Configuring Your Firewall in 5 Easy Steps

This post will explain configuring your firewall in 5 easy steps. A firewall acts as the first defense your computer has. It is an essential part of network security. While you may think configuring your firewall may be difficult, it is not if you break it up into simple steps. This will allow you to understand and make the project manageable. 

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Steps For Configuring Your Firewall

Step One: Secure 

If anyone gains access to your firewall you are going to be in trouble. Your network is not secure if someone hacks into your firewall. The first thing you should make sure NEVER to do is put your firewall up when it is not secured properly. Here are a few things you should do before you put your firewall into action. 

• Update your firewall. 
• Make sure you are deleting any accounts and make sure all passwords are not default passwords. Create your own secure passwords. 
• If you are having multiple people use the computer, set up access based on needs. Do not allow everyone to have administrative access. 
• Make sure that you are turning off your SNMP or simple network management protocol. 

Step Two: Architect Zones/IP Addresses 

Make sure that you are evaluating what the assets are. This could be patient information and payment information. Make sure that you are planning your network. You want to ensure that all assets are grouped in similar zones or sensitivity levels. 

Keep in mind that the more zones that you make, the more secure your system will be. Also note, adding more zones will require more management. You must be careful determining how many zones to use. Once you have finished designing, you are ready to create a firewall. 

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Step Three: Access Control List

You have now established your zones and assigned them to designated interfaces. Now you need to control who has access to these zones. 

Make sure that you are securing your internet and firewall by not allowing guests to use the web. This will make sure that you are not receiving any outside interference. 

Access control lists or ACLs are going to be what is used to permit certain people access to certain things. You should make your access control lists specific to each source. When you create an ACL, you should make sure to include a deny all rule. This will filter anyone who is not supposed to have access to that information. Inbound and outbound access control lists are going to be used to only allow people who are approved for specific zones. 

Step Four: Configure 

You can configure your firewall. Your firewall can be capable of many things. This includes a dynamic host, network time protocol, and even more. Make sure that you are enabling the services that you wish to use and disabling the ones that you do not wish to use. 

To ensure requirements are met, ensure that you are configuring your firewall to report to the administrator when someone is logging into sensitive information. You must make sure that they satisfy requirements 10.2 to 10.3. This is found under the PCI DSS requirements. 

Step Five: Test it Out! 

You should make a test environment. Then you should verify that the firewall works the way you want it to. Do not forget to ensure that the firewall is blocking out those who are not permitted to see certain information. If they are allowed to see the information, go back and set your access control lists.  When you are testing your firewall, you should be testing how vulnerable the system is and if it can be hacked into easily. Test how easy it is to penetrate the system. 

If you have tested your firewall and everything works how it should, you are all set to set up your firewall for production. Ensure that you are saving a backup of the configurations of your firewall. Make sure that you are saving this information in a safe place that will not be destroyed if the hardware fails. 

Remember! 

Keep in mind that this is a short overview to allow you to better understand the major steps when configuring a firewall. For this process, you may be watching tutorials and reading items to make your firewall work. If you decide to configure your firewall yourself, it is best to have an expert of security review and ensure that your data is safe. If you skip this, you may be putting yourself at risk. 

Wrapping Up: Configuring Your Firewall In 5 Easy Steps

When it comes to configuring your firewall and network equipment installation, make sure that you are following the steps above. If you do not want to deal with the process, you can contact Network Data Cabling. They will help you with all your firewall needs and any other wifi issues you may be facing. Make sure that you are calling people who know what you are talking about and how to do the job. Calling Network Data Cabling will ensure that you are well taken care of.