Implementation of Open Source Firewall and IPS/IDS Solution for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

Abstract

Nowadays, firewall and IPS/IDS technology is thriving in terms of growing number of network security problems. Nevertheless, commercial security products are preferred by enterprises due to the reliability and stability can be purchased in user’s mind.

However, it is not a privilege for commercial products to provide excellent security services. With open source software, it is also possible to build fine-grained yet still cost efficient security solutions.

This thesis introduces the background of current firewall and IPS/IDS technology and presents a comprehensive security solution based on open source firewall and IPS/IDS software for small and medium-sized enterprises by implementing a simulation in a virtual environment. The proposed security solution effectively fortifies the enterprise’s perimeters with extremely limited costs and simplifies the deploying process.