[NTLUG:Discuss] Re: firewall/router to protect M$ box

[Robert Pearson]

On 7/15/05, tr_data1 <tr_data1 at ev1.net> wrote:
> ...[snip]...
> If your main box was/is Linux, would you still have a separate machine
> for the firewall/router? I have a k6/233 not being used right now but
> it doesn't seem worth the elec$/heat/space expense vs running on my
> main box. What are the advantages? I can't imagine such a task would
> consume much ram/cpu/disk. Right? Or is it a matter have having all
> the ports, etc more tightly controlled on the firewall/router box?

Take a look at the DFWUUG Wiki site---

http://www.dfwuug.org/wiki/Main/SOHOProtectStrategy

At the bottom of the page under the heading " Enterprise-like SOHO
Protect Strategy"
are two Strategies for SOHO Security---

    * Technology Investor-Harry Newton Jan072005
    * Web Informant-David Strom Jan102005 

My SOHO starts with a Linksys DSL/Router/4 port switch with NAT. 
I have used this DSL/Router on both DSL and Cable without problem.
Maybe I have just been lucky.
I started my SOHO with Windows 2000 and now it is all Linux, SuSE 9.x
and FC4, with Windows 2000 dual booted for legacy apps on a couple of
machines.

In addition, each Windows 2000 machine has always had the free
ZoneAlarm software firewall and Norton (Symantec) AntiVirus before I
retired. The Norton cost has been replaced with free Grisoft AVG
(free.grisoft.com). I have been very happy with Grisoft AVG.

I do updates 2-3 times a week and a complete scan once a week on all
Windows machines.
None of the Windows machines receives email. I use Gmail.

My brother is on a dialup line and lost his Windows 98 machine to a
virus, which I believe came from an infected file. Could have been
email. He had stopped updating his McAfee AntiVirus because it wasn't
free anymore.
He lost his entire Windows XP machine to an Internet based virus.
Microsoft has supposedly fixed this now.

I run the built-in firewall software on all the Linux machines and
they are all behind the Linksys NAT router. I am probably just lucky.
I don't know enough to know if I am protected or infected from
Intrusion-ware.

Stand-a-lone firewalls are more important if you use Linux servers for
Web and email. I run peer-to-peer and use external Gmail. Take a look
at xcssa.org for firewall starter info.

Back of these you may need to look at Spyware and Ad-ware detection
and removal software for the Windows machines.

Another good thing to look at is using "dd" to make backup images of
your Windows machines to your *nix machines. This enables quick
restores.

I have the OS, Apps and User Data physically segregated on all my
machines. There is no permanent User Data on an internal disk. All
User Data is stored on external USB and FireWire drives and replicated
with "rsync" to at least two drives. Historically important but
unused, or very low use, Information is put on a CD, or DVD now.
This is very useful when Windows machines take a hit in the OS
partition. My Windows 2000 OS partition is sized at 6 GB but only
about 3.5-4 GB is used. That is a much faster restore than 10-20 GB of
OS, Apps and User Data. It also boots and runs faster.

"dd" and "rsync" are two of the best friends I have ever had.

Hope this helps some,  Robert