NGFW

What is NGFW?

NGFW (next-generation firewall) is an application-layer security device that integrates the functions of traditional stateful firewalls and unified threat management (UTM). The next-generation firewall owns the capability of conventional firewalls, including package filtering, state inspection, NAT, VPN, etc. Also, it adds advanced security features such as application and user identification and control, intrusion prevention, etc. Compared to UTM, NGFW utilizes an integrated engine rather than overlaying multiple security engines, making NGFW faster processing efficiency, higher performance, more functionalities, architecture agility, and scalability.

What are the Functions of NGFW?

A product to be viewed as NGFW must have the following capabilities:

The Functions of Traditional Firewalls

NGFW must forward compatible with the primary function of traditional firewalls, including package filtering, protocol state inspection, application proxy technology, NAT, VPN, etc.

Application Identification and Control Technology

NGFW can detect network applications to achieve visibility and control of applications, including Web applications, file sharing, and instant messaging.

User and Terminal Device Identification Technology

To identify user and terminal devices, then access and control them according to their identity, permissions, device status, etc.

Content Filtering Technology

It enables NGFW to filter network traffic, including URLs, file types, protocols, keywords, etc.

Threat Intelligence Technology

Grab global threat intelligence (such as blacklist, malware, vulnerabilities) in real-time to quickly respond to network attacks.

IPS and Firewall In-depth Integration

NGFW, the IPS-integrated firewall, supports IPS and in-depth integration with firewalls. It is smarter to automatically update and issue security instructions once IPS detects malicious traffic.

NGFW vs Traditional Firewall vs UTM

The following table lists the security capabilities of NGFW vs. Traditional Firewall vs. UTM.

NGFW supports all the above features. UTM does not support parallel processing of security threat services. Traditional firewalls do not support service features and security threat service parallel processing.

What are the Applications of NGFW?

Next-generation firewalls are widely deployed in network security fields by enterprises, governments, and cloud service providers. They are applied for:

Secure access control: Control the access authentification of different users and terminal devices to guarantee network security.

Application control: Identify and control various network applications to guarantee the proper allocation and utilization of network resources.

Threat detection and response: Inspect the network traffic in real-time, and quickly feedback on network attacks to decrease network threat.

Logging and auditing: Record information such as network traffic, user behavior, and security issues to provide clues for safety audits.

VPN access: VPN access guarantees the secure access of remote users.