[LBo] help

[Sam Morgan]

Steve Hinsley wrote:

> A NAT router will protect you from attackers because it drops 
> unsolicited traffic. It will be antiquate for most home users. What it 
> will not do is protect your computer from other machines on the LAN. 
> This is an issue if you take a laptop to a wireless hotspot.
> 
> I understood a software firewall to mean something like Smoothwall. 
> While I think you do need something between you and the Internet, a 
> dedicated firewall is over kill for the home user. A NAT router will 
> protect you from the outside.
> 
I agree the NAT will work ok, but....
There is no comparison to the feeling of safety that comes from a separate box 
between you and the internet. I'm speaking of something like IPCOP on a throw 
away P-100 with a gig hard drive and 64mb of ram with 2 nic cards. It's a 1 hour 
setup and then you forget it. Occasional updates and that's it. Everything you 
do behind it is secure. My Zone Alarm on the windows(s) boxes never have any 
hits, except from within my network when I add a new box.

YMMV
Your Mileage May Vary <g>

-- 
God Bless,
Sam Morgan
http://linuxbasics.org
linux the lifetime learning experience