Firewall - Windows 2000 Server

[madhouse]

I dunno if this the right place to post this question so I apologise now if it is.....

Basically I am looking at setting up a dedicated Windows 2000 server to host multiple domain names. Now I'm fairly new to all this as I have only ever used hosting companies to host my domain names, but I think it would be cost efficent to now have my own dedicated server.

My question is regarding security, which I have been reading about a lot over the past few days. When it comes to firewall software solutions, is it necessary to go for one of those "server/enterprise" packages that cost $300+, or would a normal personal firewall software solution do the job? It seems the "server solutions" are aimed at companies who have more than one server with X number of users working on each server. I will just have the one server, and all development work will be done elsewehere and then moved onto the Windows 2000 server when ready.

Any help in this area would be appreciated (plus any other security aspects I should be looking at).

 

[wbg34]

A soho firewall i.e. cisco pix 501 should work fine. I may be wrong but my understanding of the licesing is that the concurrent user licenses apply to your internal network not to external connections. So determine how many computers you would have on your internal network and get the firewall with the appropriate amount of user licenses.

 

[madhouse]

Sorry I should have mentioned, the Windows 2000 Server will be housed in a software house building so I will not physically have access to the server. Hence why I was looking for a firewall software solution as opposed to a firewall hardware solution.

It maybe that a firewall is not what I need. All that I am looking for is some means of monitoring and preventing hackers from attempting to "break" into the server. As I said before, I'm new to all this security on Windows Servers, so help would be appreciated.

 

[dput]

I think you should probably look at a hardware based firewall. You should also be aware that you will need to make sure your security is set up properly on the Server and make sure you stay current with all patches. We used to host our own website, but after 4 years I have decided that a hosted solution will meet our needs much better. You will find hackers probing your server trying to find a way in and unless you are very vigilant, you will get burned.

A Firewall should be a must on your list.

Good luck.

Dan

 

[madhouse]

I must admit that a hardware based firewall would be the best solution, but as I don't have access to the server the only means of securing it is by a software based firewall.

 

[ahalecitrix]

I'll just throw this out there, but even if you must go with a software based firewall, I would highly, highly, highly recommend that it not be running on the same physical box as your web site. I unfortunately don't have personal experience with a software firewall solution that I can recommend.

With that said, I'll throw my recommendation for a hardware firewall solution. Look at the NetScreen products. They are one of the best firewal appliances on the market in my opinion.

http://www.netscreen.com