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SonicWall Looks to Protect the Enterprise with the NSA 3500

Anyone who has worked with network security products should be very familiar with the name SonicWall, a vendor that has been shaking things up in the small and midsize business world for some time. Now, SonicWall is looking to shake things up in the enterprise security market as well with its NSA series of products. […]

Written By

Frank Ohlhorst

Mar 25, 2008

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Anyone who has worked with network security products should be very familiar
with the name SonicWall, a vendor that has been shaking things up in the small
and midsize business world for some time. Now, SonicWall is looking to shake
things up in the enterprise security market as well with its NSA series of
products.

The NSA series combines multicore processing and high bandwidth capabilities
to make a UTM (Unified Threat Management) security appliance that can keep up
with the demands of a larger network. Currently, the product line consists of
six models, ranging from the entry-level NSA 3500 to the super-high-performance
NSA E7500. Models with the E prefix are specifically designed for larger
enterprises, while the non-E models are aimed at the SME (small and medium
enterprise) market.

In terms of basic features, all of the NSA security appliances are very much
alike. All of the NSA units combine UTM protection for enterprise-class
networking and IP Security VPN. The NSA Series units all use the SonicWall deep
packet inspection architecture, which offers real-time detection and protection
through a suite of services that include gateway anti-virus, anti-spyware, intrusion
prevention, anti-spam and content filtering. What’s more, a common management
interface makes the NSA units easy to manage, the company said.

SonicWall provided eWEEK’s Channel Labs with an NSA 3500 for review, and we were
impressed by the ease of setup offered by the unit. From the outset, SonicWall
has placed top priority on ease of use, and that commitment is evident through
the unit’s setup wizards and quick start guides. The company also provides comprehensive
PDF-based documentation on how to set up and manage the product. The
documentation includes a plethora of illustrations, screen shots and diagrams to
help make most any custom setup a snap to perform. The unit’s browser-based
interface is equally clear and very concise.

Neophyte administrators will be able to quickly
set up basic policies, rules or VPN connections while more advanced
administrators will be able to drill down deeper into the management interface
and fine-tune those same rules and policies. Usually, when a security appliance
integrates so many options, the unit tends to be difficult to manage and
monitor. SonicWall’s redesigned management interface overcomes those problems
by offering a clear path via tabs to each of the unit’s capabilities.

SonicWall Looks to Protect the Enterprise with the NSA 3500

Frank Ohlhorst

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