Cisco Systems Secure PIX Firewall 506

The PIX 506 provides a simplified PIX Firewall with two 10BASE-T Ethernet interfaces, 32MB RAM memory, and 8MB of Flash memory. The RAM and Flash memory are not upgradeable, which provides a low-cost firewall that works well in corporate intranets or small businesses. Supports all PIX Firewall functionality except failover.

The Cisco Secure PIX Firewall 506 is part of the Cisco Secure PIX Firewall series, providing today's networking customers with unmatched security, reliability, and performance. It delivers full firewall protection, as well as IP Security (IPsec) Virtual Private Network (VPN) capabilities which allows you to rigorously protect your internal network from the outside world.

The Cisco Secure PIX Firewall 506 is designed for companies that are leveraging the cost advantages of the Internet and allowing employees to work remotely. It specifically targets organizations where engineers, developers and other so-called "power users" are maintaining multiple computers that connect back into the corporate network through Internet Service Providers (ISPs) or VPNs.

The PIX 506 offers an unprecedented level of security protection. At the heart is a protection scheme based on Adaptive Security Algorithm (ASA), which offers stateful connection-oriented firewalling. Stateful security is less complex and more robust than packet filtering. It also offers higher performance and is more scalable than application-level proxy firewalls. ASA tracks the source and destination address, Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) sequence numbers, port numbers, and additional TCP flags of each packet. Access is permitted through the Cisco Secure PIX Firewall series only if an appropriate connection exists to validate passage. This gives organizations transparent access for internal and authorized external users, while protecting internal networks from unauthorized access.

Secure VPN Interoperability with IPsec:
Firewalls have traditionally provided perimeter security by maintaining stateful control of all connections between connected network segments. Today, more and more customers are looking to the firewall for VPN services in addition to access control. With a VPN, remote users or distributed branches can securely access corporate networks at low cost. Using the Internet for access dramatically reduces the telecommunications costs associated with previous leased-line or other dedicated networks. Companies also no longer need to maintain large modem banks and access servers---a large capital outlay and administrative headache---to handle remote dial-in users. With just a local phone call to an ISP, users can securely access private corporate intranets over the Internet.

The PIX 506 enables secure private communications over the Internet or any IP network. It integrates key features of VPNs---tunneling, data encryption, security, and firewalling--- to provide a secure, scalable platform to better and more cost-effectively accommodate remote-access, remote-office, and extranet connectivity using public data services. The PIX 506 can connect with up to four VPN peers simultaneously, and provides users with a complete implementation of IPsec standards. IPsec ensures confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity. For secure data encryption, Cisco's implementation of IPsec supports both the 56-bit Data Encryption Standard (DES) and 168-bit Triple DES algorithms. Delivering up to 6 Mbps of 3DES performance, the PIX 506 comfortably integrates into any broadband environment.

Key Features and Benefits:
Allows businesses to extend a cost-effective, seamless network infrastructure to the branch office
Simple to install and configure, resulting in little network downtime
Non-UNIX, Secure, Real-Time, Embedded System
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