Slashdot Mirror
Hardware Firewall On a USB Key
An anonymous reader writes "An Israeli startup has squeezed a complete hardware firewall into a USB key. The 'Yoggie Pico' from Yoggie Systems runs Linux 2.6 along with 13 security applications on a 520MHz PXA270, an Intel processor typically used in high-end smartphones. The Pico works in conjunction with Windows XP or Vista drivers that hijack traffic at network layers 2-3, below the TCP/IP stack, and route it to USB, where the Yoggie analyzes and filters traffic at close-to-100Mbps wireline speeds. The device will hit big-box retailers in the US this month at a price of $180." Linux and Mac drivers are planned, according to the article.
I keep wondering how they put such a fast processor on a usb stick and then squirt bidirectional 100Mbps over the USB port. Sounds a lot like my former boss trying to convince me that our building would give us 100Mbps internet for only $50/month. I dislike misleading articles and I dislike misleading product descriptions even more.
It seems much more likely that there's an app on the USB stick tht is run by the windows machine making the USB stick just a different delivery mechanism than a CD/DVD. Probably way cheaper to produce, update and ship.
firewall schmirewall, I can't wait to see what "wrong" things people do with this.. a Linux machine on a USB stick? For 180$? Awesome.
It might not offer better protection than a software firewall, but it will offload the work to it's own processor freeing up cycles on your computer. If you are pushing your machine this could be a fairly inexpensive way to squeeze a little more life out of an older /underpowered box.
Bobo Mahoney
Except that all of your traffic is now going over your USB port twice... and the USB port is your most processor-intensive I/O. I have no idea how the numbers will work out... but there is a good chance that this will eat a lot of processor time.