From Tony Bradley, CISSP-ISSAP,
Your Guide to Internet / Network Security.
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Checkpoint has long been a leader in the firewall market and is considered by many to be THE firewall. Dameon Welch-Abernathy has written an excellent and comprehensive guide detailing Checkpoint Firewall-1 NG complete with instructions for installing it on a Windows 2000 system.

The Book

Welch-Abernathy, AKA "PhoneBoy", is considered by many to be a leading authority on Checkpoint Firewall-1. This book underscores that belief by providing one of the most comprehensive sources available for installing, configuring and troubleshooting Checkpoint FW-1 NG.

The book is organized effectively so that readers can find the information they need. Most readers don't pick up a book like this just because they want to learn about firewalls. It is generally because they are either preparing to install the product, or they are preparing to upgrade an existing product, or they are having problems with the product. This book is organized to help them find the information they are looking for quickly.

The book is also complemented by a web site with a wealth of clarifications and further information. Whatever you can't find in the book you will almost certainly find an answer to if you visit Welch-Abernathy's web site: PhoneBoy.com

My Review

Each chapter of the book starts off with describing what the reader will learn or accomplish by reading that chapter. This sort of information is helpful for allowing readers to skip information that may not be useful to them and find the answers they seek. Many of the chapters also contain FAQ's and sample configurations and illustrations to help reinforce the information.

The book tries to cover a very broad scope and apply to a wide audience. It contains information all the way from holding the readers hand if they are new to Checkpoint Firewall-1 NG to providing detailed troubleshooting and configuration steps for experienced Checkpoint administrators.

I have never administered a Checkpoint firewall personally, but I found the information mostly straight forward and understandable. Again, this is not a book one would typically read casually, but for anyone who administers a Checkpoint firewall or is looking at installing a Checkpoint Firewall-1 NG system this is an excellent source of information.