NETGEAR FR114P 4 Port Cable/DSL ProSafe Firewall/Print Server Review
Next-generation, SPI-based 4 port 10/100 switched router w/ print server. Bundled with zer0knowledge's Freedom Security and Privacy suite.
LAN&WAN
Head To Head: Corinex AV CableLAN vs. Corinex AV Phoneline Ethernet Bridge
Wireless networking may get most of the attention these days, but there are still technologies competing to replace Ethernet as the primary home networking method. Tim Higgins takes a look at Corinex' AV CableLAN and Phoneline adapters, but finds at least one of them not ready for home-networking prime time.
LAN Party How To – Part 1: Planning and Power
Ever think about throwing your own LAN Party? Or maybe you already have an didn't have a great experience. Chris Dickens has been there and done that and in Part 1 of our LAN Party How To shares his secrets of getting set up for success and making sure that there's power a'plenty to keep everyone happy.
ZyXEL HomeSafe Parental Control Gateway
The ability of most routers to control the who, what and when of Internet access leaves much to be desired. Micah LaCombe found that ZyXEL's HomeSafe Parental Control Gateway is an exception to this status quo and doesn't command a premium price either.
SmoothWall Express 2.0
Next in our series of reviews of Open Source based router / firewalls is SmoothWall Express 2.0. Jim Hubbard takes a look at this free, user-friendly distro, that's speedy enough for pretty much any connection you can throw at it.
ClarkConnect Gateway / Server
Linux is definitely becoming more of a real option for desktop users, with many distributions available that anyone comfortable with Windows can install and use. Point Clark Networks' ClarkConnect has taken the same user-friendly approach and converts any Pentium-class box into a dedicated Linux-based Gateway / Server that can be installed and configured by mere mortals and puts many commercial products to shame. And did we mention that it's free? Jim Hubbard puts ClarkConnect through its paces.
QuickView: AlphaShield Hardware Firewall
The product pitch for AlphaShield's Hardware Firewall makes it sound like it provides some pretty heavy-duty Internet security. But while it does perform as advertised, we found there's little to recommend it over less-expensive SOHO routers.
m0n0wall Firewall V1.0 – Part 1
You might think that installing and configuring an Open Source-based firewall / router requires skills far beyond those possessed by ordinary (wo)men... but you'd be wrong. The m0n0wall firewall may be based on FreeBSD, and have a name that's tricky to type, but our reviewer David Cook shows how getting it installed and running is well within the reach of most of us mere mortals...
m0n0wall Firewall V1.0 – Part 2
You might think that installing and configuring an Open Source-based firewall / router requires skills far beyond those possessed by ordinary (wo)men... but you'd be wrong. The m0n0wall firewall may be based on FreeBSD, and have a name that's tricky to type, but our reviewer David Cook shows how getting it installed and running is well within the reach of most of us mere mortals...
OvisLink eLive MU-9000VPN Multimedia Server / VPN Router reviewed
Our quest to find SOHO routers with built-in bandwidth management lead us to examine OvisLink's multi-functional router. We found that it does provide bandwidth management - along with a host of other interesting features - but that it isn't all we'd hoped for.
Linux Embedded Appliance Firewall Review
Sure off-the-shelf router / firewalls are cheap and easy to set up, but sometimes they just don't get the job done, especially for more sophisticated requirements. And "big iron" products will put too big a dent in most small business budgets. Fortunately there are Open Source alternatives. Jim Hubbard takes a detailed look at one that can do just about anything you'd want it to do, while leaving your wallet alone.
ASUS SL1000 Internet Security Router reviewed
Simply put, ASUS' SL1000 is one hell of a powerful little router and our test bench is still smoking! But it has a user interface that only true networking techies can love. ASUS agrees on this last point so it'll be awhile before you can buy it, but you can at least read about it now.