As discussed in our article “Why Build a Linux Firewall“, there are many advantages to having a custom-built firewall appliance in your home. While these Linux distributions are easy to set up and have nice User Interfaces, they still have some problems. Not every feature of Linux is exposed in the GUI, so while these firewalls are [...]
Post Tagged with: "Computer networking"
Linux Firewall Part 5: The GUI Interface
Now that you have IPcop installed, you need to configure it. IPcop provies you with a web interface in which you can configure nearly all of the settings of your new firewall. To connect, just open up any web browser, and connect to the IP address you set up when you installed the software. The [...]
Why Ethernet Needs Jumbo Frames
Whether or not Gigabit Ethernet (and beyond) should support frame sizes (i.e. packets) larger than 1500 bytes has been a topic of great debate. With the explosive growth of Gigabit ethernet, the impact of this decision is critically important and will affect Internet performance for years to come. Most of the debate about jumbo frames [...]
Building a Linux Firewall Part 1: Why?
There’s no doubt that the internet today is more powerful than ever… and great power demands great responsibility. There are threats everywhere that you need to protect yourself, your family, and your hardware from. Not only do you have to worry about hackers, viruses, and spammers, but you need to worry about sexual predators and inappropriate content for [...]
Linux Firewall Part 4: Installation
For the purposes of this turotial, I am making several assumptions. I am assuming that your green network is 192.168.1.x and your orange network is 192.168.15.x. If you want a different network config, then modify as necessary. If you already have an Internet Router that you’re intending to replace, I recommend some prep-work to make things [...]
Bigfoot Xeno Network Card First Look
Every person on the internet has experienced lag… the feeling of frustration while waiting for something online. It’s not that big a deal when waiting for a download or web page, but can be absolutely critical when playing an online PC game. Humans can perceive less than 16 milliseconds of delay (60fps is equal to 60hz, [...]
7 Most Common Packet Sniffer Mistakes
1) Believing the “Intelligence” of the Software without understanding how it makes determinations. Software default settings are very seldom correct for YOU. For example, a device may say that a SQL server should respond in 50ms. But, if that device is across a WAN with a 200ms ping time–that is highly unlikely. This causes false [...]
What Firewalls Do and What Firewalls Don’t Do
Over the last few years, security threats to companies have grown and altered dramatically and so have the defences. Traditional firewalls, installed over three years ago, are often not best suited for current threats and don’t protect against a number of newer threats. What firewalls do A firewall is a system designed to prevent unauthorised [...]
D-Link DI-604 Broadband Router Review
It happens to the best of us—too many devices demanding easy access to the internet and each other. Yes, wireless is here and wonderful, but sometimes it’s just easier to use a wired connection. A modem is woefully inadequate once you have more than a mere computer seeking a meaningful connection to the outside world. [...]
How To Secure Your Broadband Connection
This is a subject that comes up a lot with my clients. The answer is not as straight forward as it may seem. There are a lot of factors that can effect this. Some of them are as follows: Your router: If you signed up for Verizon DSL in the last year, you probably received [...]
SMC Gigabit Equipment
Network speeds are ever increasing and have been doing a good job for the most part keeping up with other computer technologies. 1000BASE-T, commonly refered to as “gigabit Ethernet” is approximately 10 times faster than 100BASE-T which has been used for years now. The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) defines standards for electronics, [...]
SMC 802.11g wireless network kit
I recently received a total wireless networking package from SMC featuring a router, PCI card, and PCMCIA card for a laptop. SMC is a company that’s been around for a long time, but some of you may not have heard of them. That’s OK though – networking companies rarely hold the same status among modders [...]
Enermax UC-A07FATR2 Front Panel
Since the acceptance of USB and Firewire, consumers have found themselves with a plethora of new gadgets and gizmos to clutter their desktop, furthering the tangle of cords behind their PCs. Vendors have started supplying front panel connectors to their cases, adding functionality and convenience to their products. Companies have started adding more features into [...]
SMC 802.11b wireless network kit
Wireless networking is becoming more and more prominent everyday with new technology and products emerging very quickly. Most of America now is ditching their slow dial up connections for fast broadband connections like cable and DSL. The problem with these connections is that they are hard wired and if you want to hookup multiple computers [...]
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