In mid-February, Check Point invited attendees to the CPX event in Vienna, where around 4,500 participants gathered information about the latest developments in firewalls. In the keynote address, Check Point founder and CEO Gil Shwed introduced the new high-end “Quantum Force” series of firewalls, which are designed to set new standards in performance and throughput. With a total of ten new models across three series, the provider aims to meet the security needs of its customers. The new devices in the Quantum Force series 9000 target the traditional perimeter firewall scenario, the 19000 series is intended for securing large enterprises, and the most powerful variant, the 29000, is designed to protect data streams within large data centers.
Firewalls for All Sizes
For the top model, the Quantum Force 29200 Security Gateway, the manufacturer claims impressive specifications: up to 63.5 Gbps of data throughput during threat analysis and a maximum of 1400 Gbps during firewall operation. At the same time, Check Point states that it has further optimized energy efficiency compared to previous models, citing a power consumption of 0.7 watts per Gbps. The port density of this data center-oriented device is also noteworthy: it can support up to 14 100-Gbps ports and up to 56 10-Gbps ports when fully populated with seven expansion slots. The high performance is enabled by two CPUs contributing a total of 64 cores, working in conjunction with ASICs developed by NVIDIA; however, Check Point did not disclose further details regarding the specifications.
For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the manufacturer offers the Quantum Spark series for environments with up to 1,000 users. The smallest models (1535 Pro, 1555 Pro, and 1575 Pro), which have been available for some time, are intended for sites with one to 50 users, offering WiFi 6 and a throughput ranging from 440 to 650 Mbps. New are the two larger models (Spark 1900 and 2000), which the manufacturer classifies as suitable for companies with 500 to 1,000 users, with throughput capabilities of 4 and 5 Gbps, respectively.
The complete article will appear in the May 2024 issue of IT Administrator magazine and will be available online at it-administrator.de.
