Hello:

I am going to upgrade some servers to Windows 2003.   In the past I have
used Norton Internet Security as a firewall on my server.  With the
situation as it is I don't think a hardware firewall would be a prudent
choice for our particular situation because the main building and network
closets we occupy are shared by several departments and the organizations
that will use the fileservers are in several locations throughout campus.
Additionally with the bandwidth required, a hardware firewall can be very
expensive.

Does anybody out there use a software firewall / IPS or IDS to protect their
Windows 2000 or 2003 servers?

If you do use a software firewall for w2k or w2003 servers:

1.  What do you use?

2.  Can you copy the firewall rules for backup or use on another machine?

3.  Have you used any tools such as performance monitor to determine the
software firewall's affect upon  system resources such as cpu time and
memory?

4.  Does this require a yearly subscription?


Lee Duynslager
Information Technologist
Integrated Plant Systems
Michigan State University

(517) 432-5296