Sidewinder G2 6.1.2 Administration Guide - Glossary of Technical ...

Chapter 9: Configuring Proxies
Proxy basics
of your Sidewinder G2. That is, the address of the network in the internal
burb is not seen in the packet information on the external burb.
• external burb-to-internal burb
A proxy can also be set up for inbound (external-to-internal) connections. In
general, inbound proxies are not desirable for security reasons (see the
"Important" note below). There are, however, certain configuration options
you can use such as encryption, authentication, and address or port redirection
that make an inbound proxy more secure. (These options are covered
in more detail later in this chapter.)
Important: Network attacks using “sniffer” programs to steal users’ accounts
and passwords are frequent on the Internet. To prevent such intrusions, you
should use a strong authentication method (such as those described in Chapter
10) that prevent an attacker from gaining account information. However, attacks
can still use sniffers to compromise your data. By encrypting your network
transmissions and using proxy redirection, you can provide further defense
against network attacks.(Strong Cryptography is a premium feature).
Configuring advanced proxy parameters on a per-rule
basis using Application Defenses
The Proxy window allows you to configure the basic proxy properties and
enable them in the appropriate burbs. Proxy rules allow you to determine
whether proxy access will be allowed or denied and under what conditions. By
adding Application Defenses to your rules, you can specify advanced,
application-specific proxy properties (such as MIME/anti-virus filtering, SSL
decryption, and timeout properties) on a per-rule basis. For information on
configuring Application Defenses and rules for proxies, see Chapter 6 and
Chapter 8.
Improving performance using Fast Path Sessions
The Sidewinder G2 supports a Fast Path Sessions option that improves
system performance by lessening the load placed on the system kernel when
passing proxy data through the Sidewinder G2. Performance is improved on
the Sidewinder G2 when the Fast Path Sessions option is enabled for
protocols that use many small packets, such as Telnet.
The Fast Path Session option is configured in the Application Defenses
windows in the Connections area. Application Defenses can be configured in
advance and added to rules later, or they can be created directly within a rule.
For information on configuring Fast Path Session options, see “Configuring
connection properties” on page 203.
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