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Firewalls are the first line of defense between your internal network and the outside world. They protect your devices and data from unauthorized access and dangerous activities by regulating incoming and outgoing network traffic based on preset security rules. They can be deployed as hardware, software, or firewall-as-a-service and can operate in on-premises, public cloud, private cloud, and hybrid infrastructure environments.

Firewall features vary, from basic packet filtering to advanced capabilities like advanced threat protection. Different configurations and deployment models are designed to address specific risk profiles and use cases. Understanding these differences enables you to select the right firewall for your environment—no matter where it’s located, how it’s used, or what kind of traffic it filters.

The firewall’s most essential best practice is to follow the principle of least privilege, which states that only traffic serving a legitimate function should be allowed across networks. This is important to avoid bloated rules that slow performance or create conflicting traffic flows, as well as to prevent overly permissive rules that allow attackers to exploit the firewall.

Packet filtering evaluates data on a packet-by-packet basis, looking for criteria such as source and destination IP addresses, ports, and protocols to determine whether or not to allow a connection. This approach provides effective security, but is easily circumvented by advanced threats that take advantage of its focus on individual packets and lack of context. Stateful inspection, on the other hand, analyzes packets from a macroscopic perspective, taking in the history of all past device and network connections to evaluate connections in their entirety.