Can anyone offer any suggestions on the best switch and firewall to use with Dell PowerEdge servers that are co-located in a Data Centre Half Rack? I'm looking at potentially a Cisco ASA5510 Firewall with a Cisco SG300-20 Switch. Any thoughts/comments/experience?
My other question is, possibly very obvious, but im assuming that the main network feed into the rack goes into the Firewall, then the firewall into the Switch, and the switch through to the various servers? Am i correct in that?
What's the best kind of switch to use? The kind that meets your requirements (speed, throughput, number of ports, etc.). Remember to allow room for expansion (spare ports).
What's the best kind of firewall to use? The kind that meets your requirements (speed, throughput, VPN termination, number of concurrent sessions, etc.)
In both cases nobody ever got fired for buying Cisco, and very few people have ever been questioned for buying Juniper Networks gear either. You can (and should) work with your vendor to spec appropriate equipment.
Your other question you've already answered: Your ISP's connection goes to the firewall (WAN), and the firewall connects to the local switch (LAN) - All traffic should be funneled through the firewall.
Other configurations are possible, but this is the simplest, most common, and IMHO best if you have any uncertainty about how to set things up (it reduces the chance of accidentally exposing systems on the internet).
