SonicWall 01-SSC-0651 SOHO Security Appliance with Total Secure 1 Year Licence

Excellent firewall. Very easy to set up and manage compared to other professional level firewalls.I purchased this for my home network because of the extra security of the gateway A/V protection, Gateway Malware protection, and highly customizable and excellent content filtering. Call me a paranoid parent, but for me it was worth a bit more expense to protect my children and their friends who use our internet connection when they visit.It's certainly not for the feint of heart for an average home user, but anyone with experience setting up mid range firewalls (or someone willing to take the time to read the knowledgebase articles at Dell) will have little problem setting up and configuring this device. It takes more time (and will need tweaking) than an average Linksys or Netgear firewall, but it's a different beast compared to those (and offers many, many more features and protections than a basic $75 firewall).If you want to have a solid device for filtering at your internet gateway and want to protect your family from unwanted junk on the internet, this is probably one of the more effective ways to go. Again, it will take tweaking, but it also allows to to specify filtering by device, IP range, or "zones" that you can set up through the internal settings.You can alternatively set up OpenDNS, Sophos, or use another of the free filters out there as alternatives to the content filtering this offers, but this device is very straightforward and offers quite a bit for the price (other filters can be more easily bypassed than this can, and you can seriously lock things down if you dig into the settings). It will require a yearly renewal of the services, but you have the option of only renewing the services you want/need. The main difference between this and solutions like OpenDNS is that this is actual filtering at the gateway monitoring the port traffic (e.g. 80 for HTTP, 443 for HTTPS, etc...) while OpenDNS can be easily bypassed if someone knows what they are doing (or reads how to bypass it on the 'net) by making minor changes to their network configuration (there are actual how-to instructions with pictures to show how to bypass OpenDNS and services like that easily found out there...no kidding. Anyone could follow them). You can even get granular enough to block proxy services with this device.Also make sure to check out the ZyXEL USG series when shopping for devices like this. It's comparable to this in features for maybe a bit less in initial cost of the hardware, but a bit more expensive on the yearly renewals. I've been a Sonicwall fan for years and was pleased to see them offering this at a lower price point. For me, I was willing to pay just a bit more for the Sonicwall device. These are not *quite* consumer level pricing, but close enough that if you know it's the type of thing you want, then it's worth the extra expense.Initial setup took about an hour from unboxing to fully activated and mounted on the wall with screws. You have to create a "My Sonicwall" account to activate the services, but that only takes a few minute and is very streamlined. You also have to fully activate the services through the "My Sonicwall" site before the benefits of the content filer, gateway a/v, and intrusion prevention are fully active. However, again, that only took a few minutes to do and was instantaneous once you activate them (you can immediately begin configuration of the services upon activation...no delay). The more in-depth features should be examined before configuring, but the help sites and documentation are excellent for those that have never done it before. Note that an understanding of networking terms and basic firewall configurations will be helpful in that process, but again, the Dell site provides excellent documentation.For a small branch office or home office, this is excellent (but make sure you size the TZ series for the throughput you need...details on the Dell site), as it also offers the ability to set up a point-to-point VPN between other firewalls easily and securely (especially if the other firewall is also a Sonicwall device). For a standalone home network, it's also excellent but you need to make sure you're ready to take the time to configure it. It's most definitely not a "plug and play" type of device, but more than worth the time and money if you are willing to do it right.

Solid Firewall. Not for the technologically timid though.

For someone with some knowledge of networks and how they work this is a very effective firewall. Very flexible and comprehensive in extended use by someone who knows how to make it tick. Price is reasonable for what it is capable of. There is a simple basic mode that can get the device operational but it is not recommended for novices in anything other than a very simple uncomplicated situation - i.e. if you don't know what LAN and WAN mean then this is not the device for you need unless you are willing to spend time researching or money on having someone remotely setup. Have used Sonicwall for years and have found them to be an effective deterrent if setup properly. Note: you will need to spend $100-$200 per year to keep the virus software updated.

At times, it was a little difficult to follow the documentation. However, if there are any questions on procedures, contact technical support. They were great!

Great product and simply managed at all of our accounts with less than 500 workstations and network devices. Simple network configuration and can be deployed in 30 minutes or less. Advanced configuration can be completed but it takes a little more time unless you have that config file from your enterprise model ;)