ENTERPRISE-CLASS SECURITY FOR SMALL OFFICE ENVIRONMENTS

The Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance delivers a multi layered defense for small office network environments through rich, integrated security services, including stateful inspection firewall services, advanced application and protocol inspection, site-to-site and remote access VPN, in-line intrusion prevention, and robust multimedia and voice security-all in a single, integrated solution.

Cisco PIX Security Appliances incorporate the state-of-the-art Cisco Adaptive Security Algorithm, which provides stateful inspection firewall services by tracking the state of all authorized network communications and by preventing unauthorized network access. As an additional layer of security, Cisco PIX Security Appliances integrate over two dozen purpose-built inspection engines that perform in-depth Layers 4-7 inspection of network traffic flows for many of today's popular applications and protocols. To defend networks from application layer attacks and to give businesses more control over applications and protocols in their environment, these inspection engines incorporate extensive application and protocol knowledge and employ security enforcement technologies that range from protocol conformance checking, application and protocol state tracking, Network Address Translation (NAT) services, and attack detection and mitigation techniques such as protocol field length checking and URL length checking.

Administrators can easily create custom security policies using the many flexible access control technologies provided by Cisco PIX Security Appliances including network and service object groups, turbo access control lists (ACLs), user- and group-based policies, and more than 100 predefined applications and protocols. By combining these flexible access control technologies with the powerful stateful inspection firewall services and advanced application and protocol inspection services that Cisco PIX Security Appliances provide, businesses can easily enforce their network security policies and protect their networks from attack.

MARKET-LEADING VOIP SECURITY SERVICES PROTECT NEXT-GENERATION CONVERGED NETWORKS

Cisco PIX Security Appliances provide market-leading protection for a wide range of voice-over-IP (VoIP) and multimedia standards, enabling businesses to securely take advantage of the many benefits that converged data, voice, and video networks deliver. By combining VPN with the advanced protocol inspection services that Cisco PIX Security Appliances provide for these converged networking standards, businesses can securely extend voice and multimedia services to home office and remote office environments for lower total cost of ownership, improved productivity, and increased competitive advantage.

FLEXIBLE VPN SERVICES EXTEND NETWORKS ECONOMICALLY TO REMOTE NETWORKS AND MOBILE USERS

Using the full-featured VPN capabilities of the Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance, businesses can securely extend their networks across low-cost Internet connections to mobile users, business partners, and corporate networks worldwide. Solutions supported range from standards-based site-to-site VPN using the Internet Key Exchange (IKE) and IP Security (IPSec) VPN standards, to the innovative Cisco Easy VPN capabilities found in Cisco PIX Security Appliances and other Cisco Systems security solutions-such as Cisco IOS® routers and Cisco VPN 3000 Series Concentrators. Cisco Easy VPN delivers a uniquely scalable, cost-effective, and easy-to-manage remote-access VPN architecture that eliminates the operational costs associated with maintaining the remote-device configurations that are typically required by traditional VPN solutions. Cisco PIX Security Appliances encrypt data using 56-bit Data Encryption Standard (DES), 168-bit Triple DES (3DES), or up to 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption.

INTEGRATED INTRUSION PREVENTION GUARDS AGAINST POPULAR INTERNET THREATS

The integrated in-line intrusion prevention capabilities of the Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance can protect small office networks from many popular forms of attacks, including Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks and malformed packet attacks. Using a wealth of advanced intrusion-prevention features, including DNSGuard, FloodGuard, FragGuard, MailGuard, IPVerify, and TCP intercept, in addition to looking for more than 55 different attack "signatures," Cisco PIX Security Appliances keep a vigilant watch for attacks, can optionally block them, and can provide real-time notification to administrators.

By packing all the same security features found in the other Cisco PIX Security Appliances, the Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance provides the rich, consistent protection that all broadband users look for in an easy-to-use and easy-to-deploy solution.

SIMPLE, HIGH-SPEED SMALL OFFICE NETWORKING

The Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance provides a convenient way for multiple computers to share a single broadband connection via its integrated, high-performance four-port 10/100-Mbps switch. Furthermore, Cisco PIX Security Appliances provide NAT and Port Address Translation (PAT) features to hide the actual network addresses of devices on your network. Users can also enjoy plug-and-play networking by taking advantage of the built-in Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server within PIX, which automatically assigns their computers network addresses when they are powered on. The Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance provides all the features necessary to seamlessly integrate into today's broadband networking environments.

ROBUST REMOTE-MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS LOWER TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP

The Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance is a reliable, easy-to-maintain platform that provides a wide variety of configuration, monitoring, and troubleshooting methods. Management solutions range from centralized policy-management tools to integrated, Web-based management to support for remote monitoring standards such as Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) and syslog.

Administrators can easily manage a large number of remote Cisco PIX Security Appliances using CiscoWorks VPN/Security Management Solution (VMS). This suite consists of several integrated software modules including Management Center for Firewalls, Auto Update Server Software, and Security Monitor. This powerful combination provides a highly scalable, next-generation, three-tier management solution that includes the following features:

• Comprehensive configuration and software image management
• Device hierarchy with configuration inheritance based on "Smart Rules"
• Customizable administrative roles and access privileges
• Comprehensive enterprise change management and auditing
• "Touchless" software image management for remote Cisco PIX Security Appliances
• Support for dynamically addressed appliances

 
Additionally, Cisco offers the CiscoWorks Security Information Management Solution (SIMS), a highly scalable security event management solution that collects, analyzes, and correlates security event data from across the enterprise-enabling you to identify and respond to high priority security events as they occur.

The integrated Cisco PIX Device Manager provides an intuitive, Web-based management interface that greatly simplifies the deployment, ongoing configuration, and monitoring of a Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliance-without requiring any software (other than a standard Web browser) to be installed on an administrator's computer. Intelligent setup and VPN wizards provide easy integration into any network environment, while informative monitoring features, including a real-time dashboard, provide vital device and network health details at a glance.

Alternatively, administrators can remotely configure, monitor, and troubleshoot their Cisco PIX 501 Security Appliances using a command-line interface (CLI). Secure CLI access is available using several methods, including Secure Shell (SSH) Protocol, Telnet over IPSec, and out of band through a console port.