Firewall and site blocking questions

[docabel]

I am trying to decide on the best router/firewall for my small office of 9 networked PCs. I have two questions for everyone...

1) Thoughts or recomendations on the best router/firewall. Currently, as above, I have 9 PCs networked through several Linksys 5 port switches. I am looking for something reliable and fairly easy to set up... I have heard that some routers enable you to distribute the amount of bandwidth each workstation is able to use, is this true? Do any of the routers/firewalls enable you to scan/screen for viruses, or do you need to keep anti-virus software installed on each PC?

2) Any software, etc. that would limit the sites that everyone is visiting or be able to limit the downloading of MP3s etc.

 

[Nightfall]

It depends on how you are connecting to the internet. I would recommend getting a hardware router/firewall myself. They are the most secure and will be the easiest to set up. If you have Cable/DSL access at work, then you can get a Linksys cable/dsl router that will also function as a firewall. There are other manufacturers of routers and firewalls out there that you can use. Yes, there are some hardware firewalls/routers that do enable you to put a priority on bandwidth. My 8 port linksys cable/dsl router has that feature and it does work as advertised. I don't know of any routers/firewalls that scan for viruses. Your best bet is to purchase Norton Antivirus for all your workstations and servers. That will make sure you cover yourself.

As for software you can use to block or limit sites people can go to...some hardware firewalls/routers enable you to do this. Cisco for example supports this, but it isn't the easiest to set up. Another option you can go with is Wingate or Microsoft ISA server which acts as a proxy server for all your clients. You can specify what sites are allowed and not allowed with this software.

Hope this gives you some info.

 

[spidey07]

You could look at sonicwall products. These are a little more feature packed offering virus scanning and content filtering.

generally you get what you pay for however, the features you're asking for don't come cheap.

http://www.sonicwall.com/products/access.asp