Cisco 871 Router & SonicWall Firewall

S

smalltrader35

I am looking for a top end wired router/firewall combo. I have been advised by my network administrator to buy the Cisco 871 router and a SonicWall Firewall TZ200. I have searched the forums but didn't get much info on these 2 models. I am told I should run the router into the firewall. Do I really need the firewall since the Cisco has the usual NAT, SPI etc? How reliable are the Cisco and SonicWall products? I am fed up with the low end routers that I've had that are just not reliable. They go down at anytime. I want reliability, security and peace of mind when trading. Can anybody here provide some insight as to the pro's and con's of both the Cisco routers and the SonicWall firewalls? If any of the hardware specialists here have any suggestions on any other products I be happy to listen.

Thank you
 
Quote from smalltrader35:

I am looking for a top end wired router/firewall combo. I have been advised by my network administrator to buy the Cisco 871 router and a SonicWall Firewall TZ200. I have searched the forums but didn't get much info on these 2 models. I am told I should run the router into the firewall. Do I really need the firewall since the Cisco has the usual NAT, SPI etc? How reliable are the Cisco and SonicWall products? I am fed up with the low end routers that I've had that are just not reliable. They go down at anytime. I want reliability, security and peace of mind when trading. Can anybody here provide some insight as to the pro's and con's of both the Cisco routers and the SonicWall firewalls? If any of the hardware specialists here have any suggestions on any other products I be happy to listen.
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Why do you need a router and a firewall? Any firewall should have all the routing features you need. I would be interested in knowing why your net admin recommended buying both.

I recommend going with a Cisco ASA firewall. Its what I run at home facing my ISP. Here's the lowest end-model ($400) : http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.aspx?EDC=1065037
 
Pricey but got a good review

http://www.amazon.com/Cisco-CISCO87...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1254249840&sr=8-1

Not much on SonicWall but I can't imagine you need this unless you are storing Pentigon secrets

http://www.amazon.com/SonicWALL-Tot...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1254250164&sr=1-2



Quote from smalltrader35:

I am looking for a top end wired router/firewall combo. I have been advised by my network administrator to buy the Cisco 871 router and a SonicWall Firewall TZ200. I have searched the forums but didn't get much info on these 2 models. I am told I should run the router into the firewall. Do I really need the firewall since the Cisco has the usual NAT, SPI etc? How reliable are the Cisco and SonicWall products? I am fed up with the low end routers that I've had that are just not reliable. They go down at anytime. I want reliability, security and peace of mind when trading. Can anybody here provide some insight as to the pro's and con's of both the Cisco routers and the SonicWall firewalls? If any of the hardware specialists here have any suggestions on any other products I be happy to listen.

Thank you
More...
 
Quote from smalltrader35:

I am fed up with the low end routers that I've had that are just not reliable. They go down at anytime. I want reliability, security and peace of mind when trading.
More...

What kind of connection do you have?

High-end router does not make any sense unless you have more than 1 internet connection. NAT simply means that you are firewall-ed :-) Trust me, a cheap NAT router ($40 max) should be more than enough for your need. My favorite is Linksys.

I'm not a system/network administrator but they usually come to me when they are stuck somewhere.

- Su
 
I've used a sonicwall for years. They are VERY reliable - but can be daunting to set up if you're not used to dealing with routers and understand technology.

I just upgraded to the first model in the NSA series - I needed to upgrade because I got a superfast internet connection and the TZ series could not keep up when their UTM (unified threat management) stuff is turned on. I noticed though that the current TZ line can now handle up to 50 MBPS when UTM is turned on so that should be good enough for you. The TZ200 handles up to 35 MBPS. Above 50 (which is available on the TZ210) you'll have to jump to the NSA 240.

In other words, the sonicwall is a great higher-end firewall and router and should do the job admirably without having to jump all the way up to CISCO pricing levels. The TZ200 has 5 ports on it. One will go to your WAN and the other four can go to one or more switches or directly to your computers. If you have 4 or less computers no need for the switch.

Hope this helps.

-eLindy

PS: PM me if you want the name of my vendor. He'll ship to you and, if you need configuration services will charge by the hour to walk you through by phone.
 
Why do you need a router and a firewall? Any firewall should have all the routing features you need. I would be interested in knowing why your net admin recommended buying both.

Thx for the prompt responces.

I think he is trying it on to be honest. Trying to sell me equipment that I don't need. Given the current economic climate that doesn't surprise me. He told me that the Cisco router is totally reliable and shouldn't go down and that I cannot just run the SonicWall firewall on its own without the Cisco router. That sounds like a load of crap to me. Am I right in thinking this? Can I or can't I just hook up my broadband connection directly to the SonicWall without a router and use this as my router/firewall? He also want €350 for setting up this combo. Is this overpriced for a Cisco guy? My main concern is if the router/firewall goes down I will be in limbo untill he gets to me to fix it. From your experience how reliable are the Cisco products? Do I still need Anti-Virus & Software Firewall protection in addition to just the Cisco router? I wouldn't need either with both the Cisco and SonicWall right?
 
I also forgot to mention that I am running 2 ADSL2+ connections into the one PC. Does the Cisco/SonicWall work with any type of adsl connections? My old adsl routers wont work with the new ADSL2+ Lines.
 
ciscos very rarely if ever go down. i have one that has been running for years and years that has never gone down except for power outages. you do need to learn how to program IOS to be able to configure the router, which can take a long time.

a good router matters a lot if you open many connections at the same time. junk routers will crash under the load and will have to constantly reboot them.
 
Which option would I be better going with, the Cisco 871 router or the actual SonicWall hardware firewall? Which one of these 2 products has the best reliability, performance and protection for my trading rig?
 
Quote from smalltrader35:

I think he is trying it on to be honest. Trying to sell me equipment that I don't need. Given the current economic climate that doesn't surprise me. He told me that the Cisco router is totally reliable and shouldn't go down and that I cannot just run the SonicWall firewall on its own without the Cisco router. That sounds like a load of crap to me. Am I right in thinking this? Can I or can't I just hook up my broadband connection directly to the SonicWall without a router and use this as my router/firewall? He also want €350 for setting up this combo. Is this overpriced for a Cisco guy? My main concern is if the router/firewall goes down I will be in limbo untill he gets to me to fix it. From your experience how reliable are the Cisco products? Do I still need Anti-Virus & Software Firewall protection in addition to just the Cisco router? I wouldn't need either with both the Cisco and SonicWall right?
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Cisco products are rock-solid and if the code tends to be the same between the low-end and high-end products in the same family so if you buy the 5505 firewall you are running the same code as the enterprise class firewalls costing tens of thousands.

IMO you should still run anti-virus even with a firewall, a software firewall is not necessary.

With regard to router vs firewall, a firewall will have all the routing capabilities you need but a router with a some firewall features will not be as robust as a real firewall.

Many folks think that a cheap linksys router/firewall with NAT is all the protection you need. I strongly disagree but this isnt the forum for discussing the technical details of what the difference is between a $30 linksys and a $500 cisco asa (or sonicwall).

So if you are only going to get one thing (which I recommend) get a firewall, not a router.

Quote from smalltrader35:
I also forgot to mention that I am running 2 ADSL2+ connections into the one PC. Does the Cisco/SonicWall work with any type of adsl connections? My old adsl routers wont work with the new ADSL2+ Lines.
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The device wont care about the type of ISP connection, your ADSL2+ modem should have an ethernet output that you connect to your router or firewall - the device itself will not accept an ADSL2+ connection directly. If you need to be able to team or bond two connections together to act as one you should make sure that the device you buy supports it.
 
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