Current Filter: Security>>>>>>

   

The latest release, LanGuard 2014, adds a number of new features, with timely support for mobile devices at the top of the list.

LanGuard can now detect iOS, Android and Windows Phone devices, and run agent-less vulnerability scans on them. It can detect information such as the manufacturer, model, installed OS version and the last connection time.

Linux support now includes patch management for all popular distributions, including Red Hat Enterprise, Ubuntu, SUSE and Debian. GFI has also added over 50 new applications to its patch management service and has retained the same affordable per-node licensing scheme.

Installation on a Windows Server 2012 host system was smooth and LanGuard handled all prerequisites for us as well. The main console opens with an informative dashboard and LanGuard immediately scans the host system to ensure it's secure.

For networked systems, you can choose from agent-less and agent based scans. The former is quicker to run, as there's nothing to deploy, but it will generate more network traffic. The latter reduces network overheads, as the agent gathers all information locally, packages it up and transmits a small XML file to the host.

We found an agent-less scan of a Windows 8 system took 15 minutes and generated a maximum of 9Mbits/sec network traffic. The agent is deployed easily from the console and, with this in action, scan time was reduced to 9 minutes and network traffic never went above 1Mbits/sec.

We had no problems deploying the agent and scanning our other network systems, which included an AD domain controller, Windows file servers, an Exchange 2007 server, plus Windows 7 and 8 workstations. Selected systems can also be grouped together and regular scans scheduled for each group.

LanGuard can only discover mobile devices when they access Microsoft Exchange. You define your Exchange server as an information source, so LanGuard can scan it to locate mobile devices and add them to the console under their own section.

The dashboard provides an at-a-glance overview of scan results and the most vulnerable systems, along with sensor details on vulnerabilities, service packs, updates, firewall issues, malware protection and more. Coloured icons next to each system in the left pane show clearly what their security status is and you can drill down into each one for more detail.

From the console's Remediation Center, you can view groups or systems and see what needs to be done to improve their security stance. Vulnerabilities, required updates and missing patches are listed, and you can manually select components and deploy them immediately. LanGuard provides full remediation services, as scans can be set to handle this automatically when vulnerabilities are detected.

We were impressed with the amount of inventory information LanGuard was able to gather. It correctly identified the OSes on our test systems, along with every installed application, and provided a detailed rundown on all hardware components.

LanGuard's reporting tools are very accessible, as you can pick the entire network, a group or single system from the left pane in the console and choose a report to run on your selection. GFI provides a good range of general security reports and contains the full gamut of regulatory compliance reports for industry standards, including PCI-DSS, HIPAA, SoX and GLBA.

LanGuard 2014 looks good value, as it amalgamates vulnerability scanning, patch management, automated remediation services and compliance reporting into a single product. It's very easy to deploy and manage, and capable of providing a great deal of valuable information about your network systems and their security postures. CS

Product: LanGuard 2014
Supplier: GFI
Tel: 0870 770 5370
Web site: www.gfi.com
Price: 100-249 IPs, £10 per IP