Trend Micro Network VirusWall Enforcer 2500

Managing security at the edge of the network is a tricky problem. Firewalls, anti-virus, anti-spam - these are the tools of a modern security administrator and with them; they are expected to keep the network running. For desktop computers, servers and infrastructure components that can be classed as fixed equipment, the standard of security and protection is constantly on the rise. While the battle is far from won, it is not as hopeless as it is sometimes painted.

However, attacks still take down networks and this is a costly process. The issue is why and how do you deal with the cause.

One of the biggest causes is determining what the edge of the network actually is. Another is ensuring that computers are properly patched and protected against known attacks.

Simply implementing a policy to prevent personal computers or indeed any form of electronic device being used in the office is just not practicable. So the solution needs to ensure that anything connecting to your network conforms to your security policies. This is where Trend Micro are positioning its latest appliance.

The Network VirusWall Enforcer 2500 is a hardware appliance that is used to segment your network and monitor all the computers that are connected to it. If a computer is detected that does not conform to your patch or security requirements, it is designed to bring the computer into line or isolate it from the network. While the latter might seem a little harsh, the costs of repairing the network and cleaning a virus outbreak far outweigh any concerns people might have.

Do not confuse the Network VirusWall Enforcer 2500 with a simple firewall appliance. Its primary function is to check and validate machines connecting to your network

The Network VirusWall Enforcer 2500 is a rack mount 1U hardware unit. It ships with power leads, network cables, a serial cable for initial configuration and a rack mounting kit. There are also some manuals and software.

The box is a bright red colour and the front has a small LED screen with a set of light and the ability to do limited functions from the front panel. The reset button is easily located on the front so if anything happens, you do not need to go round the back or pull it out the rack. There are five Ethernet 10/100/1000 ports, of which port 5 is used for managing and updating the appliance. There is a PCI-X slot on the front for plug-in cards although none were supplied for the review.

The back has a USB port, RS-232 (serial) connection and the power connector. There is a UID LED on the back that lights up when you press the UID button on the front of the box. This is apparently to help operators detect which box they want to deal with when they are looking at the back of a rack full of them. The USB port has no function at this point in time.

Initial installation should be easy. Take the 2500 out of its box, apply power, connect using the serial cable and do an initial configuration. Should be is the word here. When the 2500 arrived with us, we had to do an upgrade to reset the passwords and there is no factory reset function from the front. The only way to make this happen, as we experienced real problems via the serial port, was to connect to port 5, change the IP address on the laptop, create an FTP session, make sure the local firewall was turned off on the laptop computer and push the file to the 2500. This is something that Trend Micro needs to take another look at. When you need to reset a box, expecting people to plug in a device, run an ftp session to push a new set of software and then restart the configuration is a long process.