Actually, it is very simple! Here are the installation instructions packaged with every firewall.

1. Shut down your computer if it is on. Turn off the power to the cable or DSL modem and unplug the power cord from the unit.
2. Determine an appropriate location to physically place the firewall. The computer unit itself is roughly 17.5" inches wide by 17" deep and 6" tall. Using the ethernet cable that you have and the ethernet cable that is included with the firewall limits the distance it can be from the cable modem and your computer to roughly 6 feet. I have found that if you have the room, a perfect place for the firewall is beneath your monitor. The firewall also requires an electrical outlet, and like most computer equipment, it will be much happier if it is plugged into a good quality surge protector or a small UPS.
3. Before you put the firewall into its new spot, take a moment to familiarize yourself with the back of the firewall unit. There are two ethernet jacks on the back of the firewall. Each is marked with a different color. The jack marked with RED is for the cable from the internet. The jack marked with YELLOW is for the cable that will go from the firewall to your computer. A cable should already be installed in this jack.
4. Trace the ethernet cable from the cable modem to your computer and unplug it from the computer. Plug this cable into the RED jack, so that the cable now runs from the cable modem to the firewall. Make sure that the cable is seated in the jack. You should hear/feel a "click" when the cable is seated well.
5. Plug the cable from the YELLOW jack on the firewall into the ethernet jack on the back of your computer. Again, make sure you hear/feel the "click" as the cable locks into the jack.
6. Plug the included electrical cord into the firewall, and then plug the other end into a live electrical outlet.
7. All of the cables are now attached and plugged into their respective jacks. Plug the power cord back into the cable or DSL modem and turn it on. Turn the firewall on. The power on/off button is on the front. A power light should come on near the on/off button, and then shortly after that, a hard drive activity light will begin flashing. This is a normal firewall boot.
8. Because we boot the firewall without a monitor attached, please wait 2 minutes for the firewall to finish booting before turning on your computer.
9. Turn your computer on. You should not need to make any changes to any of the software settings on your computer, so feel free to try it out!
10. There is a small web server running on your new firewall that will allow you to interact with the firewall. You can register the firewall with Open Vistas Networking, Inc.. You can adjust privacy settings, and chose your own set of firewall rules. You can even view the packets that the firewall has blocked in the last 24 hours. To get to the firewall's web server, point your browser to http://10.1.1.1. Please note that this address will only work from behind the firewall!

The operating system running on our firewalls is UNIX-based OpenBSD. OpenBSD's UNIX heritage enables it to draw on 30 years of stability and security. The packet filtering routines are integrated tightly into the kernel--the heart, if you will--of the operating system. The kernel simply does not crash. You will find that the "uptimes" of the firewall will match your power outages to the microsecond, and if you plug the firewall into a UPS backed power source, you might never need to reboot it.

Finally, running a software based firewall on the machine it is protecting puts all of your eggs in one basket. Once past your software firewall, a cracker is home free and in the promised land, free to set up a porn or warez relay site or to just start deleting files.

A hardware based separate firewall is a different story altogether. First the cracker actually has to get in the firewall, and we believe that this is not possible. We base this belief on the quality of the OpenBSD code, and on the amount of effort we've put into making these firewalls impervious to attack.

But, just for sake of argument let's assume that someone, somehow, manages the impossible and cracks our OpenBSD firewall. What's there? Nothing of value to the cracker, just a very small hard drive with a minimal operating system on it. To get anything of value, the cracker has to get to the computers behind the firewall. To do that, the cracker needs more operating system "privileges", so the next task is to get what is called "root" access on the firewall. Given the extremely long and complicated password that the root user has, this task is daunting. But, again, for sake of argument, assume that miracle of miracles comes to pass and the cracker is able to force the root password. Now the cracker is faced with the task of cracking into the computers behind the firewall.

These multiple layers of security all work to protect your computer, your data, and your privacy. Most crackers aren't even going to make the attempt, especially when there are so many of your friends and neighbors with broadband and no firewall of any kind. Who wants to spend the effort to scale these mountain ranges of security when there is so much "low hanging fruit" around just waiting to be picked?

Actually, yes. Viruses and worms attached to e-mail, and malicious programs that you choose to download from the web.

E-mail is downloaded from your ISP's mail servers when you request it with your e-mail client. Because you've requested it, the transaction initiates from inside the firewall and is allowed to pass. The firewall will not scan your e-mail in any manner.

Why would anyone choose to download a malicious program from the web? Because it is masquerading as a program that is not malicious. A screensaver that actually removes all of the files from your hard drive the first time it runs would be a good example of this kind of "trojan horse" program. Obviously the screensaver isn't going to tell you that it will wipe your hard drive before you download it!

This is a totally different area of internet security. Don't download programs from sources you don't trust. Ever. And please install a good virus protection program to stop e-mail viruses.

Windows users can download a free program from Finjan Software called SurfinGuard that does a fabulous job protecting against any kind of internet downloaded malicious programs. We highly recommend it be installed on all Windows computers.

Mac users are fortunate in that virtually all of the malicious content circulating out there is specifically for the Windows operating system. We suspect that as the MacOS gains more marketshare, we will see an increase in the malicious content targeted specifically for Macs. Until then, install a good e-mail virus program, keep it up-to-date, and don't download programs from sources you don't trust.

You bet there is a warranty!

Satisfaction guaranteed.

If you decide in the first 90 days that our firewall is not the product for you, return it for a full refund. After 90 days, please contact us. If the firewall has already been doing its job for 3 months, we'd like to know why it isn't living up to your expectations, but the same guarantee applies.

Worried about a hardware problem? Although we use "previously owned" hardware in our firewalls, we are confident that the hardware will last for many years to come, and will serve your firewall needs well into the future.

If you do have a problem, please first try to access the web server on the firewall itself (http://10.1.1.1) and work through the Troubleshooting pages before contacting our Technical Support people. Many of the troubles you might think you have with the firewall will turn out to be with your broadband ISP!

Surprisingly little. In addition to our firewall, you will need:

1. A network switch. A 5 port network switch will allow you to share your broadband connection between 4 computers, printers and other network appliances. An 8 port switch will allow you to share between 7 other units, and so on. These network switches are available at all office supply superstores. A 5 port switch costs about $50, and an 8 port switch is about $70. Network hubs are also available for roughly the same price, but the performance from a hub is horrendous when compared to a switch, so don't let someone sell you a hub!
2. Ethernet cables, one per computer in the appropriate lengths.. Ethernet cables are also available at all office supply superstores. They range in length from 3' to 50', and range in price for $5 to $30.

Directions for Sharing One Broadband Connection

The following instructions are written under the assumption that you have already installed the firewall and are using it for one computer. If you have not yet installed the firewall, please do so and test it before proceeding on to this setup.

As it is installed now, you have one ethernet cable running from the cable or DSL modem to the firewall and another ethernet cable running from the firewall to your computer. Although these two cables look the same, they are not. To use your new switch, these two cables must be switched. The cable that runs between the cable or DSL modem and the firewall must be removed, and the cable that runs from the firewall to your computer must be put in its place. The first cable is then plugged into the lan (YELLOW) jack of the firewall and then plugged into a port on the switch. Your new ethernet cables are also plugged into the switch and then into their respective computers.

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