If you have been tuning into our “Tips for Choosing the Best Firewall” series, welcome back! Hopefully you now have a great understanding of what a firewall means to your small business and what to expect during the process of purchasing a firewall. We are now on the third and final segment, and we are happy to provide you with details regarding specific firewalls that we believe are great options for small businesses. After discussing features that exhibit best practice in the last segment, we have selected a few firewalls from reputable vendors that are suited for small business and contain these features. Today, we will be highlighting firewalls from Sophos, Cisco, Sonicwall, and Watchguard. The firewall models that we selected are ideal for companies that have 50 or fewer network users and are looking for a cost-effective yet feature rich firewall solution. These are also just a few of the firewalls that NeQter Labs supports in our NIST compliance solution. So let’s get to it!
Sophos SG 135W
The first firewall that we will highlight is the Sophos SG 135W firewall. Sophos firewalls are always a great option because they offer various methods of deployment. These include installing their firewalls as a software, hosting a cloud solution, or obtaining a traditional hardware appliance. All of the Sophos XG series firewalls come with optimal performance and efficiency, built in SSD for storing local quarantine data and logs, add-on connectivity options, free Sophos Central to manage multiple appliances, and an optional redundant power supply. This particular firewall model has built in wireless, and is a great firewall option for small businesses with around 50 employees. If you are considering a Sophos firewall or another Sophos product, NeQter Labs is proud to be a verified Sophos reseller, so please read on to find out how we can assist you in choosing the right protection for your company.
Cisco Meraki
Another great firewall vendor is Cisco, who has been an established and revered player in the industry for years. Cisco is known for providing superior border protection through their next-gen ASA model firewalls. The model that we have chosen to highlight is the Cisco Meraki MX65/MX65W firewall, which provides additional unified threat protection on top of its next-gen firewall functionality. This security device allows for analyzing network traffic up to layer 7, the application layer, and controls evasive, encrypted, and peer-to-peer applications. The Cisco Meraki also features an intrusion detection and intrusion prevention system, or IPS/IDS, protecting your entire network against advanced malware and threats. Cisco’s Meraki MX65 and MX65W firewalls are perfect for small businesses with 50 employees and under.
SonicWall
Another firewall that NeQter Labs’ recommends for small businesses is SonicWall’s Entry Level Firewall. This firewall offers a wide variety of features including, but not limited to, intrusion prevention service, gateway anti-virus, anti-spyware, content & URL filtering, SSL inspection, 24×7 support, etc. This firewall also features the option to enable secure mobile connectivity, which is becoming increasingly prevalent and can be a headache for a business of any size to manage. The specific model that we recommend for companies that have 50 employees and under is the TZ400, which includes built in wifi. This allows you to save money while still getting a great firewall that will support all of your users.
Watchguard
The last firewall recommendation we have is the Watchguard Firebox T70 or M200. These models are ideal because they offer a variety of features, as well as allowing for easy deployment methods and maintenance. A consideration that often goes overlooked is the simplicity of deployment, but having an easy deployment method is extremely important! You want to be able to easily set up your appliance and run it on your own, without having the need to hire someone to do it for you. Another great quality about Watchguard is that if you have an extremely small business, you don’t have to pay for a firewall that is meant for hundreds of users. Watchguard’s Firebox T70 and M200 ensure that you pay for what you are going to use, as they are both meant for companies with up to 60 users at a reasonable price point.
Stop Stressin’, We Got You Covered
Even though we have have tried to narrow the playing field by breaking down the selection to only four options, choosing between the four can still be difficult! If you are still confused or hesitant about which firewall your company should choose, do not worry. NeQter Labs is more than happy to assist you in figuring out your protection needs by finding a firewall that works best for you. Choosing a firewall doesn’t always have to be a stressful process, so why make it one? Please reach out to one of our tech experts today by contacting us at [email protected].