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ISA SERVER

What is ISA Server?

It is a proxy server & web caching server

It is a firewall designed to ensure all unwanted traffic

from the internet is kept out of the organization s
network (Private network).

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PROXY SERVER

It s a server which emulates as a web server

Response from Cache

Client Response Cached

10.0.0.3

Proxy Server
10.0.0.1
Client
10.0.0.2

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FIREWALL

Firewall protects networked computer from

intentional hostile intrusions.

Types of Firewall

Software Firewall

ISA Server, Smooth wall, Checkpoint, Clavister etc

Hardware Firewall

Cisco Pix, Watch Guard, Multicom Ethernet III etc

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Versions of ISA

ISA Server 2000

ISA Server 2004

ISA Server 2006

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Flavors of ISA SERVER

ISA Server Standard Edition

ISA Server Enterprise Edition

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Standard Edition

Standard edition is used if you deploy a single

ISA server for a specific role that is proxy server or
firewall etc.

Standard edition stores its configuration in the local

registry.

Standard edition doesn t support array policies

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Enterprise Edition

Enterprise edition is used if you deploy multiple

ISA servers in each role.

Enterprise edition stores its configuration in a

separate directory that is its store in active
directory application mode.

Enterprise edition supports cache array routing

protocol

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Arrays

Arrays are groups of ISA servers that share the

same array policy which is a set of configuration
settings that apply to an array.

Arrays are used for providing

Load Balancing

Fault Tolerance

Scalability

All the servers in the array should be in the same

domain

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Benefits of ISA SERVER 2004

Advanced
Advanced Multi-layer packet inspection
inspection
Protection
Protection Unified firewall and VPN
VPN server
server
Multi-networking
Application-layer filtering

Ease
Ease of
of Use Efficient
Efficient management
management tools
tools
Network templates
templates
Product integration
Ease of use for clients

Enhanced
Enhanced Optimized for performance
performance
Performance
Performance Integrated functionality
functionality
Scalability
Web caching

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How ISA Server works as a Firewall

ISA Server 2004 uses three types of filtering roles

to block or allow the network traffic.

They are

Packet Filtering

Statefull Filtering

Application Filtering

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Packet Filtering

Packets are allowed and dropped based on source

and destination Ip or sources and Destination
ports.

When a packet is arrived ISA server checks source

Ip, destination Ip & Port information against it
firewall rules, if it packet allowed to the
destination or else it is dropped.

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Packet Filtering

Is the
Source address allowed?
Destination address allowed?
Protocol allowed?
Web
Web Destination port allowed?
Server
Server

ISA
ISA Packet
Packet
Server
Server Filter
Filter

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Statefull Filtering

Statefull Filtering uses a more thorough

examination of network packet to make decisions
whether to forward it or not.

When ISA server uses Statefull inspection it

examines IP & TCP headers to determine the state
of within context of previous packets that have
passed through ISA server or of TCP session

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Statefull Filtering

Connection Rules
Create connection rule
Web
Web
Server
Server Is packet part of a
connection?

Web
Web
Server

ISA
ISA
Server
Server

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Application Layer Filtering

Application Layer Filtering examines the actual

content of a packet to determine if the packet can
be forwarded through the firewall.

Application filter opens the entire packet examines

the actual data in it before making a forwarding
decision.

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Application Layer Filtering

Get www.zoomgroup.com
www.zoomgroup.com Get method
method allowed?
allowed? Respond
Respond to client
client

Web
Web
Server
Server

ISA
ISA
Server
Server

Does
Does the
the response
response contain
contain only
only
allowed
allowed content
content and
and methods?
methods?

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How ISA server works as Proxy & Cache Server

ISA server works as proxy server by acting

as a web server to the internal clients

It also caches the information, thus providing

faster internet access to the clients.

LAN ISA Server

Web
Server

Server Firewall Internet

User

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How ISA server works as Proxy & Cache Server

Forward Caching

Forward caching occurs when the user on the

corporate network makes a request for the web
content located on the internet web server.

Reverse Caching

It occurs when the users on the internet request

for the web content present on corporate network.

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