Are you ready to add an extra layer of protection? Whether it is your home or a small business, it doesn’t matter. Only three hardware firewalls recommendations for you. It’s time to say goodbye to Spyware, Malware, Trojans, hackers, and objectionable content.
A reason behind writing “best firewall for home and small office” was simple as I was hacked by someone at the beginning of this year in 2021.
It sounds weird, but it is true that all of my media and files which were, on my computer, accessed by somebody. However, those files were not that important to me. So I didn’t react that much.
Unlike me, if someone lost their important data, then? Anyways, let’s come to point. Let’s see my list of firewall devices, here I am not going to show you a list of ten that most of the time creates confusions.
So I share only three dedicated firewalls for home, office and small businesses:
- CUJO AI Smart Internet Security Firewall – best Firewall for home users
- Bitdefender Box 2 – Best Runner Up
- SonicWALL | SOHO | Security VPN Firewall – best Firewall for small business
What Are The Different Types Of Firewalls?
There are two types of Firewalls. In which, you might have heard of a “Software Firewall.” I am glad that you will learn today something new here about “hardware firewalls.”
- A software firewall
- A Hardware firewall
1. The software Firewall:
It is already known, the software firewall comes with your antivirus softwares and helps to block malicious viruses which come across to our computer.
2. The Hardware Firewall:
As it implies, the hardware firewall is a hardware device. Even though most routers in the market are packed with firewall protection. Yet, sometimes it becomes necessary to add an extra layer of protection.
let’s take a look at some Pros and Cons of dedicated firewalls:
However, it depends on people who will be using it. Somewhat, I tried to figure out some basic advantages and disadvantages of hardware firewalls.
Advantages:
1. Most Important, it adds an extra layer of protection to your network.
2. With a dedicated hardware firewall, you get an advanced VPN feature.
3. It stops hackers to access our computer or our personal files.
4. It doubles the security of built-in windows firewall.
Disadvantages:
1. Of course, you have to spend more money if you buy a standalone personal hardware firewall.
Most people want to buy the firewall for home use or small business if you are one of the two.
The Top Three Home Firewalls Devices Review
1. CUJO AI Smart Internet Security Firewall
Overview:
The CUJO is a smart and fast firewall; It is built with 1GB Ethernet. It means it won’t slow down your internet. Installation is also very easy and intuitive as it has an LGI app. With CUJO, we have full control of our network, and we can deny access to any connected device.
I like:
1. It understands our network and lets us know what devices are on the network.
2. It is powered by modern AI technology, which makes it smarter than others.
3. It allows us to control our children devices. We can set limit and time, block contents (Social media, offensive websites, etc.), protect them from other internet threats.
4. It works with all the devices such as WiFi router, modem, wireless extenders, and access points with ease.
5. With CUJO, the port forwarding rules can be controlled.
6. Customer Support is awesome!
I don’t like:
1. It doesn’t work with Luma and Google WiFi Mesh networks.
Verdict:
If home network security is concerned, the CUJO is my recommendation. It is fast and reliable. It blocks all types of Malware attacks and threats. You can also connect it with your EERO and Orbi home wifi systems.
2. Bitdefender Box 2 – IoT Security Solution
Overview:
Bitdefender Box 2 is the second protector on our list; it can protect our devices such as smartphones, smart TV, computer, or devices that are connected to the network, once it plugs into the router. Bitdefender also includes 1-year box service subscription. The Bitdefender works only when the router configured to AP (access point) mode or bridge mode.
I like:
1. It constantly scans all your connected devices.
2. On-the-Go protection ensures our devices to be safe.
3. Parental controls feature lets us limit the time and restrict access to offensive content.
4. 1-year of Bitdefender’s box service subscription.
5. Its Mobile app is easy-to-use.
6. We can use it as a standalone router. (A dual-band and backed MU-MIMO, ac standard with max speeds up to 1900Mbps)
I don’t like:
1. The range is not good when it is used as a standalone router.
Verdict:
The Bitdefender box 2 is overall good. However, if compared to the CUJO firewall, then I would recommend the CUJO. On the other hand, you can see the Bitdefender box 2 can work as a standalone router; thus its price is also high than the CUJO. You can buy Bitdefender if you want both the firewall and router in a single device.
3. SonicWall | SOHO | Security VPN Firewall For Small Business
Overview:
The Sonicwall SOHO series is a complete thread management firewall device. It provides excellent protection, whether it is on-box security or cloud-based. It offers Gigabit Ethernet ports. It can inspect and decrypt any secure connections like TLS, SSL, and SSH.
I like:
1. It has integrated wireless 802.11ac.
2. SonicOs (operating system) is well-designed with Intuitive UI.
3. SSL VPN access for all platforms like Android, Apple iOS, Kindle, Linux, Mac OS, and Windows.
4. The Tz console can manage over 100 additional ports with Dell X-series switches.
5. It is using a multi-core (2 x 400Mhz and 2 x 800Mhz) processor and features Gigabit ports.
6. It has an advanced technology RFDPI (Reassembly-Free Deep Pocket Inspection).
7. Firewall Inspection throughput is up to 300Mbps, whereas VPN throughput is up to 100Mbps.
8. It can support Maximum 2 Sonicpoints.
9. Awesome technical support.
I don’t like:
1. I didn’t find any issues with it.
Verdict:
I consider Sonicwall a powerful firewall enough for a small business. If it compared to the Bitdefender Box 2 and CUJO, the Sonicwall will be my first and last recommendation for small businesses. Its add-on and built-in features are unbeatable.
Do you really need a firewall for home or business?
An answer to this question is quite simple as it depends on people who use the internet. If I break down users into two types, they would be home and business. Right?
But, you know our office or business needs more security than home. We don’t want anyone to let enter our network. No one wants anyone to access their personal files or documents.
If you do consider that you need additional security for your network, or you have something that is very important for you, then my recommendations are for you as software firewall will not be enough in this case.
Below, you will also learn some great features of the standalone firewall if you buy one.
What are the features a good firewall can offer?
A dedicated firewall brings you some standard features which are missing in the software firewall or on your router. Let’s take a look at what are they:
1. VPN:
Most of the firewall devices feature VPN functionality. All three I mentioned are also packed with this VPN. There are many protocols and types you might see of the VPN. But, Remote access and Site-To-site VPNs are essential.
2. Remote Access VPN:
As it names implies, You can access it remotely and helps in establishing secure connections with the remote network. In simple words, you can consider it as a VPN server which lets you access your home network from anywhere. It acts like an intermediator, which encrypt your data, keep private and secure while accessing.
3. Site-to-Site VPNs:
Site-to-Site VPN is different from remote access. When two LANs (Local Area Networks) are connected with an encrypted tunnel over the internet, called Site-to-Site VPN. Although, Site-to-Site and Remote access are different from each other but use the same software. Actually, there are two types of Site-to-Site VPNs exist – Intranet based and Extranet based. Le’ts go through one-by-one.
3.1 Intranet-based:
Suppose you have a company with one or two remote locations, now you want to join them in a single private network. Here you can create an intranet VPN to connect them to a single WAN.
3.2 Extranet-based:
It isentirely different from Intranet. For example, you and your friend are running companies; now you want to connect his LAN to your LAN. You can do so using the extranet VPN. In other words, it allows you to work with other companies in a secure way using extranet VPN.
4. Advanced Web Filtering:
Web Filtering feature lets you filter the content such as specific or offensive websites, emails, keywords, different types of files, IP addresses, Etc.
Let’s try to understand it with an example:
The web filter is a program that blocks and excludes from access a certain amount of content like aggressive advertising, pornographic content and viruses like malware, spyware, and trojans.
5. Stateful Inspection:
Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) is also known as “dynamic packet filtering.” It is not a static packet filtering which only inspects the packet’s header. Unlike static, it tracks and checks the data of the packets. It also monitors the connection’s state.
Firewall Vs Wired Router
1. Firewall:
The firewall provides protection to your network. It works as a network guard and prevents you from outside attacks. We can use a firewall can as both software and hardware form, or a combination. In other words, you can consider a firewall as a filter for data entering.
2. Wired Router:
With the wired router we connect our devices to the ISP via ethernet cables. Wired routers also come with in-built network switches, so you need to buy a separate one. You can read my complete guide for the wired router. People also get confused between router and modem. However, both are very different from each other.
Conclusion:
I would definitely recommend you to buy a dedicated firewall for an existing router. Even it doesn’t cost that much if security is concerned. Again, If you are looking for a hardware firewall for your home, then consider CUJO. For small business users should go with the SonicWall SOHO.
Please leave a comment below regarding any query or question. I’d love to help you out for the topic. Also if you like this article and want any improvement, please let me know.
I actually learned quite a bit. Thank you for not complicating the subject and for working through all the dynamics. Good job!
Thanks for reading!