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Need computer advice

B

bryan_h

FOG bryanh, Original member #427!
I recently moved to a new house and had to get hi-speed internet access. The computer room has no phone line, so I went the broadband cable route. In my old house I had DSL and never had any problems. Last night I had 4 different computers try to get into my machine. I have Zone Alarm Pro running,and it caught the scans, but I want to get a hardware firewall as a just in case. I am running Win XP and have the Motorola Surfboard SB5100 cable modem. Any suggestions as to what brand or type of firewall to get? I dont need anything wireless, and probably not more than 4 ports. TIA!
Bryan :thumbs:
 
I run a linksys and love it. They have a few options.... single port, multi port, and multi port with wireless. I went the multi with wireless so my laptops can use wireless cards and be used anywhere around the house.

There are other quality brands, but I prefer the linksys since it is owned by cisco (big networking name).
 
Yep Linksys is the way to go I have a befsr41 linksys router you can get them
really cheap now a days. check ebay. I picked mine up new for around 20.00
or so

jason
 
I'll add my voice to the Linksys products. However, just because your Zonealarm goes off doesn't mean you are under attack. Just a ping will register as a probe so take the ZA info with a grain of salt.
 
Linksys is what I was looking at. I didnt know that they were owned by Cisco. I may return the Motorola modem and get Linksys modem and firewall.
AVB- ZA messages stated that out of the 4 hits that only one was a probable attack attempt. I just found it weird that with over 2 years on DSL I never got any kind of probe, but now with cable I got 4 in one night.
Thanks everyone for the help!
Bryan :thumbs:
 
I will also add a :thumbs: for the Linksys router.

You will still need the modem from your cable company.

That is your connection to the web.

The modem plugs into the router and the router is your hardware firewall.
 
I have a Linksys router as well and never have any issues with it. As geldor said you will still need your Motorola modem. The Linksys is a router not a modem.

Good Luck
 
I know I will still need a modem, i bought the Motorola last week. But I like the way the Linksys products stack, so I will return the Motorola and get both the modem and firewall from Linksys. :D
The cable people tried to tell me that it would be better to rent the modem from them for $7 per month rather than buy my own. :angry: No Way!
Bryan :thumbs:
 
I am going to break from the status quo and recommend a Netgear router. Linksys would definitely be my #2 choice. Either way if you are really concerned about security, spend the extra money for a Firewall router that uses SPI (Stateful Packet Inspection) instead of one that simply relies on NAT (Network Address Translation). The Netgear Product that is 4 Port with SPI is FR114P and runs $74 from NewEgg. The LinkSys model that has SPI is BEFSX41, which runs $72.50.

Either of these will suit you well, and besides basic firewall features will stop DDOS, smurfs, spoofs, etc.

Matt
 
txmatt said:
I am going to break from the status quo and recommend a Netgear router.
Click to expand...
I have dealt with a few Netgear routers before and have had some issues with them. Not a bad product but not as user friendly as the Linksys
 
If you're interested, I can get a wired Linksys Router for you for $54.95. Comes NIB with my 2 year warranty.

Let me know,
Dave ;)
 
Dave - What kind of price can you make me on the Linksys BEFCMU10 and the BEFSX41? I think this combo should work nicely.
Bryan :thumbs:
 
bryan_h said:
Dave - What kind of price can you make me on the Linksys BEFCMU10 and the BEFSX41? I think this combo should work nicely.
Bryan :thumbs:
Click to expand...
Why the BEFSX41? It is the same as the BEFSR41 but includes a VPN Endpoint. If you do not need the VPN functionality just go for the BEFSR41 for $20 less

You can get the BEFCMU10 and the BEFSR41 for $100.98 shipped
 
From what Ive been reading the BEFSX41 is the first Linksys product to really get the SPI right. Some others have it, but most reviews agree that the older routers performs better with SPI off. Id rather have the one that works than the one that doesnt. I built my PC myself and I dont want to risk its security. An extra $20 wont kill me. Thanks though!
Bryan :thumbs:
 
bryan_h said:
Dave - What kind of price can you make me on the Linksys BEFCMU10 and the BEFSX41? I think this combo should work nicely.
Bryan :thumbs:
Click to expand...
Give me a day or two (it's the weekend, it may be tough to get ahold of my supplier) to put together a quote for you. I'll see what I can do.

Dave ;)
 
bryan_h said:
From what Ive been reading the BEFSX41 is the first Linksys product to really get the SPI right. Some others have it, but most reviews agree that the older routers performs better with SPI off. Id rather have the one that works than the one that doesnt. I built my PC myself and I dont want to risk its security. An extra $20 wont kill me. Thanks though!
Bryan :thumbs:
Click to expand...
This is why I reccommended the NetGear first.

Netgear has always had SPI right. If you are really worried about security or have had a 12 year old DDOS you offline because you are beating him at a FPS game, you will appreaciate having the SPI. If you are really concerned about security SPI is a "real" firewall instead of "sortof" a firewall as NAT is.

As Brian pointed out, the BEFSX41 is the first Linksys to do SPI right without big performance hits; in the past with LinkSys you had to choose between performance and security - the BEFSX41 seems to be getting have it right now.
The Netgears have been doing SPI right for 4+ years now, and the price of these products have dropped from $250+ back then to the $70 range now. I see no reason to buy a $40 is NAT router when you can have a SPI router in the $70 range - especially since he doesn't require WiFi.

As another reader pointed out the configuration of NetGears isn't quite as easy as LinkSys but I think any semi-competant person should be able to figure it out. But since the BEFSX41 doesn't take the performance hit, is a bit easier to configure, and a couple bucks cheaper it would be a good choice as well.

Brian, I would use the Surfboard modem still though - there is no reason to buy another cable modem unless you really want them to match in external appearance. The motorola surfboards are top notch cable modems.

Matt
 
Thanks Matt!
Really the only reason I was going to get the Linksys is that they look good together, plus if I ever have any problems I wont have to go through the tech support loop: (calls Linksys)"Its the modem, call Motorola" ??? (calls Motorola)"Its your router, call Linksys" :angry: . Id really rather have them be the same company, just for simplicity purposes.

Dave - Thanks, I'll be looking for your quote!
Bryan :thumbs:
 
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