Unable to boot from USB in connectra.

You would have read my previous blog about the problems in booting up connectra from USB.

Now I want to share the solution which finally resolved the problem .   

Here the size of the USB matters where we will face problem if the USB size is more than 4GB.

Ensure the USB drive to be 2 or 4 GB which should be perfectly fine or try with CDROM.

Smart View monitor - Gateway(firewall) object shows as problem

Hello Everyone,

As a checkpoint administrator most of you have seen the problem where the checkpoint Connectra or gateway shows as problem in smart view monitor.

But while we search for solution we will really have hard time.

So why this needs to be resolved at the earliest?

When i faced this problem one my manager used a phrase to define the situation.

“Sleeping with Snake"

 That’s true! Anything may happen any time.

What if the active one goes down?

Will the failover happen properly?

Now I know you understood the seriousness of this issue. Good! So what’s the solution for this?

Troubleshoot - Smartview monitor shows gateway or Connectra problem

As a first step check the physical connectivity and ensure all the cables are connected properly. ( It’s always good to start with basics J)

Then try pushing the policy. (It might get resolved here)

Now get into device command line.

1. Login to the expert mode

2. Type the command cphaprob stat.  You will see output similar to below,

Number     Unique Address            Assigned Load   State

1               <IPaddress of active>         100%            Active
2 (local)   <IPaddress of standby>        0%              Standby

Ok, this is to ensure which Gateway is active now.

 3. Run the command “cphaprob list “

Output should show the built in devices, registered devices and its status.
Device Name: Interface Active Check
Current state: OK
 Usually this might be a problem so we can conclude this is related to the interfaces.

4. Finally run “cphaprob –a if”

We should notice that the two cluster members differed on the number of required interfaces and any of the interface may show “disconnected”


Resolution - Smartview monitor shows gateway or Connectra problem

Ok finally we found the problem it is the interface which shows as disconnected.

1.       Ensure if some cable already connected and which might be missing.

2.      If not then look for a file $FWDIR/conf/discntd.if or create on both the gateways.

3.      Now type the interface name which is not used (interface which is in disconnected state).

4.      Then reboot the cluster members one by one.

Open your smartview monitor now,

Both the cluster members should be in the state “OK”

Verify the ClusterXL state which should be perfectly fine.

Run “cphaprob stat” again. Now you can tell the happy news to your Boss J

Country with fastest and cheapest internet

Do you know which country enjoys the Fastes and cheapest internet?

Any Guess?

US, UK, canada or some European country. Absoultely not.

Hong Kong has the best internet speed 49.2 Mbps. They achieve this with the "Fiber To The Home"  technology.

So what about the bigger and stronger countries like US and India.

United states hold 11 the rank with 27.1 Mbps and Inia holds 116th psoition with 6.9 Mbps.

Lets hope to get more speed in future !!

Check this for more info

http://www.siliconindia.com/news/technology/10-Countries-With-Best-Internet-Speed-In-The-World-nid-133791-cid-2.html  

Types of Firewall - Technology

Packet Filter Firewall:

It is a least security type due to lack of broad intelligence

Works at layer 3 of OSI model

Filtering is decided based on Source ip, destination ip source port destination port and  protocol

It doesn’t have a ability to “is this really a smtp packet?”

Drawback:  Less secure

Application firewall:

As name states it works at layer 7. It stays as a middleman and protests the network.

To make it more clear,

Let’s consider you are trying to access a google.com then the request comes to firewall and it proxies the connection.

Drawback:  Very slow and high overhead

Stateful inspection:

Maintain a state table and ensure deep inspection of the packet.

Stateful inspection is developed and patterned by checkpoint

So whenever a connection comes to firewall it will maintain a state table and add a entry about the connection.

Based on this the packet is inspected and filtering decision is made.

Stateful inspection protects network from various external attacks like ip spoofing etc.

So let’s consider port 80 is open for internet access. Then there is chance where anyone can send anything via that port.

OMG!! Then what’s the solution for it.

Stateful inspection is the savior. Even the name looks so promising right!

So when the user in the internal network initiates the traffic then it adds a state table entry. With reference to state table it allows the return traffic.

Ok. I think we all came to a conclusion that stateful inspection is the best technology which can completely protect from attacks.

If so then I am sorry gentleman it is wrong.

Did we think about Trojans and malware which can do lot of harm to you.

Then there is other technology which comes into picture here is Deep Packet Inspection (DPI)

DPI can inspect the data part of the packet and take decisions based on content of the packet.

DPI will combine signature-matching technology with analysis of the data in order to determine the impact of data stream.

So will DPI prevent the network completely?

Answer is “NO” J

Nothing is safe because Black is stronger than white (hat or color).

Ok Guys. Soon we will get deep into the various firewall products available.

Sophos endpoint security icon does not appear at taskbar

Hi Everyone,

Now it’s time for AV J

I would like to give you more tips on this Sophos antivirus which is a very light and perfect for corporate users.

I have seen people suffering to bring the Sophos endpoint security icon in the taskbar. This is mandatory to fetch updates and to view the updating status.

Most of them spend time in searching the windows option to get it done

Fix:

Go to the drive where Sophos is installed and search for exe named “Almon.exe”  at auto update folder.

Run it. Now you can find the icon at taskbar.

You are good to go.

For more information you can also refer to SOPHOS

Connectra to Mobile Access blade - Problems

Hi Everyone,

I would like to share my experience while upgrading checkpoint Connectra appliance to mobile access.

I hope providing this information could help everyone to have a clear vision on it.

Generally we can upgrade the Connectra with two ways,

1.       Having them in cluster with the running various migration packages ( checkpoint recommended)

2.       Other way is breaking the cluster and performing clean installation (Only I would suggest this if you are a pro)

Fine,  I am not a pro so will go with checkpoint recommended style of upgrade. But it is too difficult for the beginners to understand the technical reference guide provided.  so I would like to summarize it before I share my experience.

Steps to upgrade the Connectra (NGX R66)  to higher version R71.X or R75.X

1.       Run the “Gateway migration package” export the configurations.( which initially didn’t  work and modification done on the backup file to make it run)

2.       Take backup of certain files and then full backup from webui.

3.       Then complete the installation of checkpoint with CD or thumb drive (using isomorphic tool)

4.       Import the configuration of old connectra gateway using the restore file available in the same gateway migration package.

5.         Then upgrade the management server connectra object to mobile access gateway object with help of “management migration tool”

6.       Finally push the policy and complete the upgrade.

Sweet, So easy huh..

Yes, when you see this theoretical it is easy but when you want to deploy this then seriously we need to consider various factors.

It is completely new to checkpoint t so even TAC struggles to provide the correct ISO image. 

Lots of hurdles when tried to boot from the USB drive.

This is really hard to complete without user impact so plan it well before you perform.

If you have any queries write to me .

Best Antivirus For computers

We all know that the internet virus threats are consistently increasing which takes the antivirus market to the peak.

How to choose the best antivirus?

ü  Fast scanning engine – how fast the scanning engine of that product ?

ü  Detection rate – What is the threat detection rate of the antivirus?

ü  Features in scanning – what are the types of scanning available?

ü  How easy to use?

When you find the answers for the above then

Congratulations!  You have chosen your best antivirus.

What are the best antiviruses available in market?

Mcafee – Always with best standards and easy to use.

Kaspersky – With the latest features and good to use.

Sophos – Most light antivirus for the best performance.

Symantec – “King of antivirus”

Symantec is the best for corporate computers and home users with good configuration PC.

It has most advanced features and scanning methods with perfectly updated engine.

My vote is always for Symantec !