Cisco's PIX family security appliances and ASA Series firewalls integrate next-generation firewall, intrusion defense, and Virtual Private Network features in a cost-effective, one-cabinet format. Both product series deliver powerful client and application policy enforcement, mutlivector assault defense, and secure access features. The enhanced knowledge sharing of consolidated security services in a stand-alone platform offers users implementing these integrated solutions the advanced of enhanced protection, lower cost of ownership, and smaller operational expense.

Cisco PIX firewalls and the ASA 5500 family join IOS Firewall, the FWSM for Catalyst 6500 switches, and Cisco 7600 Series routers as components of Cisco's flexible, self-contained firewall line. Engineered with an expandable, building-block platform, every offering is designed with a specific feature set to provide better protection to different network environments. These solutions can be individually installed to secure specific facets of the network environment, or can be grouped for a systematic, defense-in-depth approach based on the design best practices described in Cisco's SAFE Blueprint. Completing the integrated firewall solutions, Cisco has developed a complete security management offering, ranging from Cisco security device and IOS security components and built-in appliance controllers, to standalone management programs, helping to ensure that businesses can productively manage their Cisco protection solution investments.

Cisco PIX Firewall Appliances
The popular Cisco PIX firewalls offer reliable user and application policy enforcement, multivector attack defense, and secure connectivity services in affordable, easy-to-deploy solutions. These specialized devices provide a wealth of integrated protection and connectivity services such as state-of-the=art application-aware firewall services, market-leading Voice over IP (VoIP) and multimedia protection, robust site-to-site and remote-access IP Security VPN connectivity, fault tolerance, intelligent networking features, and flexible administration options. The PIX Security Appliance Series family ranges from compact plug-and-go devices for small and home offices to stackable gigabit appliances with superior investment protection for enterprise and service-provider environments, Cisco PIX firewall appliances deliver high levels of security, performance, and reliability for network environments of any size.

PIX firewall appliances deliver a variety of configuration, tracking, and analysis features, giving businesses the flexibility to use the methods that most closely match their needs. Management solutions range from common, policy-based administration tools to integrated Web-based administration to support for remote-tracking standards like Simple Network Management Protocol and syslog. The integrated ASDM system offers a powerful Web-accessible control solution that greatly simplifies the deployment, ongoing modification, and monitoring of a single Cisco PIX firewall without the need of any additional software other than an ordinary Web browser and Java plug-in to be running on a manager's computer. Administrators can furthermore remotely configure, track, and troubleshoot PIX firewalls via a command-line interface. Protected command-line interface communication is possible through a number of methods, including SSHv2 Protocol, Telnet over IPSec, and out-of-band via a console port. Cisco PIX firewall appliances also include robust automatic-update capabilities, a set of revolutionary secure remote-management options that ensure firewall settings and software images are kept current. In addition, PIX firewall appliances are supported by a number of setup and monitoring tools available from Cisco AVVID partners.

Cisco ASA Firewalls
Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances 5500 Series Firewalls are specially engineered solutions that bring together advanced, best-of-breed security and VPN services plus an innovative, flexible architecture. The result is a robust, versatile network protection appliance better able to protect small and midsize company and enterprise networks and, simultaneously, reduce the overall installation and operations costs of this new degree of protection.

Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances 5500 Series firewalls deliver robust application protection through intelligent, application-sensitive inspection engines that examine traffic at Layers 4-7. The result is a safer network including Web, voice, and mobile wireless access. To protect environments against application-layer assaults and to offer organizations more policing of the programs and protocols used in their networks, these inspection engines integrate extensive application and protocol knowledgebases and rely on protection enforcement technologies such as protocol anomaly sensing and state tracking. Also incorporated are assault sensing and mitigation technology such as application and protocol command filtering and URL deobfuscation. Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances 5500 Series firewall inspection engines also provide control over instant messaging and tunneling applications, allowing organizations to police usage policies and free up bandwidth for important business processes.

While improving network security, Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances (ASA) 5500 Series firewalls also lower installation and support costs. By offering extensive Virtual Private Network and protection services, the Cisco ASA 5500 Series firewall can be used as the single device for many environments, allowing platform commonality. The Cisco ASA firewall can be deployed as a consolidated threat-prevention device at a central location by leveraging its access control, application inspection, and malware mitigation capabilities. The Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances 5500 Series firewall can also be deployed as a dedicated remote access device utilizing its VPN capabilities. Alternatively, the Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances firewall performs equally well in the network interior for interdepartmental connectivity control and to guard against malicious assaults inside users may unknowingly release into the network. In small company and branch office networks, the Cisco Adaptive Security Appliances firewall serves as an all-in-one platform providing complete threat defense and VPN services while suiting the cost structure and performance demands of these situations. This versatile single-device, multiple-solution design lowers the number of devices that must be deployed and managed while providing a common operating and management system throughout all those installations. This architecture simplifies the education of setup, monitoring, troubleshooting, and protection personnel. To further minimize operations expenses, Cisco ASA firewalls are also highly network conscious, allowing them to integrate gracefully into the environment without interfering with legitimate data flow and applications.

How Progent Can Help You with Cisco PIX and ASA Firewalls
Cisco's PIX family security appliances and Cisco ASA 5500 Series adaptive security appliances provide a wealth of configuration, monitoring, and analysis features that give you the ability to set up these firewalls to match your company's needs. Progent's CISM and CISSP authorized network security consulting can assist you to develop a security strategy that makes sense for your situation and can configure your security appliance to enforce your protection strategy. Progent's CISA-qualified IS security audit consultants and GIAC-qualified IT security experts can evaluate the effectiveness of your current firewall solution and audit the overall security of your whole information system environment. Progent can also troubleshoot your security appliances both remotely or in person, and can educate your in-house IT maintenance staff to set up and maintain your firewalls.

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