NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: NEAL WEINBERG
on PRODUCT REVIEWS

10/18/01 - Today's focus: Intrusion detection management
Dear Wincenty Kaminski,

In this issue:

* Intrusion detection systems from Cisco, ISS offer the best
management features
* Links related to Network World product reviews
* Featured reader resource
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Today's focus: Intrusion detection management

By Neal Weinberg

In our last report, we detailed the performance of five
network-based intrusion detection systems - products from
Cisco, Computer Associates, Enterasys Networks, Intrusion.com
and Internet Security Systems. This time, we'll look at how
these products tested for management and other features.

Managing a large network of sensors is typically achieved
through a three-tiered architecture: a central management
console, sensors and an event collector that off-loads
processing from the management console but reports back to it.
Under this arrangement, one event collector manages up to 50
sensors, for example, but each management console supports
multiple event collectors. All the vendors except CA have
embraced this model. CA doesn't use the event collector, just
the sensor and management console.

Cisco and Internet Security Systems (ISS) tied for top honors
in this category. Cisco's Secure Policy Manager, which runs on
Windows NT/98/2000, supports the best event management along
with a highly intuitive, logically designed interface that was
a breeze to use. Items were color-coded and easily sorted, and
we could configure which fields we wanted displayed, easily
viewing more (or less) detail as we specified.

The ISS RealSecure Manager, which resides on Windows 2000/NT or
Solaris platforms, is on par with Cisco's Secure Policy
Manager, supporting excellent event management, good reporting
and the best integration of applications.

CA, Enterasys and Intrusion.com were a step below, but were
still good in this category.

CA's eTrust Intrusion Detection Management, which runs on
Windows 98/NT/2000 and Millennium Edition platforms, delivered
the best statistics reporting of all five products tested. Its
reports were comprehensive and complete. But eTrust was limited
by the fact that it used several different applications that
should have been integrated.

While Enterasys' Web-browser based Dragon Policy Manager had
good reports and statistics, its event management wasn't as
robust as the other products.

Intrusion.com's RealSecure appliance was the easiest to
install. Within 15 minutes, we were up and running with minimal
tweaks. The Cisco Secure IDS, an appliance, also was easy to
install, but because the product supports so many advanced
settings and configurations, it was easy to get lost trying to
find things.

Finally, all of the products supported a full complement of IDS
features. Cisco Secure ID supported the largest database of
known attack signatures, while Intrusion.com's database was the
smallest. Enterasys supported the most granular attack
database, providing more details about attacks than the other
products.

For the full report, go to
http://www.nwfusion.com/reviews/2001/1008rev.html

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To contact Neal Weinberg:

Neal Weinberg is features editor at Network World, in charge
of product reviews, Buyer's Guides, technology primers,
how-tos, issue-oriented feature stories and the Technology
Insider series. You can reach him at mailto:nweinber@nww.com.
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RELATED LINKS

IDS tools get more selective
InfoWorld, 06/12/01
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2001/0612idstools.html

Intrusion battleground evolves
Network World, 10/08/01
http://www.nwfusion.com/reviews/2001/1008bg.html

The archive for Reviews is:
http://www.nwfusion.com/reviews/index.html
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