through. An application layer firewall can be used as a network addressing translator. The application layer firewalls offer layer 7 security on a small level, but may help in getting more out of other network devices.

        Lastly a proxy firewall is a more secure form of firewalls but it is all so very slow and can limit what applications are supported by a network. Traffic does not flow through a proxy firewall. A computer will establish a connection to a proxy (an intermediary) initiates a network connection this way. Preventing direct connections between systems and makes it harder for attackers to discover the networks whereabouts.

        The proxy firewall is the most efficient way to protect a network. This is because it creates a network connection that makes it hard for attackers to find the actual network connections. If I had a choice I would try to initiate all three firewalls in my WAN to get the best security available.