Types of Network Firewall
Network Firewalls are the devices that are used to prevent private networks from unauthorized
access. A Firewall is a security solution for the computers or devices that are connected to a
network, they can be either in the form of hardware as well as in form of software. It monitors
and controls the incoming and outgoing traffic (the amount of data moving across a computer
network at any given time ).
The major purpose of the network firewall is to protect an inner network by separating it from
the outer network. An inner Network can be simply called a network created inside an
organization and a network that is not in the range of an inner network can be considered an
Outer Network.
Packet Filters
It is a technique used to control network access by monitoring outgoing and incoming packets
and allowing them to pass or halt based on the source and destination Internet Protocol (IP)
addresses, protocols, and ports. This firewall is also known as a static firewall.
Stateful Inspection Firewalls
It is also a type of packet filtering that is used to control how data packets move through a
firewall. It is also called dynamic packet filtering. These firewalls can inspect that if the packet
belongs to a particular session or not. It only permits communication if and only if, the session is
perfectly established between two endpoints else it will block the communication.
Stateful Inspection Firewalls
Application Layer Firewalls
These firewalls can examine application layer (of OSI model) information like an HTTP request.
If finds some suspicious application that can be responsible for harming our network or that is
not safe for our network then it gets blocked right away.
Application Layer Firewall
Next-generation Firewalls
These firewalls are called intelligent firewalls. These firewalls can perform all the tasks that are
performed by the other types of firewalls that we learned previously but on top of that, it includes
additional features like application awareness and control, integrated intrusion prevention, and
cloud-delivered threat intelligence.
Read about Differences between Traditional Firewall and Next Generation Firewall
Next-generation Firewalls
Circuit-level Gateways
A circuit-level gateway is a firewall that provides User Datagram Protocol (UDP) and
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) connection security and works between an Open Systems
Interconnection (OSI) network model’s transport and application layers such as the session layer.
Circuit-level Gateways
Software Firewall
The software firewall is a type of computer software that runs on our computers. It protects our
system from any external attacks such as unauthorized access, malicious attacks, etc. by
notifying us about the danger that can occur if we open a particular mail or if we try to open a
website that is not secure.
Software Firewall
Hardware Firewall
A hardware firewall is a physical appliance that is deployed to enforce a network boundary. All
network links crossing this boundary pass-through this firewall, which enables it to perform an
inspection of both inbound and outbound network traffic and enforce access controls and other
security policies.
Hardware Firewall
Cloud Firewall
These are software-based, cloud-deployed network devices. This cloud-based firewall protects a
private network from any unwanted access. Unlike traditional firewalls, a cloud firewall filters
data at the cloud level.
Cloud Firewall
Hardware Firewall vs Software Firewall
A hardware firewall is a separate physical device placed between a network and its connected
devices. It monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on set security
rules. In contrast, a software firewall runs on a server or virtual machine. It operates on a
security-focused operating system, typically using standard hardware resources.
Both hardware and software firewalls are important for network security. The choice between
them depends on specific needs and deployment contexts.
Read more about Difference between Hardware and Software Firewall.
Working of Firewalls
Firewalls can control and monitor the amount of incoming or outgoing traffic of our network.
The data that comes to our network is in the forms of packets(a small unit of data), it is tough to
identify whether the packet is safe for our network or not, this gives a great chance to the hackers
and intruders to bombard our networks with various viruses, malware, spam, etc.
Capabilities of Modern Firewalls
Since they were first created, firewalls have been a key part of network security. As technology
has advanced, so have the capabilities and methods of deploying firewalls.
With these advancements, many different types of firewalls have emerged, making the options
sometimes confusing. Different firewalls serve different purposes, and one way to differentiate
them is by looking at what they protect, their form, where they are placed in the network, and
how they filter data.
Organizations might need various types of firewalls to ensure effective network security. It's also
important to remember that a single firewall product can include multiple types of firewall
functions.
How to Prevent Network Traffic?
A network firewall applies a certain set of rules on the incoming and outgoing network traffic to
examine whether they align with those rules or not.
If it matches then the traffic will be allowed to pass through your network.
If it doesn't match- then the firewall will block the traffic.
Which Firewall Architecture is best?
There is no as such best firewall architecture. The choice of firewall architecture for any network
depends upon its use cases, requirements, budgets etc. In our network if we are having threat at
Application layer then Application layer firewall can be best. If we are having threat at session
layer then circuit level gateways can be best.
Read about Firewall Design Principles.
Advantages
Monitors Network Traffic : A network firewall monitors and analyzes traffic by
inspecting whether the traffic or packets passing through our network is safe for our
network or not. By doing so, it keeps our network away from any malicious content that
can harm our network.
Halt Hacking: In a society where everyone is connected to technology, it becomes more
important to keep firewalls in our network and use the internet safely.
Stops Viruses : Viruses can come from anywhere, such as from an insecure website,
from a spam message or any threat, so it becomes more important to have a strong
defense system (i.e. firewall in this case), a virus attack can easily shut off a whole
network. In such a situation, a firewall plays a vital role.
Better Security: If it is about monitoring and analyzing the network from time to time
and establishing a malware-free, virus-free, spam-free environment so network firewall
will provide better security to our network.
Increase Privacy: By protecting the network and providing better security, we get a
network that can be trusted.
Disadvantages
Cost: Depending on the type of firewall, it can be costly, usually, the hardware firewalls
are more costly than the software ones.
Restricts User: Restricting users can be a disadvantage for large organizations, because
of its tough security mechanism. A firewall can restrict the employees to do a certain
operation even though it's a necessary operation.
Issues With The Speed of The Network: Since the firewalls have to monitor every
packet passing through the network, this can slow down operations needed to be
performed, or it can simply lead to slowing down the network.
Maintenance: Firewalls require continuous updates and maintenance with every change
in the networking technology. As the development of new viruses is increasing
continuously that can damage your system.