Comparative Study of Open-source Firewall

Internet World Stats data indicates that the global increase in internet usage from 2000 to 2021 amounted to 1.331%. This upward trend, while promising, also introduces potential security vulnerabilities such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks, and IP Spoofing, among others. These cyber threats pose a significant risk to network security systems. To mitigate these risks, organizations often turn to firewalls as a protective measure. Firewalls offer various applications, including Endian, IPfire, Pfsense, ClearOS, Untangle NG firewall, and more. This study aims to evaluate the impact of open-source firewall applications, specifically Endian and Pfsense, on the quality of network traffic on a server. Both applications are known for their user-friendly settings. The research employs a comparative approach, utilizing a capability testing scheme and scenario testing conducted before and after implementing the firewalls. The first scheme validates the ability of both applications to detect network attacks, while the second scheme assesses the quality of network traffic on the server before and after firewall implementation. Performance metrics include throughput, latency, frame loss, and jitter. These metrics are calculated by transmitting data streams from a client PC to the server, simulating an attack scenario. The findings reveal that both schemes are effective in detecting network attacks. However, Pfsense firewall demonstrates higher values for throughput, latency, frame loss, and jitter compared to the Endian firewall.