We use Sonicwalls in our organization and they tend to be fairly rock solid products. There is a bit of a learning curve as they do things a bit differently than other routers/firewalls, but once you're up to speed you can't beat them for reliability. For a point to point VPN they work flawlessly.
My question is why didn't the author nuke the Sonicwall from the start when he inherited it from the former consultant? Going into situations like this I find that it's usually best to start from scratch instead of potentially having to fix unforeseen issues down the road caused by a wet behind the ears paper cert consultant who didn't know what he was doing.
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there was no backup, and with such bad results, he didn't want to back it up just then. Sometimes a detailed repair is faster than a total re-configuration.
I'm reconsidering my next choice in appliances after reading this.
I'm reconsidering my next choice in appliances after reading this.
ive been using sonicwalla for close to 10 years. and while their interface is unlike any other router ( but to be fair all router interfaces are different ) they are actually fairly solid when you have them configured right. Most of your issues are you just not knowing the product, give it time.
Hi Bob,
Thanks for the detailed report - good detail and we're always very interested in feedback from users to help us improve our products.
To clarify: did you use a TZ200? If not, WatchGuard has a Firebox V200?
Would be happy to connect you with one of our product managers, so we can better understand the challenges you encountered, provide guidance (where still necessary) and take your feedback.
Best regards,
Jock Breitwieser
Director Global Public Relations
Dell | SonicWALL
+1 408 800 5625
jbreitwieser@sonicwall.com
Thanks for the detailed report - good detail and we're always very interested in feedback from users to help us improve our products.
To clarify: did you use a TZ200? If not, WatchGuard has a Firebox V200?
Would be happy to connect you with one of our product managers, so we can better understand the challenges you encountered, provide guidance (where still necessary) and take your feedback.
Best regards,
Jock Breitwieser
Director Global Public Relations
Dell | SonicWALL
+1 408 800 5625
jbreitwieser@sonicwall.com
Jock--If i am understanding what he is trying to do----I believe he is trying to set up a virtual access point using a sonicpoint...i did some digging trying to figure out what he may have been doing so that is my guess because last i knew there was no such sonicwall product as the v200. BTW...it's Erin Desko from your Sonic OS 5.8 release.
Bob, I've used Cisco and Sonicwall and i will always gripe and complain about cisco...personally i think for most companies and users Cisco is way too complicated to set up. With that being said, there are plenty of documents online to factory default a sonicwall device...which should have been the route taken so that any remaining, or mis-configured settings that were in there were cleared. The newer sonicwall devices even have a step by step wizard to set up your lan/wan, any port forwarding (public server wizards)...so yes there is a bit of a learning curve...but as far as i am concerned, the interface is nowhere near as messy and unorganized as other devices i've dealt with. Having configured 100+ sonicwall devices, i know every nook and cranny of them and they are still by far one of the most rock solid devices i've used. The sonicwall will do what you tell it to. You cannot blame the firewall for this in any respect...proper or improper configuration---the firewall will do what you configure it to do (or not do)
Sonicwall support will help you if you contact them as long as your support contract is in place, even if it is the smallest problem you encounter.
Bob, I've used Cisco and Sonicwall and i will always gripe and complain about cisco...personally i think for most companies and users Cisco is way too complicated to set up. With that being said, there are plenty of documents online to factory default a sonicwall device...which should have been the route taken so that any remaining, or mis-configured settings that were in there were cleared. The newer sonicwall devices even have a step by step wizard to set up your lan/wan, any port forwarding (public server wizards)...so yes there is a bit of a learning curve...but as far as i am concerned, the interface is nowhere near as messy and unorganized as other devices i've dealt with. Having configured 100+ sonicwall devices, i know every nook and cranny of them and they are still by far one of the most rock solid devices i've used. The sonicwall will do what you tell it to. You cannot blame the firewall for this in any respect...proper or improper configuration---the firewall will do what you configure it to do (or not do)
Sonicwall support will help you if you contact them as long as your support contract is in place, even if it is the smallest problem you encounter.
Always use Firefox to configure them.
Always backup the current configuration before making any changes.
If you did not install the firewall or if you any concerns about its security, you should reset it to the defaults and start from scratch. BEFORE you reset, document the configuration of the firewall. LAN, WAN, DHCP, DNS, Services, Rules, Etc. Take screenshots and paste them in a document. After the reset, browse to the default IP and a wizard will walk you through configuring the SonicWALL. If you have a problem, you can always restore the backup you made earlier. When you have it configured the way you want it, make another backup.
Don't forget about vendor support. The owner should defintely make sure their SonicWALL support agreement is current. There are many situations where contacing SonicWALL support is the fastest way to a resolution.
I hope this helps.
Always backup the current configuration before making any changes.
If you did not install the firewall or if you any concerns about its security, you should reset it to the defaults and start from scratch. BEFORE you reset, document the configuration of the firewall. LAN, WAN, DHCP, DNS, Services, Rules, Etc. Take screenshots and paste them in a document. After the reset, browse to the default IP and a wizard will walk you through configuring the SonicWALL. If you have a problem, you can always restore the backup you made earlier. When you have it configured the way you want it, make another backup.
Don't forget about vendor support. The owner should defintely make sure their SonicWALL support agreement is current. There are many situations where contacing SonicWALL support is the fastest way to a resolution.
I hope this helps.
Like anything else, your ease of deployment on something has to do with how much experience you have with it. I can deploy a fairly complicated Sonicwall UTM setup pretty quickly. But, put me in front of a Cisco and I will be complaining and moaning that they do things wrong or the hard way 
It's all in what you know.
I will agree with you that the interface can get a little messy. Especially when someone before you configured the device. In a small deployment like that I would agree with previous posters and tell you to document the settings and blow it away to start from scratch. YOu would have had it reset bacn up in an hour or so rather than spending all day trying to find that one setting in 10,000 that keeps you from routing properly
It's all in what you know.I will agree with you that the interface can get a little messy. Especially when someone before you configured the device. In a small deployment like that I would agree with previous posters and tell you to document the settings and blow it away to start from scratch. YOu would have had it reset bacn up in an hour or so rather than spending all day trying to find that one setting in 10,000 that keeps you from routing properly
The firewall will do what you tell it to.
The article complains more about busted wifi and insecure 2k3 server.
You cannot fault a product due to improper configurations by less than experienced consultants.
The article complains more about busted wifi and insecure 2k3 server.
You cannot fault a product due to improper configurations by less than experienced consultants.
I was trained on Cisco, so when I began work at an entity that used Sonicwall there was definitely a learning curve. I dug into the manuals and knowledge base on Sonicwall's site and after a little while I learned to like the product. We recently upgraded to a smaller, but more powerful TZ 210 and again, I really like it.
Did you work on a TZ 200? I don't think Sonicwall has a V200.
http://www.sonicwall.com/us/search.html?site=us&q=sonicwall+v200
Did you work on a TZ 200? I don't think Sonicwall has a V200.
http://www.sonicwall.com/us/search.html?site=us&q=sonicwall+v200
The sonicwall is not something you want to walk into without having some previous experience with it. I have worked with them for several years and a few models and would agree they are not for the faint of heart. But they are very capable and can do quite a bit once you get into them. I find their support to be poor at best. Hopefully Dell can fix that but I doubt it. The outsourced support is difficult to understand and not interested in anything but reading from their set support scripts. Definilty keep the support agreemnet current for software updates which come out fairly regularly and often fix issues I had been dealing with. I like the sonicpoints wireless units. Again, they take some tinkering to get configured but once you do adding a new one is just a matter of plugging it in and waiting for it to configure it self.
I always recommend the TZ100 or TZ200 for small business shops from 5 to 20 users. They do take some time to get used to, but working with them over time you get used to their "messy" interface. I have not seen any issues since the Dell acquisition so hopefully it stays that way. BTW, Bob, great site...glad to see another CT resident having fun! I also found it humorous that you are #1 on a Google (1164 Morning Glory Circle) search even before Warner Brothers. And are those really your cool license plates?
Bob, after figuring out what you were trying to do (the V200 threw me for a loop)...
Setting up multiple "virtual" access points can be a pain, quite honestly i had the same issues when i was setting up one for my office here. I also have one at my home, but not nearly as complicated.
The question i have though is...what device are you connecting the sonicpoint to?...i ask that because with the older sonicwall devices they don't like to cooperate all that much, and the newer devices, like the tz100, tz210, nsa series...there is alot less trouble getting them to work correctly.
Currently i have a sonicpoint N configured on a nsa 3500 with 4 Virtual access points, and on my tz210 at home, i have 2 virtual access points configured--all of which have been up for 2 years plus at this point in time...
just trying to wrap my head around the hardware your using and why the new SSID wasn't broadcasting correctly...
Setting up multiple "virtual" access points can be a pain, quite honestly i had the same issues when i was setting up one for my office here. I also have one at my home, but not nearly as complicated.
The question i have though is...what device are you connecting the sonicpoint to?...i ask that because with the older sonicwall devices they don't like to cooperate all that much, and the newer devices, like the tz100, tz210, nsa series...there is alot less trouble getting them to work correctly.
Currently i have a sonicpoint N configured on a nsa 3500 with 4 Virtual access points, and on my tz210 at home, i have 2 virtual access points configured--all of which have been up for 2 years plus at this point in time...
just trying to wrap my head around the hardware your using and why the new SSID wasn't broadcasting correctly...
I'm on my second SonicWall, upgraded from TZ170W to TZ210W. My biggest complaint is every time I find instructions that I think will show me how to do something, the steps and options never match what I have. For example, https://www.fuzeqna.com/sonicwallkb/consumer/kbdetail.asp?kbid=5798 specifies the instructions are for many systems, including mine, and Firmware: SonicOS Enhanced firmware (3.5 and above). The screens and steps don't even come close to what I see. I need to create a SonicPoint Provisioning Profile because the one the article says to use doesn't exist. I go to the link that says "Creating a SonicPoint Provisioning Profile" and these instructions aren't even close to what i see. Very frustrating.
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