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Managed Firewalls

Your network's front door

Firewalls configured, updated and monitored, with your network split into separate rooms and a log of what the front door is doing.

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What it is

In plain English

A firewall is the guard in the doorway between your office and the internet. It checks every visitor and every outgoing package against a list of rules. We choose the rules for your business, keep the firmware current, and read what the firewall records.

How it works
1

Design

We plan which devices belong in which network: office, guests, cameras, servers.

2

Configure

Rules are written for your business, not left at factory settings.

3

Update

Firmware and settings are kept current so known holes are closed.

4

Watch

We review the firewall's activity as part of looking after your network.

TheInternet FIREWALL Office computers Guest Wi-Fi Cameras & devices blocked allowed

How it works

  • 1
    Closed unless opened on purpose.Traffic from the internet is refused unless a rule says it is allowed. Rules are written for your business, not left at factory settings.
  • 2
    Watching for known attack patterns.Intrusion prevention compares traffic to patterns of known attacks and can stop it. We tune it so it does not block your real work.
  • 3
    Separate rooms.Guest Wi-Fi, cameras and office computers sit on separate networks, so a problem in one cannot walk into the others.
  • 4
    Every decision written down.The firewall keeps a log of what it allowed and blocked, and we review it.
Connecting more than one location

Site-to-site VPN and hub and spoke

If your business has a shop, a yard, a second office or a warehouse, those places need to work like one company, not four separate ones. Two ideas make that possible, and both run through the firewalls.

What a site-to-site VPN is

Picture a private, locked hallway between two of your buildings that nobody on the street can see into. A site-to-site VPN is that hallway, built across the internet between the firewall at one location and the firewall at another. Everything that travels through it is encrypted.

  • Two locations act like one network. A computer at the shop can reach the server or storage device at the main office.
  • No one has to log in. The tunnel is always there. Staff just open the file.
  • Not the same as a personal VPN. That connects one person's laptop to the office. A site-to-site VPN connects whole locations.

What hub and spoke means

Think of a wagon wheel. The main office is the hub, and each other location is a spoke that connects back to it. The server, storage, printers and records live at the hub, and every location reaches them through its own tunnel.

  • One central place to control. Rules about what can cross between sites are set once, at the hub.
  • One central place to watch. Traffic and logs pass through the hub, which makes them easier for us to read.
  • Easy to add a site. A new location needs one tunnel to the hub, not one to every other site.

Hub and spoke: 4 tunnels for 5 sites

Main officeTHE HUB Shop Yard Branch office Warehouse Example layout. Dashed lines are encrypted tunnels.

Full mesh: 10 tunnels for the same 5 sites

Every site connects to every other. It works, but each new site adds a tunnel to all of them.

What we set up and watch

  • A site plan that does not collide. Each location gets its own address range, so two offices never claim the same addresses. This is the most common reason a first tunnel fails.
  • Rules for what may cross. Staff at the yard may reach the shared drive, but not the accounting computer.
  • Tunnel health. A tunnel that drops is noticed, not discovered when someone cannot open a file.
  • The logs. Hub traffic and firewall events at each site are reviewed together.

What we watch and handle

  • Rules that are closed unless opened on purpose
  • Intrusion prevention tuned so it blocks attacks without blocking your work
  • Separate networks for guests, cameras and office computers
  • Site-to-site VPN and hub-and-spoke links between your locations
  • Remote access set up deliberately, not left open
  • Security reviews that look for flat networks and exposed services

What you hear from us

Changes are explained before they happen. When the firewall blocks something notable, we tell you what it was and whether it matters.

What we need from you

  • Your internet provider details and a time we can make changes
  • A list of what is plugged into your network
  • Someone on site for the first install
Common questions
Which firewall brands do you work with?

We recommend the right firewall for your business and explain why. We also look at the one you have first and tell you honestly whether it is doing its job.

Will it slow my internet?

A properly sized firewall should not. We choose hardware to match your connection.

Can I keep my current firewall?

We will look at it first and tell you honestly whether it is doing its job.

Let us keep the lights on.

Tell us about your business and what you use. We will come back with a plan that fits. Deciphering all of your technology needs.

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