Deployment of Sophos Firewall with minimal setup

The recently released XGS Series desktop devices unveiled just last week are a great fit for decentralized locations, such as retail franchises and branch offices. Frequently, these remote sites lack on-site IT personnel, and the necessary resources for setting up a firewall may not always be readily accessible.

Although genuine zero-interaction deployment was initially introduced in v20 MR1 by Sophos Firewall, the new 2^nd Generation XGS Series desktop devices are the pioneering Sophos Firewall products to come equipped with this feature out of the box, allowing for effortless deployment with zero manual input.

While certain providers may impose an additional fee or mandate the purchase of professional services for this feature, Sophos zero-interaction deployment carries no supplementary cost.

Through this modern zero-interaction solution, a USB device is no longer essential, significantly simplifying zero-interaction deployments. The firewall will autonomously establish a connection to Sophos Central for retrieving configuration details.

In cases where using a USB device is preferred, it remains a viable option.

Mechanism of Operation

1. Incorporate the new firewall into Sophos Central
2. Dispatch the device to the desired location and have someone on-site establish an internet connection
3. The firewall will automatically connect to Sophos Central
4. Conclude the configuration in Sophos Central

See this demo video for a general outline of the process:

Refer to the online documentation for additional information.

Seamless transition from XG to XGS

If you’re transitioning from an XG Series to the latest XGS Series appliances, not only can you leverage zero-interaction deployment, but also benefit from the new any-to-any backup/restore assistant with port mapping to facilitate the upgrade:

• Safeguard a configuration backup of your XG Series device before deploying the new XGS Series
• Once the new XGS Series device is online, it will automatically update the firmware to the latest version to gain the advantages of the new backup/restore assistant
• Restore the backup from your XG Series device to your new firewall utilizing the port-mapping assistant
• As the restoration process to a distinct device doesn’t include Sophos Central credentials, re-register the firewall with Sophos Central

To discover more about the new 2^nd Generation XGS Series desktop firewalls, explore the launch announcement and video.

About Author

AndyC

Andy Curtis is an award-winning security consultant, researcher and public speaker. He has been working in the computer security industry since the early 1990s, having been employed by state and federal government, leading healthcare and banking providers across three continents. He has given talks about computer security for some of the world’s largest companies, worked with law enforcement agencies on investigations into hacking groups, and is a regular voice on TV and radio explaining IT security threats.

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