This chapter covers the following subjects:
Configuring access and translation rules using CiscoWorks Management Center for Firewalls (Firewall MC)
Reporting, tool use, and administration using Firewall MC
Introduction to the Auto Update Server (AUS)
Cisco PIX Firewall and AUS communication settings using AUS
Devices, images, and assignments in AUS
Reporting and administration through AUS
It also covers the following supplemental topics:
Firewall MC installation
Key features and concepts of Firewall MC
Importing devices into Firewall MC
Device management and groups in Firewall MC
Multiple firewall management in Firewall MC
Configuring your Cisco PIX Firewalls with a graphical interface enables you to manage their operation efficiently. Chapter 13, “PIX Device Manager,” explains how to use the PIX Device Manager (PDM) to configure a single PIX system. This graphical interface is very effective to administer just a few PIX systems, but if you manage a larger number of PIX devices, you need a different application. The CiscoWorks Management Center for Firewalls (Firewall MC) enables you to manage multiple PIX devices easily from a single graphical interface. This chapter explains in detail the major features of Firewall MC and how you can use that functionality to manage multiple PIX devices across your network.
To manage the configuration of multiple firewalls effectively, you must also maintain current software images. The Auto Update Server (AUS) enables you to maintain and deploy up-to-date software images on your managed firewalls. This chapter explains how you can use the AUS to manage the images on your managed firewalls.
How to Best Use This Chapter
This chapter provides an overview of both the Firewall MC and the AUS. Unlike the PDM, the Firewall MC provides a graphical user environment suited to managing large numbers of firewalls, and the AUS enables you to maintain current images and configurations efficiently on a large number of firewalls. Understanding these applications is vital if you manage a large number of firewalls. If you are at all familiar with these applications, you will probably find this chapter very easy. Test yourself with the “Do I Know This Already?” quiz.