URL/Content filtering, who makes them?

[Devistater]

I'm looking for names of companies that make standalone URL/Content filters. So far I have:
sonicwall
watchguard
servgate
symantec
fortinet
cyberguard

Any others?
Thanks

 

[Woodie]

For home or corporate use? Approximate number of users?

 

[Devistater]

Small non profit organization. 15 users at most for the forseeable future, internet connection is a 1.5 megabit DSL. So the actual bandwidth the device has to process is pretty small. I'm setting up a windows server 2003 setup for them on one of those inexpensive Dell servers that was a hot deal a couple weeks ago. So I'm thinking a standalone appliance is best, I dont care if it does firewall or not. What I'm trying to do is research the possible solutions for them because I'm not that familiar with this area of expertise. So if I could just get some ideas of who makes the stuff, I dont mind calling them and googling more info.

 

[Woodie]

For such a small group, Websense probably is too big.

Many routers provide some blocking...usually by domain name, which requires manual adding for each site you want to block. Given your infrastructure, your best bet would be to look for one of two things:
1. Blocking at the DSL point, which is fairly limited, and the feature set is whatever that manufacturer hard-coded into the router.
2. (Recommended) Find a product that integrates into a proxy server, and configure all your clients to use the server as a proxy. Squid is a freeware proxy, and I know it has plugins for web-filtering. I'm sure there are other proxies, and other addons.

Proxy Solution: Pros:
Single point of management for additions/removals
No need for complex client configuration or licensing
May provide performance improvements from caching web-content
Free solutions available
Scalable if/when the organization grows.

Cons:
May be more complex to configure than client-side tool
Some users may figure how to bypass the proxy, thus bypassing your filtering mechanisms
Steeper learning curve for the admin
Performance subject to server load in some circumstances

 

[Devistater]

Well the problem is that I'm setting them up with a windows server. Thats why I was thinking a standalone hardware appliance. Plus its one of those new inexpensive Dell servers, so I dont want to put too much load on it.

Some of the things I've been looking at run about $500 for the appliance and about $100 a year which is fine. Even it it hits say $800 and $300 a year, I've already talked to the organization and they are willing to pay it.
I'd much rather have some sorta linux box that uses squid and one of the free solutions, but they want windows.

So anyway, I'm trying to research the product line from the manufactures that do this. I dont mind doing the work myself to find out which ones are best, I just dont want to miss some of the companies that make standalone appliances.

 

[Woodie]

List of Applications
Internet Watcher 2000
Privoxy
Squid for Windows
LogiSense engageIP content filter

Squid for Windows will allow to use some of the many plugins/filtering modules...check SourceForge for more in that area. Warning: Not all Squid addons will work w/ the Windows port.