3
1
Planning and Overview
This chapter provides an overview of the 3Com Embedded Firewall (EFW) and its basic
components, concepts, and operations. It also provides general information to assist you
in planning the best configuration for your site. This chapter contains the following topics:
■
“What is the 3Com Embedded Firewall (EFW)?” below
■
“EFW Architectural Components and Concepts” on page 5
■
“Overview of EFW Operations” on page 9
■
“EFW and Your Network” on page 10
■
“EFW System Security” on page 11
■
“Planning Your Configuration” on page 14
What is the 3Com Embedded Firewall (EFW)?
EFW is software that applies security policy enforcement (packet filtering) capabilities to
all traffic transmitted from and received by individual server and desktop (workstation)
machines. NICs running EFW software (called
EFW devices)
enforce policies in the EFW
system. The following devices currently support EFW:
■
3Com Server 10/100 PCI NIC with 3XP (models 3CR990SVR95 and 3CR990SVR97)
■
3Com 10/100 PCI NIC with 3XP (models 3CR990-TX-95 and 3CR990-TX-97)
EFW software provides transparent packet filtering in accordance with rules that are set
up by an administrator. The rules are defined through a centralized Management Console,
and are communicated to EFW devices via the Policy Server. The figure on the next page
demonstrates security organization using EFW.
NOTE:
The model numbers listed above are NICs that support DES and 3-DES
encryption, respectively. The EFW Policy Server automatically adjusts its level of
encryption to match that of the devices it is managing.
